Volunteer Advocate Job Description

Job Title

Volunteer Advocate

Location

This job will involve you in working with people in your local and surrounding area. You may be required to visit people at home and to accompany them to meetings. Access to a car is desirable.

Advocacy Role

Your main role is to be an advocate for individual people who want assistance to speak up on a specific issue. The tasks may vary but will usually be done by:-

  • Arranging to meet with the person to discuss their issues and concerns
  • Identifying the specific points the person wants to raise and with whom
  • Agreeing the next course of action which could for example be form filling or writing a letter for/with the person, arranging to contact the appropriate agency for/with the person
  • Attending for example a meeting, review, and tribunal and empowering the person to speak up or assisting by representing the person’s views and wishes.
  • Ensuring that the relevant forms are completed and information recorded

Training

The training course will be arranged to suit the majority of the group either daytime or evening sessions. You must commit to attending all sessions. The course covers advocacy skills, confidentiality, being a volunteer and relevant legislation. Additional training opportunities will be made available on relevant issues.

Support and Supervision

You will receive support that will enable you to carry out your role as an advocate. This will be through one to one supervision with your Advocacy Area Co-ordinator on a regular basis. This will be an opportunity for you to talk through your work, consider any particular difficulties and discuss possible options and identify any additional training needs.

Commitment

We ask that you give a few hours per week. An Advocate needs to be able to work in a flexible way often the work and time involved can vary according to the individual’s needs, this will be taken into consideration when matching you with someone.

There is also a requirement to attend regular individual supervision sessions and group training and support sessions.

Confidentiality

All advocates must maintain strict confidentiality in their work.

Expenses

Out of pocket expenses incurred on behalf of Advocacy Highland are reimbursed on the submission of an expenses claim form.

Advocacy Highland, 2 Seafield Road, Inverness, IV1 1SG

Telephone: 01463 233460 E-mail:

Volunteer Advocate Profile

Below are listed some skills and qualities that it would be useful for an advocate to possess. Please remember that we don’t expect anyone to have all these things, it is only a guideline. However it is essential that you are able to work in a way that respects an individual’s view even if these are different to your own.

Skills

  • The ability to listen and communicate effectively.
  • Assertiveness and diplomacy.
  • The ability to define a problem and work through it.

Qualities

  • Empathy.
  • Reliability.
  • The ability to work in stressful and emotional situations.
  • The ability to set and maintain appropriate boundaries.
  • The ability to keep confidentiality.
  • Self-awareness. An understanding of personal issues and how these can affect your work.
  • Self-motivation.

Knowledge

  • Some knowledge of community care and/or children’s services would be useful, but not essential, as full training will be provided.

Other

  • Access to a car would be useful but not essential if alternatives are available to you.
  • Available for a few hours per week.
  • Some flexibility of time.

CONFIDENTIAL

APPLICATION FORM FOR VOLUNTEERS

Post Applied for / Location
Where did you hear about this vacancy?

1.PERSONAL DETAILS

Surname
Forename(s) in full
National Insurance Number
Date of Birth
Home Address / Address for Correspondence
(if different from home address)
City/Town
Post Code / City/Town
Post Code
Telephone Number(s)
at which you may be
contacted / Home
Work
Mobile
Email Address

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Do you require a work permit to work in the UK?
Please note that if successful you must have the right to work in the UK and be able to provide evidence of this before employment starts. / Yes / No
Do you have any convictions other than any treated as spent under the provisionsI of the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974? If yes, please provide details. / Yes / No

2.EDUCATION & QUALIFICATIONS– please detail any qualifications you have achieved which are either essential to undertake the role as detailed on the Person Specification or which you feel are of relevance to your application. Documentary evidence of essential qualifications will be required.

Examining
Body / Subject / Grade / Date
Obtained

3.FURTHER EDUCATION/VOCATIONAL TRAINING

College/University/
Training Body Attended / Course
Title / Method of
Study / Qualifications
Obtained (Grades) / Date
Obtained
Full Time / Part
Time

4.MEMBERSHIP OF PROFESSIONAL ORGANISATIONS

Name / Level of Membership / Date Obtained

5.EMPLOYMENT HISTORY

Please list your previous employment in chronological order starting with your present or last employer. Include service (giving rank and number) in HM Forces and any period of self-employment. It is essential that you provide details of any period not covered (e.g. any period of education/unemployment).

CURRENT OR LAST EMPLOYMENT

Dates Employed
or
Unemployed
(Month & Year) / Employer’s Name, Address, and Telephone Number. Please also provide contact name. / Job Title
Main Responsibilities
Reason for Leaving

5.EMPLOYMENT HISTORY (Continued)

Dates Employed
or
Unemployed
(Month & Year) / Employer’s Name, Address, and Telephone Number. Please also provide contact name. / Job Title
And
Brief Description of Duties

Continue on a separate sheet in the same format if necessary

6.FURTHER INFORMATION IN SUPPORT OF YOUR APPLICATION

Why would you like to become a Volunteer Advocate with Advocacy Highland? Please detail any present or previous volunteering experience that you have. Continue on a separate sheet if necessary.

7.REFEREES

Please give the names, addresses and occupations of two persons to whom reference may be made in relation to your employment/occupation or volunteering work covering the last five years.

Name……………………………………….Name………………………………………

Occupation……………………………………….Occupation………………………………………

Organisation……………………………………….Organisation………………………………………

Address……………………………………….Address………………………………………

City/Town……………………………………….City/Town………………………………………

Postcode…………………….…..……………..Postcode………………………………………

Tel…………………………..….………..Tel………………….…..………………

Email…………………….…..……………..Email………………………………………

8.DECLARATION

I hereby declare that all statements made in this application are true to the best of my knowledge and belief.
I authorise Advocacy Highland to approach my two referees. Please note that references will be requested before training is started.
Signed ______Date ______
The information provided on this application form will be treated in the strictest confidence. Any storage and processing of this information will be for the purposes of recruitment, selection, personnel administration and business management purposes only and will take place in accordance with the Data Protection Act 1998.
Advocacy Highland is committed to equal opportunities.
Applicants will be required to complete a PVG (Protection of Vulnerable Groups) Application form which is sent to the Central Records Bureau Scotland for processing.
PLEASE RETURN YOUR COMPLETED APPLICATION FORM AND MONITORING FORM TO:-
The Manager
Advocacy Highland
2 Seafield Road
Inverness
IV1 1SG

Monitoring Form

As part of our equal opportunities policy recruitment is monitored to check that unfair discrimination is not taking place. To help us in this, please complete the following by putting an ‘X’ in the relevant boxes. Please send this form alongwith your application form to the following address:-

The Manager, Advocacy Highland

2 Seafield Road

Inverness

IV1 1SG

How would you describe your racial/ethnic origin?

White ScottishOther White BritishWhite Irish

Other WhiteIndianPakistani

BangladeshOther South AsianChinese

CaribbeanGypsy/TravellerAfrican

Black ScottishMixed background

Black Other – please specify: Other – please specify:

My gender is:FemaleMale

Do you have a disability – as defined by Section 60 of the Equality Act 2010 Yes No

If YES, please give details and identify any reasonable adjustments you feel should be made to the recruitment process to assist you in your application:-

Please identify any reasonable adjustments you feel should be made to the job or the environment or equipment which would enable you to carry out the job.