Proofreader

Are you passionate about changing the way we treat animals? Do you want to help reduce damage to our environment? Do you want to get people to enjoy healthy vegan food that looks good and tastes great?

The Vegan Society makes veganism more accessible and an easily adopted approach by supporting individuals, policy and decision makers, caterers, manufacturers, health care professionals and the media.

Why do we need you?

We produce written content over multiple platforms, and in a variety of styles. Written content will include our magazine The Vegan, blogs, press releases, website copy, handbooks, role descriptions and more.

What does the role involve?

This role will form a part of a bank of volunteers who focus on proofreading. You will need to proofread copy to a deadline and using The Vegan Society Style Guide to ensure consistency across all our copy. We will contact you with a proofreading task and ask if you have the availability to take it on. If you agree, you will be given the copy as well as our Style Guide and asked to return the proofread version to your point of contact by a set date.

What training and support is available?

Volunteering in this area will come with a full induction to the blog, the magazine, and the staff you will be working with. We are always prepared to deliver specific training on specific skills, as identified throughout volunteering. However, this is an independent role that is done remotely, and contact with staff will be mainly over email, so it is ideally suited to someone who is able to be self-sufficient.

What skills and attributes are needed for this role?

• Experience of proofreading in a professional capacity or evidence of the equivalent qualifications
• Excellent grasp of written English and grammar
• Ability to work independently
• Experience of working to a brief, including a deadline
• Able to communicate any training or support needs
• Comfortable receiving constructive feedback
• Open to training and development
• Understanding of the importance of an organisation’s tone of voice
• Awareness of The Vegan Society’s history, approach, and work

What does my availability need to be?

This role varies significantly in time required depending on the brief, you will only ever be expected to take on a task that you have reasonable time to complete. Ideally, we’d like all volunteers to be available for around 4 hours a month.

We are also looking for volunteers who have regular availablity to proofread our quartelry magazine, The Vegan. The copy is around 10,000 words and the dates we are looking for are below:

Issue 1

Pre-design proof: end November

Post-design proof: over holiday break (between 1-2 weeks)

Issue 2

Pre-design proof: mid-March

Post-design proof: end March

Issue 3

Pre-design proof: mid-June

Post-design proof: end June

Issue 4

Pre-design proof: mid-September

Post-design proof: end September

Who is this role supported by?

This role is supported by Kaya, Senior Volunteering and Engagement Officer. She oversees all of the volunteer proofreading. However, volunteers will have a different point of contact for each task they complete.