Programmes coordinator volunteer roles

The Children's Book Project is a national charity on a mission to tackle book poverty. We passionately believe that every child should have the opportunity to own a book and have, in the last year, celebrated gifting our 1 millionth book! We are looking for some wonderful volunteers to help us in managing book sorting and packing with a range of amazing corporate volunteers at our three HQs in Birmingham, Leeds and London.

We gift beautiful pre-loved and new books to schools and we gift within prison settings in order to reach children who may not otherwise have access to book ownership.

We are looking for volunteers in Birmingham, Leeds and London able to help us in the running of our book sorting days at each of our three HQs.  Ideally you will be able to commit to 2-3 days per half term.  (We work term-times only).  Our hours are 10am - 2:30pm.

We work with a range of amazing corporate volunteer teams who come to organise, sort and then pack our books in preparation for delivery. These corporate days are always full of energy and fun and we are looking for energetic and passionate people to support these events as Volunteer Coordinators - helping to make sure that there is a warm welcome, a clear plan for the day and that our one-off visitors can contribute productively.

What is required:

• On average, a commitment to 2 days per half term 
• Flexibility to travel to your local HQ for sorting and corporate volunteering days
• A can-do attitude and enjoyment of working as part of a team.

In return, you’ll get to be part of an extraordinary family of volunteers as we make a real and lasting difference to young lives – there is almost an immeasurable benefit to empowering a child to read for pleasure and we believe that no child should be denied access to a book through poverty. We would love your support!

We are looking to recruit a Youth Programme Coordinator, for a minimum commitment of 6 months, to manage our Youth Programme. The Youth Programme works with young refugees and asylum seekers in the Epirus region of Northern Greece, providing them with a sense of community and experiences that they wouldn’t otherwise receive!

In this role,  you would be coordinating the daily planning and delivery of activities for young refugees in the sites in which we're operating in the Epirus region of Northern Greece.

The programme usually consists of English classes, thematic and social and emotional learning workshops and excursions. The programme engages children between the ages of 8 and 16.

For this role, you would initially work as a Youth Programme team member so that you could develop an understanding of the programme, the people involved, and the organisation as a whole.

Your role would include:

• Coordinating, delegating, and managing a team of 2-5 team members in the daily operations of the Youth Programme

• Directly supervising and supporting team members, providing feedback to ensure the quality of the programme remains high

• Delivering effective inductions to transfer key skills/knowledge to team members

• Developing the current programme in coordination with the Education Manager and Youth Programme team members

• Assessing the impact and effectiveness of the programme in line with its objectives

• Planning and delivering effective and dynamic educational and outdoor activities, within a theme-based curriculum

• Training new team members in appropriate behavioural management techniques

• Capturing data and compiling evaluation reports on the programme

You should be able to:

• Prioritise and delegate tasks effectively

• Manage a wide range of tasks and intense workload effectively and efficiently 

• Manage individuals effectively to create a positive team environment in which shared problem solving is encouraged

• Oversee the delivery of programme activities and the completion of vital administrative and logistical tasks

• Be honest and transparent; be able to give and receive feedback in the most straightforward way

• Communicate in English, both written and orally

• Learn quickly, managing a wide-ranging and intense workload

• Understand what is required to work and effectively communicate in complex and volatile contexts

• Care for people: the interests of the people we work with should always be your first concern

The ideal candidate will have:

• Experience working with children specifically in the refugee context

• Experience in leadership roles and have knowledge in how to effectively manage a team

• Knowledge of pedagogical tools and programmes suitable to children in the refugee context 

What do we offer?

• A nurturing and collaborative working environment. We work hard to help our team members grow; investing in personal and professional development.

• Accommodation in a shared house

• Transportation to/from work

• After completion of a three-month trial, if you commit long-term, a small monthly expenses refund

In certain periods of the year, demand is extremely high, and the shared houses might be full. If you have the means to pay for your own accommodation, please let us know. We would still be happy to host you if space is available. However, in a situation where the shared houses are full, this would allow us to offer an opportunity to someone that cannot afford to pay rent.

Looking for an internship?

If, because of your degree or for any other reason, you would like to have your period at Second Tree credited as an internship, just apply to the vacancy that you’re interested in and mention this. We have agreements with several universities across Europe, and in many other cases, these agreements can be developed on an ad hoc basis.