Volunteer Manager

 

JOB DESCRIPTION

 

JOB TITLE:                              Link Worker           

 

SALARY:                                  £7899.84  pa /  £12.66 per hour    

HOURS:                                   12 - 16 hours over 2 -3 days (by negotiation) 

PAY FREQUENCY:              Monthly

 

BENEFITS:

HOLIDAYS:                              5.6 weeks per annum pro rata excluding bank holidays

 

PENSION:                                Employer contribution of 8% (after 3 months)

 

RESPONSIBLE TO:                   Operational Manager

 

LOCATION:                             6-7 Aspen Court, Cleethorpes 

 

 

OVERVIEW OF ORGANISATION

 

Friendship at Home (FaH) is a charity dedicated to supporting older people within North East Lincolnshire (NEL). We believe no older person should be lonely and should have opportunities to engage with their community. We provide an established befriending service, social and exercise activities and offer information and advice on a wide range of issues.  We also provide support for people with Dementia and their families. Although we have grown considerably over the last 15 years with over 800 service users (members) we have remained true and committed to tackling our founding principles of reducing loneliness and isolation. We are a small, dedicated staff team of 12 supported by 110 volunteers. 

 

ROLE SUMMARY:       

 

FaH offer a well-established befriending service, social and wellbeing activities and Dementia support. The Volunteer Link Worker will be responsible for the day-to-day co-ordination of the general volunteer scheme which provides support to all areas of our service.  The role will entail working very closely with the Community Link Worker who will be responsible for the day to day running and coordinating of the befriending service.

 

 

PERSON SPECIFICATION- 

 

1.  

1.  
2. CRITERIA

 

ESSENTIAL OR DESIRABLE

 

 KNOWLEDGE

 

1.  

Knowledge of legal and policy issues relating to volunteering 

D

1.  

Knowledge of current best practice in volunteer management

D

1.  

An understanding of the needs and concerns of older people, including those with dementia

D

 SKILLS & ABILITIES

 

1.  

Planning and organisational skills, including ability to plan, prioritise and deliver a complex workload

E

1.  

Ability to communicate effectively, both in writing and verbally, with people at all levels

E

1.  

Ability to engage and influence colleagues

E

1.  

Ability to produce attractive and accessible marketing and publicity materials

E

1.  

Strong presentation skills, sufficient to deliver training to staff and volunteers

D

1.  

Ability to work alone and as part of a team 

E

1.  

Skills to be self-servicing to a significant extent, including use of ICT

E

 EXPERIENCE

 

1.  

Implementing volunteer management systems and processes

D

1.  

Direct supervision of others

E

1.  

Delivery of training workshops/presentations

D

1.  

Use of social media and online platforms to promote volunteering

D

1.  

Experience of developing relationships with partner organisations

D

1.  

Using client management or in-house databases for recording and collating data

E

1.  

MS Office applications particularly Word and Excel

E

1.  

Experience of using email and the internet

E

 EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES

 

1.  

Commitment to incorporating Equal Opportunities principles into all aspects of work.

 

E

 ADDITIONAL

 

1.  

Must occasionally be able to work outside of usual working hours.

D

1.  

Must have a full driving license and use of a car

E

 

 

 

MAIN DUTIES / RESPONSIBILITIES:

 

Volunteers

• To actively recruit volunteers for a number of roles across the organisation
• To support volunteers in their role by engaging in regular communication and ensure they receive appropriate induction, training, supervision and support.
• Match volunteers with members for befriending
• Hold quarterly volunteer meetings
• Develop and implement effective strategies to recruit volunteers with the right skills to match the interest of the organisation
• Support colleagues to develop new volunteer roles and create appropriate role descriptions
• Work with other staff members to attend events to attract new volunteers 
• Take the lead on reward and recognition activities, such as Volunteers’ Week events
• Design formal or informal activities to recognise the contributions of volunteers to the organisation
• To produce a regular report to the Manager on the current work undertaken.

 

Service Users

• Develop and support volunteer led activities that reach isolated older people in their homes as well as within community venues
• Work closely with partners/referral agencies and funders to ensure a steady flow of beneficiaries into the project.
• To promote the FaH’s ethos in all interactions with professionals, service users, their family and the wider community
• To work in a collaborative client-centred manner with service users, their families/carers and other organisations
• To implement and maintain appropriate risk assessment management processes
• To obtain service user feedback through one to one reviews and attendance at appropriate meetings.
• To work collaboratively with fundraising, media and campaigns teams, sharing responsibility for the achievement of jointly agreed objectives, as appropriate

 

Communication 

• Communicate information in a non-judgemental and understandable way to a variety of stakeholders, service users and other agencies. 
• Ensure that confidentiality is maintained within the boundaries of Data Protection and FaH policy
• Be approachable and an active listener so you encourage engagement of older people with yourself and the service. 
• Be able to adapt to individual communication styles and preferences and be aware of potential barriers
• Confidently represent the organisation at meetings
• Use a variety of communication methods such as face to face, telephone, video conferencing or emails to stay in touch with volunteers, staff, service users and other agencies.

 

 

Evaluation

• To support the team in effective monitoring and evaluation records to capture impact and outcomes and ensure contractual compliance. 

 

· To prepare regular reports including monthly progress updates, impact reports and end of year reports for both internal and external purposes

 

 

Planning

• Plan and organise own workload to meet the needs of project delivery
• To contribute to a weekly programme of activities and social events and ensure it is communicated to all service users
• To participate in the continued development of the service 

 

Finance

• Return all receipts for any petty cash or expenses claimed in a timely manner to enable accurate and prompt accounting/payment.

 

 

Policies and procedures 

• To be familiar with and comply with the charity’s policies and procedures 

• To be proactive in following all Health and Safety requirements 
• Contribute to reviewing FaH policy within the scope of the role

• Participate in the delivery of in-house training courses.
• To support students placed in the service

 

Information

• Maintain accurate and timely records using our in-house database system ‘Lamplight’

 

 

Research 

• To remain up to date with current best practice as detailed in research literature with a view to modifying and developing your own standards of practice and sharing those with the service

 

PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITIES

 

• Promote the organisations missions and values. . 
• Participate in annual Performance and Development Review with manager to identify and agree your own development needs in line with FaH policy. 
• Maintain up to date knowledge and competency in sphere of practice. Undertaking relevant training (including statutory and mandatory training) and be responsible for personal development agreed with the manager.
• Seek appropriate supervision, support and guidance when required form the team 
• Be aware of and comply with legislation, professional codes of conduct and all FaH policies, procedures and protocols. 
• Fully participate in supervision sessions relevant to the role, as required by FaH.
• You may be required to work in different locations as required by service need.
• You may be required to work flexible hours as required by service need.

 

 

The job description gives an outline of key duties and is not intended to be an exhaustive list. The post holder may be asked from time to time to take on other responsibilities as reasonably requires. The post may involve occasional evening or weekend work for which time off in lieu will be given