District Roles: Volunteer Co-ordinator Owen Sedgwick-Jell

...anyone spending their time to support our activities WHO ARE OUR VOLUNTEERS? leaders helpers parents non-parents regular occasional with children support roles ...anyone spending their time to support our activities

Overview of Role Recommended, not compulsory More likely to be filled in an established district Doesn’t need to be hands-on with young people Aspects of role can fall to: district co-ordinator (responding to enquiries) group leaders (publicising opportunities, induction) membership secretary (following up expressions of interest)

VOLUNTEER CYCLE Recruit (Progress) Induct Support Train

PROVIDING EFFECTIVE SUPPORT Promotion of volunteer opportunities Enrolment and induction of new volunteers Considering training needs Ongoing support for volunteers Signposting to development opportunities

Key Relationships - Internal District co-ordinator Membership secretary Group leaders New and existing volunteers Parents & carers

Key Relationships - External Volunteer bureaux Colleges and universities Council for Voluntary Services Major employers Like-minded groups

Key Resources Volunteer Toolkit Volunteer Guide Recruitment Case Studies Flyers & Posters Enrolment Form Volunteer Role Descriptions Induction Checklist Local Safeguarding Plan

Questions to ask Small volunteer teams Have we got a succession plan? Are we making space for new volunteers? Are we open to new ways of working? Large volunteer teams Are we communicating and sharing information effectively? Is it clear who is accountable for decisions? Are groundrules and expectations consistent week to week? If you’ve got lots of volunteers support your group: Is communication working so that volunteers have got the information they need? Decision-making can be harder when more people need to be involved – but it’s really important to know who’s accountable, say, for deciding if a group night or activity can go ahead. It can be harder to provide consistency – this is important for children & young people, but also to volunteers having a positive experience. Are there ways that a rota could be managed better to provide greater continuity?

QUESTIONS TO ASK ‘Leader led’ groups Is it clear how ‘helpers’ can progress to being ‘leaders’? Do we need more support to cover key roles? What do we need to do to engage with parents? ‘Parent led groups’ Do non-parents feel welcome as volunteers? Are we a bit of a clique? Do we support each other to manage our own children? In a group where the majority of volunteers are parents, sharing out tasks between them: Is the group a welcoming place for non-parent volunteers? Are all out kids at the same school? Do we also tend to socialise together? – this can make it feel difficult for new people to ‘break in’ Have we good a good shared understanding of how we support each other to deal with our own children and manage their behaviour?

BEING INCLUSIVE Clear expenses policy Offer support with residential costs etc. Don’t recruit solely in own image Appropriate publicity material Flexible and varied roles Supervised volunteering Ready to re-examine own practice BUT…our focus remains children & young people Are our camps and residentials accessible to volunteers – is it reasonable to expect people to give up their annual leave, work jolly hard and pay for the privilege?

NEXT STEPS… If you’ve got an hour – quick fixes Register with your volunteer centre – update your profile/adverts Sit down with group leaders to discuss any vacancies Publicise training opportunities from your local CVS Research any employer-supported volunteering in you area Contact your Trade Union branch or Trades Council

NEXT STEPS… Longer projects – setting up processes Agree a process for handling enquiries from potential volunteers Compile an induction checklist for new helpers Do a skills audit with your district’s existing volunteers Plan a training day Run the Working Together programme

NEXT STEPS… In an ideal world – best practice Schedule ‘annual review’ discussions with volunteers Conduct exit interviews Think about ways to recognise the contribution of your volunteers Join a local forum, e.g. Volunteer Co-ordinators network Use ‘Follow the Trail’ to evaluate your impact Share your successes with other groups and distircts

QUESTIONS & COMMENTS