Story Gatherer Intern – Home based, Bristol and Somerset area
Are you a good communicator, able to organise your time and write in an engaging way that will bring Macmillan’s work to life? Macmillan has eight volunteer run projects operating across the Bristol, South Gloucestershire, North Somerset and Bath and North East Somerset area - we’re looking for an intern who will help us capture the brilliant work that our volunteers do supporting people affected by cancer in a variety of ways. You will help us develop a bank of case studies that demonstrate the impact of our work, so we will be able to publicise our projects more effectively and be in a better position to respond to requests for stories.
With the information collected from interviews you will develop stories into compelling cases studies – either written or in other formats such as audio or film. You will ideally produce at least two case studies per project – one for a service user and one of a volunteer. The role will involve interacting directly with people affected by cancer and with volunteers, either on the phone or face to face.
Internship info
The Volunteering Team supports more than 500 staff within Macmillan with a responsibility for managing volunteers, as well as numerous volunteer managers within a broad range of partner organisations and services. It is crucial that these volunteer managers have the support, guidance and resources necessary to provide each and every one of our inspiring volunteers with a fulfilling and consistent experience. In order to ensure that we are providing the support that our volunteer managers need it is vital to gather their views and opinions on what it is like for them to manage volunteers within Macmillan.
From carrying out an evaluation of last year’s survey and meeting with a range of teams within Macmillan to design the questions to distributing the survey and collating the responses, analysing the data and writing a comprehensive report as well as writing a communications plan for the launch of the survey you’ll be making a massive difference to Macmillan and, ultimately, to the lives of people affected by cancer.
Key activities
· developing a plan for identifying a range of potential case studies
· contacting service users and volunteers to arrange to interview them
· travelling to meet people in person or speaking to them on the phone
· transcribing interview notes
· writing up interviews into case studies and creating case studies in other formats (film or audio)
· identifying ways in which case studies can be used.
Location and time commitment
· you will be home based and ideally live close to or within the wider Bristol or Somerset area
· the internship is between mid February and mid April 206, it may be tricky to be flexible due to staff paternity leave
· this is a 3-4 days a week role, Monday to Friday, but specific times and days are flexible to fit around your commitments
· the internship is unpaid but we pay volunteer “out-of-pocket” expenses, including a daily lunch allowance, cost of phone calls and your travel expenses, within agreed guidelines
· ideally you will need your own transport for this role, as you may need to visit some service users in rural areas.
This internship would suit someone with:
· evidence of excellent writing skills
· good telephone manner and interpersonal skills
· organisational and planning skills
· experience of interviewing people
· an interest in cancer care and health and social care
· an ability to adhere to Macmillan’s policies including health and safety, equal opportunities, confidentiality and financial guidelines
Benefits of volunteering in this role
In return, as one of Macmillan’s fantastic volunteer interns you’ll benefit from:
· develop skills such as: interviewing, planning, organising, writing, interpersonal skills, project management
· gain experience in communications or copy writing
· opportunity to shadow members of the wider team the full support of your contact and the wider team
· gain experience working directly with people affected by cancer
· enhancing your CV and gaining written references at the end of your internship
· the internship is unpaid but we reimburse volunteers’ out-of-pocket expenses, within our guidelines
· the opportunity to speak to a range of Macmillan staff and other volunteers
Our award-winning internship scheme offers a fantastic opportunity to get involved with Macmillan by working with our experienced staff on projects and events throughout the year. If you're a student, graduate or considering a change in career, we've got volunteer internship opportunities for you to build on your existing skills and gain new ones.
We know that more than one in three of us will get cancer. For most of us it will be the toughest fight we ever face. Now, more than ever, we need people like you to join our team and help us make sure that no one faces cancer alone. Make time matter. Volunteer today.
How to apply
Complete an online application form or contact us if you would like a hard copy.
We will acknowledge your application and let you know whether you have been shortlisted. Internship interviews will be confirmed shortly after the deadline. Interviews will be held in early February.
Please note that many of our staff will be on leave over the Christmas period so you may not receive an acknowledgement of your application or response to your query within our usual target timeframe of five working days. We will endeavour to contact you as soon as practicably possible in the New Year.
Contact
For further details please contact Piers Cardiff, Direct Volunteering Manager – South West, on:
Phone: 07866 202 537 Email: