Volunteers needed!

Do you have parenting experience and some spare time?  Would you like to help a local family with young children?

We are currently recruiting for Home Visiting Volunteers   

To apply, please send us a completed Volunteer Application Form Nov 20  as soon as possible and we will contact you to arrange an interview.

The aim of the training course is to prepare new volunteers for their role of working with families on a face-to-face basis and to explore how we can bring about better outcomes for children. We hope to offer the sessions in person as restrictions allow and a venue will be confirmed in due course, but if necessary we will revert to online delivery.

The course will be as follows with sessions running 9.30-2.30. We anticipate that volunteers will attend all sessions.

Session 1:   Tuesday 25th Jan 2022

Session 2:   01st February

Session 3:   08th February

Session 4:   15th February

Session 5:   01st March

Session 6:   08th March

What do Home-Start volunteers do?

Home-Start volunteers aim to build the confidence and independence of a family by:

• Offering support, friendship and practical help.
• Committing to weekly support – via home visiting, walk and talk, telephone or video link with a family as restrictions allow.
• Protecting and respecting the dignity and identity of each individual.
• Reassuring families that difficulties in bringing up children are not unusual.
• Emphasizing the positive aspects of family life.
• Developing a relationship with the family in which time can be shared and an understanding developed, providing a regular, reliable presence in that family.
• Encouraging families to widen their network of relationships and to effectively use the support and services available in the community.
• Drawing on their own experience of parenting to encourage parents’ strengths and emotional well-being for the ultimate benefit of their children.

What is the time commitment?

In addition to weekly family contact (approx. 1.5-2 hours per week)

• Attending the initial course of preparation
• Attending supervision sessions with the Coordinator, according to Home-Start guidance, every 8 weeks
• Attending ongoing training sessions
• A commitment of 1 year to the charity (minimum)

Please complete and return the attached form and we will contact you to arrange a time to talk further about the role and the training we are offering. It would be helpful if you could get the form back to us as soon as possible to give us the time to do this.