Volunteer Role Profile

RoleTelephone/Reception Support Volunteer

Role summaryWe need volunteers to join our friendly team in Norwich to support the operation of our Shelter office. As a telephone/ reception support volunteer you will be supporting us in our day to day business of helping meet the needs of our clients.

Suggested Involvement A minimum commitment of 4 hours per week for a minimum of 6 months, worked during office hours. Hours can be flexible and worked to suit individual circumstances, but we ideally need people who can volunteer on Monday & Tuesday afternoons, and also Wednesday and Friday all day.

LocationShelter Norwich, Whitefriars House, 50 Fishergate, Norwich NR3 1SE

Supervised byTeam Leader/Service Administrator

Why get involved with Shelter?

More than one million people a year come to us for advice and support via our website, help lines, and national network of services. We help people to find and keep a home in a place where they can thrive, and we tackle the root causes of bad housing by campaigning for new laws, policies and practice.

We need volunteers to join our friendly team in Norwich to support the operation of our Shelter office. As a telephone/ reception support volunteer you will be supporting us in our day to day business of helping meet the needs of our clients. We are indebted to our volunteers who carry out a wide range of roles and give valuable support to all our services nationwide

Main Tasks can include

  • Be the first point of contact for new Shelter clients when they telephone the office
  • Meet and greet members of the public who visit the office for support
  • Support our clients with a wide range of problems and issues which they face and signpost accordingly
  • Give information provided by Shelter and other sources to our clients
  • Refer clients for more specialist advice where needed
  • Contacting clients and arranging meetings
  • Contacting clients for follow-up interviews and feedback
  • Keep records of all client cases on internal database
  • General admin in support of the service

Skills and Abilities Required

  • Confident telephone manner
  • Good listener
  • Interest in the work of Shelter and in supporting people
  • Ability to maintain case records
  • Ability to organise your own work, manage your time and work on your own initiative
  • The ability to work as part of a team and value others
  • Be open minded and non-judgmental
  • Confident using computer programs such as Word and Excel to a good standard
  • Effective communication skills and the ability to understand the needs of our customers
  • Willingness to follow Shelter’s policies, including volunteering, health and safety, equality and diversity and confidentiality

Induction, Learning & Development

To enable you take part in this opportunity Shelter will

  • Provide a volunteer pack including a Handbook and all Policies and Procedures
  • Provide e-learning: Equality & Diversity, Health and Safety, Data Protection, Case Management Systems
  • Provide full training to enable the role to be fulfilled and allow personal development
  • Reimburse “out of pocket” expenses in line with Shelter’s volunteer expenses policy

Benefits of Volunteering with Shelter

  • Supporting and learning about the work of a large National charity
  • Developing transferable skills
  • Enhances your CV, we can help you to update this and will provide references when you leave our services

Next Steps

  • Please apply online by clicking the ‘apply for this position’ button for the application form. Alternatively, if you have received an application pack via post or email, please complete the application and return it to . After you have applied, we will invite successful candidates to an informal interview to discuss the role further.
  • As this role may require you to handle sensitive information, we are obliged to carry out a basic DBS check.
  • Please note, you will be asked to declare any unspent convictions. Having a criminal record does not mean that you cannot volunteer with us. It may limit the different ways that you can get involved, but please contact us (using the email stated above), if you require more information.

This is a voluntary position that supports the work of our services and is not replacing the work of a paid member of staff. This role description does not form part of any contract of employment.