Community Volunteer Coordinator (Volunteer role) Lincolnshire Serving Community Team

We are currently recruiting for a community volunteer coordinator to join our Lincolnshire Serving Community Team.

Could you provide emotional and practical support to members of the serving community? Are you skilled at coordinating a small team to ensure that individuals and families receive timely support?

If so, we would love to hear from you!

What is a Community Volunteer Coordinator?

As the coordinator of a small team of Community Volunteers, you would respond to requests for support and match the right volunteer to the request. You would support the team of Community Volunteers, ensuring they remain up to date with their training and knowledge. You could also provide practical or emotional support to families and individuals yourself, maybe with a lift to a medical appointment or by being a listening ear.

What difference will you make?

Armed Forces life can bring its challenges when a loved one is deployed overseas, or a family must move to a new location. Some people can find themselves facing illness, bereavement, or unexpected financial problems. Day-to-day activities can become difficult without a little help. That’s where you come in; could you spare a bit of time to support and coordinate a small team of local Community Volunteers?

What would you be doing?

1. Accepting requests for support, matching Community Volunteers with clients, and overseeing the progress of the support provided.
2. Being available to respond to requests as and when they are received.
3. Contacting beneficiaries and arranging to meet them at their home or in a suitable place depending on their needs, providing practical and emotional support.
4. Welcoming new Community Volunteers to the team, contributing to their inductions, and ensuring they are aware of local processes and have accessed the training and vetting essential to the role.
5. Keeping in touch with your Community Volunteers, providing support, and understanding their availability, skills, and strengths.
6. Following SSAFA’s procedures for supporting clients and ensuring that Community Volunteers are aware of SSAFA policies such as expenses and lone working.
7. Keeping in touch with other volunteers in the local Serving Community Team, such as the Chair.
8. Liaising with employee teams and sharing best practices.
9. Being an ambassador for SSAFA, ensuring welfare providers are aware of the support that SSAFA can provide.

For this role, you will be expected to travel to meet people at home or elsewhere. You will have the option of attending SCT meetings throughout the year, which may be a combination of in-person and virtual.

What about training and support?

1. As part of your induction, you would complete a range of eLearning courses and trainer-led webinars to prepare you for the role. You would then have ongoing access to a range of eLearning courses to keep your knowledge and skills up to date.
2. Volunteers are provided with support from SSAFA’s employee teams, including the Serving Community Support Team and Volunteer Experience Team. SSAFA’s Safeguarding team is available to provide advice and guidance with any safeguarding concerns.
3. We provide opportunities to attend meetings and events to share good practices and learn from other volunteers.
4. Any out-of-pocket expenses will be reimbursed, and all volunteers will be covered by SSAFA's Public Liability insurance while carrying out their role.

What can you gain from this volunteering role?

1. Give back to the serving community.
2. Support people in your local serving community using your skills, knowledge, and life experience.
3. Gain experience, training, and skills that you can highlight on your CV and in job interviews.
4. Receive support and friendship from your local SSAFA Serving Community Team and the wider SSAFA community.

What are we looking for?

1. Friendly and approachable people with effective communication skills, including written and spoken English.
2. Excellent understanding of the importance of boundaries and confidentiality.
3. Experience of organizing or coordinating a team.
4. Empathy and understanding of the challenges that the serving community can face.
5. Ability to travel to meet volunteers and clients.
6. Basic IT skills to be able to use email and access eLearning courses.
7. Non-judgmental approach and alignment with SSAFA’s values and BRAVE standards.
8. A willingness to adhere to all relevant organizational policies and procedures.

We welcome volunteers of all backgrounds, abilities, races, sexual orientations, socio-economic backgrounds, and of all faiths and none. SSAFA is committed to making reasonable adjustments to support volunteers with disabilities, so they have access to the same opportunities and experiences as volunteers who do not.

Minimum Age: 18

Safer Recruitment: SSAFA undertakes a systematic approach and utmost care at every step of the process of volunteer recruitment, selection, and retention to ensure that those recruited are suitable and appropriate. Measures taken at points along this journey work together to make volunteering at SSAFA a positive and safe experience.

References Required: Yes. We will ask for two character references; this can be a former employer or someone that knows you well (other than a relative).

Is a criminal record check required? Yes, this role requires an enhanced check (including checks against the children and adults barred list), it is provided by SSAFA at no cost to the potential volunteer.

*A disclosure certificate that contains convictions, cautions, warnings, reprimands, or other information may not automatically mean that you are not able to volunteer. All certificates will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis and, where possible, a modified or alternative role will be offered.

How do I find out more? Visit us online at Serving community volunteering | Volunteering | SSAFA to find out more about SSAFA’s support to the serving community, browse available roles, and let us know you’re interested.

Alternatively, you can email sct.interest@ssafa.org.uk for more information.

Please note this is a volunteer role and does not form part of any contract of employment.