Infrastructure coordinator volunteer roles in Edinburgh

Chair of Trustees role:

You will be chairing the Board of Trustees, ensuring that we have minimum representation required for decisions to be made, keeping the board aligned in decision-making, ensuring all minutes are recorded and that all decisions by trustees are made with the appropriate context provided.

This is a great opportunity to develop further governance skills and experience, and help steer an important charity in the right direction.

Trustees meetings are usually held every six weeks, plus there is an AGM, away days, and any sub-committee meetings that trustees may be involved in. Most meetings will remain virtual but there will from time to time be a need to attend key meetings and events in Nottingham. The time commitment is approximately 4hours per month, but there may be occasions when more time is required for a short period.

Who are we looking for?

• Previous chairing experience
• Relevant experience in any of the following financial management, HR, charities, fundraising, social prescribing, NHS, health inequalities (including deaf community), local authorities, marketing, business development, governance, strategy or legal
• A willingness to devote the necessary time and effort
• Good, independent judgement
• The ability to challenge and ask questions
• An understanding and acceptance of the legal duties, responsibilities and liabilities of trusteeship
• A commitment to Nolan’s seven principles of public life: selflessness, integrity, objectivity, accountability, openness, honesty, and leadership

NB: We are looking for both a Chair of Trustees and additional Trustees (particularly those with a finance background, but other functions are also welcome). If you are interested in a Trustee role instead of the Chair role, please mention this in your covering letter when applying. 

Both the Chair and Trustee positions are unremunerated, but reasonable expenses will be reimbursed.

About Self Help UK

Self Help UK is a leading peer support organisation with over 40 years of experience in developing and delivering peer-led services. Our mission is to empower individuals and communities by embedding peer support principles into health and wellbeing initiatives. We have created a range of innovative programmes that help people living with cancer and other long-term health conditions to navigate challenges and take control of their health and wellbeing.

We work in partnership with Macmillan Cancer Support on projects that make a real difference. These include national and local initiatives for the Deaf community, volunteer-led support for anyone affected by cancer, and prehabilitation services for those facing complex treatment. In 2026, we will collaborate with our Integrated Care System to improve health literacy and increase cancer screening uptake among underserved communities in Nottingham. Looking ahead, we are exploring a new direction to position Self Help UK as a holistic, person-centred support provider, embedding peer support and volunteer-led activity at the heart of everything we do. Our vision is to challenge health inequalities and enable people to feel confident, informed, and supported in shaping their own health journey.

A selection of causes covered by Self Help UK

• Peer support
• Long-term health conditions
• Cancer diagnoses and prevention
• Voluntary sector support
• Health inequalities (including the deaf community)
• Under-served communities

HEAD OF HR & VOLUNTEERING (REMOTE VOLUNTEER ROLE)

Build the backbone. Shape the culture. Power the movement.

Urban Youth is a start-up fast-moving, street‑level start‑up charity bringing high‑impact, urban-style youth work to London. We don’t sit in offices waiting for young people to come to us — we drop into the heart of the city, transforming unused spaces into hubs of creativity, connection, and opportunity.

But every movement needs structure. Every crew needs a culture. Every launch needs someone who can build the scaffolding behind the scenes.

We’re looking for a Head of HR & Volunteering — a founding volunteer leader who can design our systems, shape our people experience, and build the volunteer-powered engine that makes Urban Youth unstoppable.

Your Mission

You’ll be the architect of Urban Youth’s internal world — the person who builds the infrastructure that allows our street-level work to thrive.

You will:

• Design and implement our HR systems, processes, and policies from the ground up

• Build a volunteer programme that feels energising, inclusive, and purpose-driven

• Lead our volunteer recruitment strategy, working with our Volunteer Coordinator

• Shape a culture rooted in positivity, continuous improvement, team spirit, and belonging

• Develop onboarding, training, and support pathways for all volunteers

• Create simple, effective frameworks that help a start-up charity move fast without losing heart

• Work closely with the leadership team to prepare Urban Youth for launch and long-term growth

This is a rare chance to build the foundations of a charity before it takes off.

Who You Are

You don’t need to be a traditional HR professional — though you can be. What matters most is your ability to build systems, nurture people, and create culture.

You might be:

• Someone who loves structure, clarity, and good organisation

• A natural community-builder who believes in people-first leadership

• A champion of positivity, fairness, and continuous improvement

• A creative thinker who enjoys designing processes that actually work

• Someone excited by the idea of shaping a charity’s DNA from day one

Above all, you believe that people are the heart of everything — and you want to build a place where volunteers feel valued, supported, and part of a family.

Why This Role Matters

Urban Youth is volunteer-powered at its core. The systems you build will shape:

• How volunteers join

• How they’re supported

• How they grow

• How they feel

• How we deliver high-impact youth work across London

You’ll be setting the tone for an organisation that moves at the speed of the street — bold, agile, and full of heart.

This is a founding leadership role. A legacy role. A chance to build something that will outlast all of us.

If you want to help build a charity’s entire people ecosystem — and shape a culture rooted in hope, energy, and community — we’d love to hear from you.

Apply now and become the backbone of Urban Youth.