Family Services

Family Services

Posted for Family Gateway

Posted by Volunteer Centre Newcastle

Register your interest

You will be redirected to the Volunteer Centre Newcastle website to express your interest.

Family Gateway volunteers make a vital contribution to our aims. We recognise the added value that volunteers bring to our organisation and those who use our services. Our volunteers inform our work and help us to develop, and we can support volunteers to learn skills and achieve personal development during their time with us. We recruit volunteers using our “Barefoot Professional Model” which means we recruit people from our local community who have a range of life experiences that they can use to support other people who come to Family Gateway for support. A description of the Family Services volunteer role is below.

Family Services Volunteer

Our Family Services Team works in the community to support individuals, young people and families with a range of issues that they may be facing. We have a range of projects within this portfolio that vary from working with schools, working with families who are at risk of having their children removed, working with health professionals and working with young people. As a volunteer within that team, you would be expected to;

• Support on visits to see individuals and families in their home or in the community
• Engage with the whole family and provide guidance and support where needed
• Identify any concerns or worries and feed them back to the allocated worker
• Feed back any risks or safeguarding issues that have been identified
• Work on a one-to-one basis where appropriate with individuals to complete set tasks designated to you by the allocated worker
• Support with the planning and delivery of group sessions
• Evaluate activities and adapt them where needed
• Ensure the provision of a high-quality environment to meet the needs of individuals regardless of any disabilities, family backgrounds or medical history
•  Encourage individuals and families to become empowered and complete tasks for themselves within deadlines put in place
• Follow procedures in place to ensure safety e.g. safeguarding, health and safety etc.
• Record accidents/incidents on the correct forms
• Ensure that any information is collected and stored appropriately on our CRM system in line with our GDPR policy
• Support with completing risk assessments where a risk has been identified in order to ensure the safety of the individual/family/staff/community members
• Act as a spokesperson when out in the community or with other professionals and encourage them to access Family Services support where appropriate
• Have a knowledge of other services that we offer in order to best support the individuals/families in the local community

Level of DBS check required

• An Enhanced DBS check with the Barred List information for Working with Children and Adults would be required

What skills do I need?

• Friendly and approachable
• Good communication skills, including active listening skills
• Empathetic and supportive
• Non judgemental
• Ability to work within professional boundaries
• Ability to follow confidentiality and safeguarding guidelines