Volunteer Telford

Passionate about health and wellbeing? Want to help support your family, friends and the local community to lead healthier lifestyles?

Health Champions are volunteers living in Telford and Wrekin who care about the health and wellbeing of those around them. They bring a mixture of their own life experiences, skills and training to make positive changes within their communities and help others to enjoy healthier lives.

Supporting the community as a Health Champion can include a mixture of exciting roles and activities. You can incorporate the role into day-to-day life through engaging in discussions and signposting around healthy lifestyles with others, like friends and family.

You will also be provided with the opportunity to find out more about a variety of health-related topics.

As well as raising awareness, there are opportunities for you to become more active in your community such as promoting public health messages at local community events or supporting local services with health and well-being related schemes.

What is the time commitment?

Time commitment is flexible, but on average one hour per week would be helpful to the role.

It is possible to fit the role into your existing day to day life and there are also opportunities to support others outside of your networks on both a regular and ad hoc basis. 

If you would like to get involved in events and projects, you can choose where and when you would like to help out.

What will I get out of being a Health Champion?

Benefits to you include access to training, improving your own emotional and physical health, being involved in your local community, making new friends and gaining new skills.

Do you have the passion and skills to help empower a young person to develop and grow?

The Children’s Society’s Climb project is a preventative service that supports children and young people (10-17) who are at risk of being exploited or exposed to criminal activity. Climb is funded by West Mercia’s Police and Crime Commissioner and works with young people in Worcestershire, Herefordshire, Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin. The service aims to reduce a young person’s risk of exploitation by providing them with great role models and positive activities to give them the opportunity to enjoy new skills in a safe environment. 

Our Volunteer Mentors will support these young people and assist them to engage in positive activities. These activities include but are not limited to, sport, crafts, music and dance. Mentors will also be asked to spend a small amount of time with the young person outside of these activities – spending time with them in the community, giving you both an opportunity to talk and listen.

This is a rewarding role and you will be part of a friendly team providing you with support and ongoing supervision. You do not need any specific qualifications as full training for your role will be provided.

Due to the nature of the role, you will need to be able to commit to a minimum of 3 hours per week for a minimum of 6 months. We will do our best to match you with a young person within your area. Expenses are paid.

What will this role require you to do?

- Build a supportive and trusting relationship with a young person.

- Schedule meetings with the young person and undertake different activities of their interest such as music, art, playing football in the park or engaging in school activities.

- Actively listen to them and their views, support them with any issues and encourage the young person to engage with school and other services as appropriate.

- Support the young person to achieve personal goals, obtain skills for the future or apply for educational, employment or vocational opportunities as appropriate.

- Communicate any safeguarding concerns with the Volunteer Co-ordinator or other agencies as appropriate.

- Submit contact notes within 24 hours of each contact/visit with the young person and attend agreed supervision sessions with the Volunteer Coordinator.

What can we offer you?

- Full induction and training for your role with The Children’s Society.

- On-going support and guidance from your Volunteer Coordinator including regular one-to-one supervision.

- Access to a broad range of online learning modules and courses.

- Recognition of your commitment and achievements.

- A reference outlining your achievements.

- Reimbursement of reasonable expenses.

- The experience of volunteering within a frontline team with a charity that has a great national reputation.

- The opportunity to gain an understanding of the issues facing vulnerable young people within your community and the chance to make a positive difference to their lives.

The Telford Repair café is a volunteer organisation protecting and safeguarding the environment for the public benefit through the promotion of repair and re-use of products as a means of preventing and minimising waste. 

We currently move around community sites in Telford offering the opportunity for people to come along with items for repair and for our volunteers to understand if or how they can be repaired often leading to a repair there and then.

We have many volunteer opportunities that only take up 3-4 hours a month, providing a chance to make a real difference to communities and the environment.  

We are looking for volunteers with repair skills whether in sewing, electrical, IT or just someone who likes to be challenged by a need for something to work or be functional again. 

Alternatively you might be someone wanting to develop your skills through watching and being mentored by other volunteer repairers.     

We are also looking for people that can give a few hours a month to admin, registration, volunteer support or marketing all of these roles being valuable to the future success of the Telford Repair Cafe.

Ironbridge Coracle Trust is a small, registered CIO (Charity No. 1161685) focused on telling the story of the Ironbridge Coracle and its relevance to the wonderful World Heritage Site of the Ironbridge Gorge.  The Trust was established in 2015 and now has a strong core of 8 Trustees with varying skills that they bring to the board.

In 2019 the Trust was successful in securing National Lottery Heritage Funding and the project will be completed by the end of October 2022. The project has enabled the Trust to restore the Old Coracle Shed, create a Coracle Man Sculpture, and a New Shed which is now a visitor attraction telling the story of Coracles in Ironbridge, and run a varied programme of community focused events.

As the project comes to an end, we need to look at sustainability of the Trust without the financial support of the Heritage Fund. This can only be achieved by growing our fundraising. Therefore, we are looking a new Trustee with Charity or Heritage Sector Fundraising experience to ensure our resilience post project.

The Role of the Trustee

Ironbridge Coracle Trustees share ultimate responsibility for governing the charity and directing how it is managed and run.

As a Trustee you will help develop and set the strategic aims, objectives, and direction of the charity. The skills and knowledge you bring will enhance the Board and support the Trust.

There is a core of Trustees who are very active in the delivery of events and organisational tasks, whilst others play a more strategic and guiding role.  All have something to offer the Trust.

Summary of Role: Ironbridge Coracle Trust (the Trust) is looking to appoint a new trustee with a professional background in charity fundraising to join Ironbridge Coracle’s Board of Trustees

Commitment: Flexible, initially we envisage more hours to help set up a fundraising strategy, but after this it may only take a few hours a month.

Fundraising Strategy

Once the project finishes at the end of October 22 the Trust will have no paid staff.  The Trust is currently clarifying its liabilities and developing a business plan for post project. The annual running costs are in the region of £7.5k- £10K with additional funding needing to be secured for discrete projects.

The Trust currently fundraises through a ‘mixed economy’ approach

- Sales of merchandise- (currently very limited)

- Sponsorship/ support from a local business

- Donations

- Events and activities including the annual Ironbridge Coracle Regatta

- Grants: four of the Trustees have experience in writing funding bids and as a small charity the Trust has been successful in raising funds this way.