Social Welfare Volunteer Roles in Berkshire

Telephone Support Volunteers play a vital part at The Ealing Older People Floating Support Service as they support Floating Support Workers with well-being calls. Service Users are called on a weekly basis to ensure their welfare and safety. Telephone Volunteers exhibit exceptional listening and communication skills, with the ability to understand the needs of older people and empathise with them.

Role Description

Come join our team working to help change the lives of some of the most vulnerable people in society. Ranked 2023 Q4 by Best Companies as the 8th best charity to work for in the UK, Medaille Trust is one of the UK’s leading charities in the fight against modern slavery. Our innovative model is based on three principles: Prevent, Protect and Pursue.  We are one of the UK’s largest providers of survivor services, with ten safehouses and six outreach hubs, staffed round the clock by specialist staff, working with more than 600 men, women and dependent children each year.  We work to raise awareness in the UK and to provide preventive work in source countries. Our Pursue work helps survivors to engage with police and within the legal system to seek justice and to secure convictions against their perpetrators.

Our volunteers come from all walks of life and have a wide range of experience and motivations. Whatever your reason for deciding to volunteer, we want to make sure you enjoy your time with us and know just how much we value your support.

Many of our service users don’t use English as their first language and rely on high quality translation to understand information. Therefore, we are looking for volunteers who can accurately translate English text into any of the languages below:

Mandarin, Bengali, Arabic, Amharic, French, Albanian, Vietnamese, Romanian, Polish, Tigrinya, Punjabi, Urdu and Hindi.

Volunteers need to:

•Be at least 18 years old

•Hold a translating or interpreting qualification or to hold a degree (in any subject) and be fluent in speaking and writing in English, and one or more of the languages above

•Have excellent command of English and other language(s)

•Have grammatical accuracy

•Have excellent proof-reading skills including IT skills

•Have use of own computer

•Be willing to have a basic DBS check

•Have the willingness to learn about human trafficking issues

•Have the ability to maintain confidentiality

To apply please complete an application form on our website.

Befriending Volunteer

You can make a difference…Age UK Wandsworth is a small, local, independent charity that has been working with older people in the area since 1963. We rely on your support to keep serving the older residents with in the Wamdsworth community. We have a dedicated team of experienced staff and a large network of dedicated local volunteers. Our aim is to enable everyone to age well in Wandsworth. We would love your help to be able to continue to support older Wandsworth residents.

Our Be-a-Friend service is one of our longest running services, matching people over 65, who live alone and have limited social contact, with a friendly local volunteer with similar hobbies and interests. The volunteer and their new friend set up a suitable time for them to meet each week for a chat and a cup of tea, which could be during the day, in the evening on the way home from work or even on the weekends . If you would prefer to volunteer from home, you can also be matched with an older person for telephone befriending. For many of our matched pairs, this is the beginning of a firm friendship. 

Befriending Plus

Befriending Plus is an extended version of the Be-a-Friend programme, for individulas needing help with life admin and small tasks as well as companionship. For Befriending Plus pairs, time spent together can include helping to use a phone or tablet, helping the client to organise their file, going out for a coffee or popping to the post office together. This support can help older people to stay independent at home for longer, as well as increasing their confidence to do these tasks when the volunteer is not there.

Do you enjoy meeting new people and chatting?

Do you have an hour to spare weekly, chatting to an Older Person on the Telephone?

Are you happy to provide two referees and complete a DBS check, ( free of charge)?

If so, we would love to hear from you?

Methodist Homes (MHA) is seeking Volunteer Telephone Befrienders to support our members and residents in various locations nationwide.

Through specialist care homes, thriving retirement living and vibrant community groups and befriending, we inspire the best care and wellbeing at every stage of later life.

With 80 years experience, we put people at the heart of everything we do in all our homes, schemes and community services across Britain.

The ideal individual will have an understanding of the needs of Older People, be kind and compassionate and enjoy the company of Older People.

What training and support will be provided:

• We will provide you with a full induction for the role
• Training on safeguarding, health and safety and other training and updating of skills and knowledge relevant to the role as appropriate
• Ongoing support from a named contact
• Out of pocket expenses in accordance with MHA’s Expenses Policy
• Dementia Friends online course-(if you wish)
• Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (as needed)

Times and Commitment

· We ask that you make a minimum of 4-6 months commitment to this role

· We ask you to be able to commit on a regular basis, to be agreed with your named contact

We will guide you through an application which takes 2-3 weeks. You will have a dedicated Recruiter, who will meet you on a video call.

Still interested? Great, apply to me via indeed and we can arrange a meeting within a few days, to do your informal interview.

Do you enjoy meeting new people and chatting?

Do you have an hour to spare weekly, chatting to an Older Person on the Telephone?

Are you happy to provide two referees and complete a DBS check, ( free of charge)?

If so, we would love to hear from you?

Methodist Homes (MHA) is seeking Volunteer Telephone Befrienders to support our members and residents in various locations nationwide.

Through specialist care homes, thriving retirement living and vibrant community groups and befriending, we inspire the best care and wellbeing at every stage of later life.

With 80 years experience, we put people at the heart of everything we do in all our homes, schemes and community services across Britain.

The ideal individual will have an understanding of the needs of Older People, be kind and compassionate and enjoy the company of Older People.

What training and support will be provided:

• We will provide you with a full induction for the role
• Training on safeguarding, health and safety and other training and updating of skills and knowledge relevant to the role as appropriate
• Ongoing support from a named contact
• Dementia Friends online course-(if you wish)
• Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (as needed)

Times and Commitment

· We ask that you make a minimum of 4-6 months commitment to this role

· We ask you to be able to commit on a regular basis, to be agreed with your named contact

We will guide you through an application which takes 2-3 weeks. You will have a dedicated Recruiter, who will meet you on a video call.

We are looking for a highly motivated Partnerships Officer in maintaining our relationships with charities and enterprises

We are looking for someone to help develop and maintain our partnerships with charities and social enterprises

You should be confident in drafting and building proposals; managing the organisation's CRM system and reporting data to the Head of Partnerships.

You will hold a hands-on role working in a small team and you will be comfortable working alone and/or in a team on projects, proposing how best to support and deliver them in collaboration with other departments. 

Some of our past campaigns:

• Promoting Zero Waste
• Tackling modern slavery across the globe
• Improving disability equality in the UK
• Improving mental health in the UK
• Supporting people facing homelessness in the UK

Through promotion we also engage with users of our app and website. By giving people actionable opportunities to help further the cause of our chosen campaigns (i.e. donating to certain charities, writing to your local MP, links to sign petitions), we work to create an engaging space whereby anyone can help contribute and tackle some of the challenges we face today.

Your role:

• Working with the Head Of Partnerships to identify potential charity and social enterprise partners.
• Contacting charities to form potential partnerships.
• Building relationships with existing partners.
• Working with the wider team to plan and execute campaigns and initiatives.
• Writing and designing proposals to potential partnerships.
• Support the Head of Partnerships in delivering the strategic initiatives to enable us to achieve our long-term growth and vision

Your impact:

Our work involves reaching out to charities and social enterprises to work with us, they then suggest improvements and propose actions to support their work

Thus your input will help maintain relations with our partners and help identify new opportunities

Who we are looking for:

We're primarily looking for someone who's had experience in managing relationships with businesses, such as in communications or business development, and someone who enjoys working with people.

They should preferably have working knowledge of Gmail and slack, as well as having experience maintaining CRM

Are you a dynamic fundraising leader with a talent of developing new relationships and creating new sustainable sources of income?

Now-u is a non-profit website and app, launched in July 2020 with a mission to inform, involve and inspire people to help tackle some of the world's most pressing environmental and social problems related to i) human rights and welfare, ii) protecting the world around us, and iii) preserving our species and the planet.

Some of our past campaigns:

• Promoting Zero Waste
• Tackling modern slavery across the globe
• Improving disability equality in the UK
• Improving mental health in the UK
• Supporting people facing homelessness in the UK

Through promotion we also engage with users of our app and website. By giving people actionable opportunities to help further the cause of our chosen campaigns (i.e. donating to certain charities, writing to your local MP, links to sign petitions), we work to create an engaging space whereby anyone can help contribute and tackle some of the challenges we face today.

How we create a campaign:

• The team looks at what issues would be best to tackle for a particular month
• It considers multiple factors: Recent developments impacting charitable causes, public and media attention, upcoming parliamentary debates and more
• We prepare a proposal for the campaign, gathering info, learning materials and suggested actions to complete
• We then reach out to charities and social enterprises to work with us
• They suggest improvements, and propose actions to support their work
• We prepare all these materials to be presented in accessible and engaging ways on the app
• We use other supporting materials like campaign videos, blog articles and social media

The difference you will make in this role

We are seeking an experienced senior fundraiser manager to join our team and lead in the development and delivery of our new fundraising strategy.

