Carers’ Centre Volunteer Policy
What We Do
The Carers’ Centre aim is to support B&NES to reach the aims of the Governments Carers’ Strategy by 2018: “Carers at the heart of the 21st Century to ensure”:
· carers will be respected as expert care partners and will have access to the integrated and personalised services they need to support them in their caring role;
· carers will be able to have a life of their own alongside their caring role;
· carers will be supported so that they are not forced into financial hardship by their caring role;
· carers will be supported to stay mentally and physically well and treated with dignity;
· children and young people will be protected from inappropriate caring and have the support they need to learn, develop and thrive, to enjoy positive childhoods and to achieve against all the Every Child Matters outcomes.
The Carers’ Centre will achieve this by working in partnership with statutory and voluntary organisations to:
· identify carers
· provide access to a range of services and information in response to their needs
· give carers a “collective voice”
· maintain the Carers’ Centre as a sustainable organisation
Why We Involve Volunteers
Volunteers are at the heart of our organisation. They help us achieve our aims of supporting carers and giving them a voice. We value the skills and experience they bring to our organisation. They enable us to expand our reach with the community and volunteers who are or have been carers enable us to truly represent the needs of carers.
What Volunteers Do
· Reach more Carers through links with doctors’ surgeries and other community venues
· Provide administrative support
· Befriend individual carers either face to face or keep in touch by phone, providing a listening ear, information and practical support that may include help to reengage with their community
· Assist staff with group activities and social events for carers
· Provide transport for Carers to Carers’ Centre events
· Apply their individual skills to support the work of the organisation
· Serve as a Trustee on the Carers’ Centre Management Committee
· Assisting carers to engage with the services provided by the Centre through telephone support
Diversity
We are committed to offering equal opportunity to volunteers from different backgrounds so that we are representative of the local community that we work in.
We will use Equal Opportunities processes to ensure all volunteer enquiries are followed up fairly. We will ensure the recruitment process is clear and accessible. Volunteers will be treated fairly and provided with clear information on working practices.
Expectations
The Carers’ Centre will value volunteers in their role by:
· training and equipping them
· developing appropriate skills
· providing opportunities to gain satisfaction and appreciation
· providing supervision, support and an opportunity to gain and give feedback
· Enabling full involvement in the organisation and an opportunity to become a member
· Reimburse expenses
Volunteers can expect to gain:
· Satisfaction from making a difference to carers’ lives
· Opportunities to gain in self confidence
· Social contact by working and networking as part of a team
· Information and wider understanding of issues facing carers
· Adequate support to carry out their role.
· New skills and the opportunity to enhance existing ones.
In return the Carers’ Centre expects volunteers to:
· Be guided by staff
· Follow their role descriptions
· Abide by the Carers’ Centre policies and procedures
· Act at all time in the best interests of the Carers’ Centre
· Take up a Criminal Records Bureau Check where a volunteer may be lone working or complete a Criminal Convictions self-declaration form at interview stage if there will be no lone working.
1 volunteer policy rev(2) Oct12