Volunteer Telford

From September 2017, The Children’s Society will be opening a mental health drop-in centre in Telford and Shropshire where children and young people aged between 0 and 25 years can visit without needing an appointment or a referral, for immediate support with their mental and emotional health.

Our Wellbeing Volunteers are a vital part of our team, offering a compassionate listening ear to young people who need a safe space to talk, helping them to achieve their personal goals and helping to ensure that they have a voice in decisions which affect them.

This would be an excellent opportunity for anyone studying a related subject such as counselling, therapy, or psychology who is looking to develop skills and experience in the area of mental health, although qualifications and previous training are not essential as full training will be provided. However, you will need to be a friendly and reliable person with the ability to make others feel welcome and at ease, have excellent communication skills and be willing to learn.

Volunteer responsibilities:

Help to collect, sort and organise items for our swaps and give-away events, such as clothes, books, DVDs and household goods.

Assist in setting up and maintaining our Library of Things.

Engage with members of the public visiting our hub and help to spread our message of sustainable living by encouraging re-use, repurpose and recycling of items and reducing buying new items.

Other straightforward housekeeping tasks as required.

Time Commitment and location:

Initially the volunteer would be needed on one or two days per month, usually a Saturday, to help at our swaps and giveaways. These take place at different community centres around Telford.

We can help by offering transport if that would be a problem.

They would also be invited to attend our regular zoom meetings which take place fortnightly on a Monday evening at 7:30 pm. The time commitment would increase when we have secured a permanent base for our Hub. This will be in Wellington.

We are part of the national network of Climate Emergency Centres and one of the first to be set up.

Our team of trustees are knowledgeable and enthusiastic, ready to support the volunteer in helping to spread our message.

The volunteer will report to our trustees.

They will not be responsible for any other team members.

Initial training will include: Background and Aims of our organisation; a tour of the premises; Volunteer role description and agreement; how to use any relevant equipment; who's who and what they do; health and safety information; problem solving procedures; who will help and supervise them.

No prior training is required.

As the role develops we may offer training and education in various aspects of sustainable living and other basic training such as Health and Safety.

A DBS check will not be required as the volunteer will be working under close supervision of our trustees.

The volunteers experience will be monitored and evaluated by informal briefing and de-briefing sessions.

Read Easy Telford and Shropshire East is affiliated to Read Easy UK, a national charity that helps adults learn to read and which has nearly 60 groups across England.

Read Easy Telford & Wrekin was established in 2019 and continues to grow to be a highly impactful local group with an increasing number of Reading Pairs (Reading Coach and Reader).

It is run by a hard-working, dedicated group of team members, all of whom are also volunteers.
The group is now seeking a new Referral Networker (Telford area).

This is a vital and interesting role within our Management Team to create and develop relationships with local agencies, such as Job Centres, social services and many others who may be able to refer potential readers to the group.

This voluntary position will suit people who thrive on networking and making new connections. The longevity of our local groups is down to securing a steady stream of Reader referrals, so you will play an instrumental part in making sure your group thrives.

Arleston Community Centre in Wellington is a trustee and volunteer led facility in the heart of the community of Arleston. We hire space to a wide range of community groups and organisations, along with individuals looking to hire event space.

We are looking for more volunteers to support with Maintenance & Gardening at the centre. 

In this role we are looking for someone to support with maintenance and gardening at the community centre to ensure a safe and welcoming environment for all our hirers and visitors.