This is a new role where you would be instrumental in increasing our supporter base to provide us with an income to grow. 

The ideal person would bring leadership and management experience and have a track record in strategy development, budgets, working to target and KPIs.

Working independently you would:

• Action a fundraising strategy approved by the chief executive & senior leadership team.
• Agree a departmental budget and work to achieve or exceed a fundraising target.
• Co-ordinate and manage fundraising, comprising community, trust, corporate, major donor and digital fundraising, across the organisation.
• Motivate a team of volunteers who engage in fundraising activities
• Build relationships with charitable trusts, foundations and other institutional funders.
• Lead funding applications with regards to charitable trusts, foundations, grants & competitions.
• Develop a strategy to attract corporate partners/sponsors.
• Prepare reports and give presentations on fundraising progress to the senior leadership team and the trustee board.

What are we looking for?

• Excellent written and oral presentation skills: Head of fundraising needs to make regular presentations to trustees, senior managers or potential donors/sponsors and write winning fundraising applications.
• Networking/Relationship Management skills: Head of fundraising will be called upon to represent the organisation to corporates & donors and persuade them that their cause is one they should contribute to.
• Effective project management skills: Ability to lead and co-ordinate fundraising initiatives with the support of volunteers.
• Digital skills: The organisation is centred around mobile/online technology and the Head of fundraising will need to be adept at using these technologies and be aware of their fundraising potential.
• Innovation skills: Strong ideas about how to hit fundraising targets in this climate. 
• Budget management skills: You need to be able to work effectively with limited resources.

Essential experience

• Proven track record in developing and delivering fundraising strategies
• Knowledge of good fundraising procedures for the voluntary sector
• Knowledge of current fundraising guidelines and legislation
• Proven ability in producing effective, and inspiring proposals and funding reports

By becoming a Bereavement Support Volunteer, you will be working with bereaved clients in your local area - Crawley, Horsham and Mid Sussex to provide one-on-one support via the telephone and via Zoom for up to six sessions per client.

Full Beravement foundation training is provided over a six week period and additional Safeguarding training is required and a DBS check.

Why volunteer with Brendoncare Clubs?

Brendoncare aims to improve the quality of life for those who are more isolated in our communities. Brendoncare operates social and activity clubs, community services and online clubs. They enable our members to develop relationship networks and each service aims to respond to the interests, needs, aspirations and choices of each individual.

Brendoncare Community Allotments is an ambitious project which aims to produce fantastic home grown delights, grown for the community by the community. All of our services are run by fantastic teams of volunteers and we’re currently looking for more people to get involved in your local area.

Who are you?

Brendoncare are looking for happy, enthusiastic individuals to help at our fantastic new community allotments. Ideally, you will be a team player, happy to get involved, and ready to make a difference! You might be green fingered or a total beginner, Brendoncare provides training and support throughout your volunteering.

What is required?

Volunteering at our community allotment will involve getting stuck in with some gardening, an average session might involve: assisting with preparing seedlings, looking after the plot (pruning, tidying, and watering), and safe light maintenance. We also host planning meetings which you will be encouraged to get involved in to help shape the direction of the allotment.

We ask for two satisfactory references and an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check from all our volunteers.

What are the benefits for you?

Our allotment helper role allows you to expand and develop at your own pace. We provide you with an induction, ongoing training, support and reimbursement of out of pocket/travel expenses.

This is a fantastic opportunity to give something back to the community and to experience the positive impact your volunteering can have to help improve the lives of older people in your area.

We would like to hear from anyone who would be interested in joining the CARA Board of Trustees.   Please see our CARA Trustee Role Description below for details of what is involved, and the qualities, skills and expertise we are looking for.   If you would be interested in becoming a CARA Trustee, please contact us explaining why you would like to become a CARA Trustee, and providing a brief summary of the skills you would bring to the CARA Board.

Please note that  this is an unpaid role.  Trustees' travel and other expenses will be covered.

Role Description

CARA (Centre for Action on Rape and Abuse) works with victims and survivors of sexual violence and child sexual abuse, providing independent, specialist support and promoting and representing their rights and needs. CARA works with adults of all genders, young people (aged 12-19) and children aged under 12 from across mid and north Essex.

Over the last 8 years, CARA has grown significantly. Our client numbers have more than quadrupled and we now offer a wide range of services to victims and survivors of all ages and genders. We currently have a team of 40 full and part-time staff and over 20 sessional counsellors.

CARA is interested in hearing from people who might like to join our Board. As a CARA Board member, you will have an opportunity to be actively involved in the running of a forward-thinking and fastdeveloping feminist charity. Our Board of trustees provide strategic direction and governance to CARA, supporting the management team and overseeing all aspects of our work. CARA’s Board of Trustees are also registered as our directors for the purposes of company law.

CARA trustees have the following statutory duties and responsibilities:

• To set and maintain vision, mission and values.

• To develop strategy.

• To establish and monitor policies.

• To set up employment procedures.

• To ensure compliance with CARA’s governing document (constitution).

• To ensure accountability.

• To ensure compliance with the law.

• To maintain proper financial oversight.

• To respect the role of staff.

• To maintain effective Trustees performance.

• To promote CARA.

Other duties:

In addition to the above statutory duties, each trustee should use any specific skills, knowledge or experience they have to help the Board reach sound decisions. This may involve:

• Scrutinising board papers.

• Leading and contributing to discussions.

• Focusing on key issues.

• Providing guidance on new initiatives.

A CARA trustee should have the following qualities:

• Integrity

• The skills and experience to make informed decisions on governance of a charity.

• A commitment to CARA and our vision, mission, aims and values.

• Willingness to devote the necessary time and effort.

• Strategic vision.

• Good, independent judgement.

• Ability to think creatively.

• Understanding and acceptance of the legal duties, responsibilities and liabilities of trusteeship. Please refer to the Charity Commission guidance 

• Ability to work effectively as a member of a team.

Our current Board have a wide range of skills, and we regularly conduct skills audits to ensure our Board has the expertise needed to ensure CARA’s effective governance. To enhance our existing Board of Trustees, we are particularly seeking applications from people with the following skills and experiences:

• Business acumen

• Income generation

• Knowledge of the Women’s Sector

• Property and premises management.

People from Black and minority ethnic groups are currently under-represented on CARA’s Board of Trustees, and we particularly welcome applications from people from these groups. Applications from survivors of sexual violence or child sexual abuse are always welcome.

All members of CARA’s Board of Trustees are required to make a minimum commitment to the organisation. This includes attendance at Trustees meetings, which are held every other month, starting at 7.30pm. Meetings are usually held on Zoom, but occasional travel to Colchester for face-to-face meetings is also required.

All trustee appointments will be conditional on an enhanced DBS (Disclosure and Barring Service) check, and satisfactory references.

TRUSTEE DIRECTOR TREASURER - ANTHONY TOBY HOMES TRUST (ATHT)

The ATHT provides a unique package of care for people with learning disabilities to live together in a group home, enabling them to enjoy normal and fulfilled lives as part of the local community, experiencing the same rights and opportunities as everyone else.  As a member of the Trustee Board the Trustee Director Treasurer has particular responsibility for overseeing the accounting function of  ATHT.

Come join our volunteering team to help change the lives of some of the most vulnerable people in society. Ranked 2023 Q3 by Best Companies as the 6th best charity to work for in the UK, Medaille Trust is one of the UK’s leading charities in the fight against modern slavery. Our innovative model is based on three principles: Prevent, Protect and Pursue.  We are one of the UK’s largest providers of survivor services, with ten safehouses and six outreach hubs, staffed round the clock by specialist staff, working with more than 600 men, women and dependent children each year.  We work to raise awareness in the UK and to provide preventive work in source countries. Our Pursue work helps survivors to engage with police and within the legal  system to seek justice and to secure convictions against their perpetrators.

We are looking for a Prospect Research Volunteer who can aid with researching grant making trusts and foundations to help the wider Fundraising team in their efforts to generate funding for the charity. Tasks will include:

•Identifying suitable grant giving trusts and foundations against a set of criteria

•Reviewing details of registered trusts and foundations in the UK, identifying and working towards funding deadlines

•Extracting and capturing key information to inform application strategies

•Providing support for the preparation of funding proposals

This role will provide an opportunity to gain essential experience and skills in key aspects of fundraising for a charity who supports and empowers survivors of modern slavery and trafficking. The role is focused on prospect research of grant making organisations.

Our volunteers come from all walks of life and have a wide range of experience and motivations. Whatever your reason for deciding to volunteer, we want to make sure you enjoy your time with us and know just how much we value your support.

Volunteers need to:

•Be at least 18 years old

•Have strong research skills with an ability to present information clearly and concisely

•Have your own laptop and use of the internet

•Have the ability to work independently

•Have excellent IT and Microsoft Office skills, knowledge of Word and Excel are essential

•Have the ability to maintain confidentiality

•Have an interest in the Anti-Slavery, Anti-Trafficking and charity sector

•Having fundraising experience is an advantage but not essential 

•Be able to regularly commit on a flexible basic

For full details and how to apply please visit our website and complete an application form.

QMC School, partnered with Quilombo UK is looking for a volunteer personal assistant to join their national volunteering team working from home. This role offers a great opportunity for the right person looking to gain experience as a personal assistant, developing their office-based and management experience, or simply to ‘give back to their community’. The role provides you flexibility, with specific training provided where necessary to help you develop and grow your skill-set.

16 weeks contract.

What will I be doing?

• Managing organisation of meetings and appointment
• Organising events and conferences
• Implementing and maintaining procedures and administrative systems
• Managing databases, Liaising with staff
• Miscellaneous tasks to support the team

Practical Considerations

Essential:

• You will need to have good written skills

• Well organised, pro-active and able to deliver tasks efficiently

• Good time management

• To show professionalism at all levels and in all environments

• Strong team player

• Ability to work independently and ask for clarification when needed

• Able to volunteer at least 12 hours a week (2 days, 6 hours each day)

Desirable:

• Committed to working with the community with a passion for helping others less fortunate

• Proficiency in Microsoft and excel

Requirements

• Will require references

• Own computer or a secure access to one

• Must be UK based and hold UK right to work

The volunteering program with QMC requires a minimum of 21 weeks of commitment. We are looking for someone who can offer 12 hours a week, Monday - Friday.

Upon successful application, our HR team will contact you to arrange an interview. Following a successful interview, we'll initiate the onboarding process by sending you the necessary documents. Once your onboarding and identification documents are received and verified, you'll be invited to a 6-hour HR and System Induction. Subsequently, you'll meet with your Head of Department or Assistant Manager for your First Day.

QuilomboUK is looking for a Bid Writer, who loves to face work challenges; to join their growing team. QuilomboUK works with the objective to promote different arts, sports and cultures to encourage an inter-cultural understanding between different communities and societies; To promote cultural awareness in the community and educate, regardless of nationality or origin, about race diversity and mutual respect; To promote good health and wellbeing; and run a community organisation with a strong focus on individuals, the community and society as a whole.

The Bid Writer/ Coordinator will play a critical role by assisting the manager to prepare the proposal that helps the organization to further develop and establish.

This role offers a great opportunity for the right person who is looking to; gain experience in the Third Sector; love to 'give back to their community'. The role is for you if you are looking for flexibility and autonomy. Where necessary specific training will also be provided to help you develop and grow your skill set. 

16 weeks contract.

Main Responsibilities

• Apart from writing proposals, you will also be reviewing and editing previously written content wherever necessary.

• Working with other team members to produce bid responses and writings

• Helps in writing funding applications for the varied projects that we run in order to meet our organisational objectives.

• Also helps in presentations and all supporting documentation.·          

General tasks

• Contribute to staff meetings and other internal meetings with views and suggestions etc.

Essential

• You will need to have good written skills

• Able to write effective, concise and compelling content

• You will be self-starting and willing to research and look for new funding opportunities that match our aims and objectives;

• Ability to work on tight deadlines

• Well organized, proactive and able to deliver tasks efficiently.

• Able to speak confidently with a variety of stakeholders.

• Good time-management skills.

• Proficiency in Microsoft Word and excel.

• To show professionalism at all levels and in all environments

• Strong team player

• Ability to work independently and ask for clarification when needed.

Desirable

• Committed to working with the community with a passion for helping others less fortunate.

• Accurate and attention to detail

 Can work without much supervision

The Professional Development Programme with Quilombo UK runs over a period of 16 weeks, is UNPAID and requires a minimum of 12 hours commitment per week across Monday, Wednesday and/or Friday.

Upon successful application, our HR team will contact you to arrange an interview. Following a successful interview, we'll initiate the onboarding process by sending you the necessary documents. Once your onboarding and identification documents are received and verified, you'll be invited to a 6-hour HR and System Induction. Subsequently, you'll meet with your Head of Department or Assistant Manager for your First Day.