Loading...

Volunteer With Us

As a small charity we could not provide our full range of services without the assistance of our 80+ skilled and committed volunteers. They are our greatest asset and play a crucial role in all aspects of our work, contributing to our office-based and outreach services, our ESOL and employability projects and on our board of trustees. They also support our fundraising efforts and help raise awareness about our work in their own communities by giving talks and presentations in schools, churches, the University and at other local gatherings.

About Volunteering with Refugee Support Devon

“I started volunteering with RSD following my retirement from social work. I help with the drop-in and the women’s group, and am constantly inspired by the women attending and the diversity of their experiences and needs. We usually work in pairs, supported by RSD staff. In the drop-in we try to address all the different enquiries we receive. It is often challenging, as you have no idea what might come up at each session, but it is always rewarding and heart-warming to meet people from so many different countries.” – Claire, RSD volunteer”

“I gained much satisfaction and knowledge, new friends and new skills”

"I enjoy the contact and experiences I have with people from different interesting backgrounds with a wide range of needs”

“I meet amazing people. I have never met so many people who possess such dignity, good humour and intelligence”

Current Vacancies

We are currently looking for volunteers to support with our education and employability projects, as follows:

(1) ESOL tutors for all levels. You must have a CELTA at least and some experience of working in ESOL/EFL. You’ll be working with clients of all nationalities either online or face-to-face.

(2) Employability volunteers to help individual clients with their journey into work. You will signpost the client to relevant sources of information and opportunities for further training or work. Some experience of local agencies would be helpful.

(3) ESOL- or medically qualified tutors to volunteer on our RAMP (Refugees as Medical Professionals) Devon project, to help clients who are qualified healthcare workers in their own country prepare for the Occupational English Test, which is the language requirement to work in the NHS. Please see our news page for full details.

For further information, please email Denise at education@refugeesupportdevon.org.uk - thank you!

All these posts require your commitment for 6 – 12 months at least, usually for 1 – 2 hours per week, at a time to be arranged according to your availability. If you think you can help please get in touch using the contact details above. Thank you!

 

 

What Can Volunteers Expect?

Volunteers do not receive payment for their work, but are able to have necessary expenses refunded. There is no set number of hours an RSD volunteer must commit to, and it is possible to work on a range of projects either annually, monthly, or weekly depending on the role and your availability. RSD particularly welcomes volunteers who are asylum seekers or refugees.

We always welcome enquiries from potential new volunteers, so if you feel you could be useful to us please contact us telling us about yourself, your background, your interests, and the sort of skills you could bring to RSD. We will get in touch to let you know if we have a suitable opportunity and may ask you to complete an application form so we can gather more information and seek references.

When we are able to match skills to needs one of our project coordinators will contact you for an informal chat, and selected volunteers will be invited to one of the training sessions we run during the year.

Volunteer Training

All volunteers must attend one of our introductory training sessions. These half day sessions are designed for new volunteers to get to know RSD, its projects, the people it helps and important codes of conduct and policies that all volunteers need to adhere to.

Induction into specific roles will be provided by project coordinators, and ongoing support is always available from staff and other volunteers. Professional and personal development is encouraged and further training opportunities will be offered along the way. Volunteers are encouraged to attend all meetings and training that is available.

If you Need to Wait…

We receive many offers of voluntary assistance throughout the year and we are unfortunately unable to accept everyone immediately. If your background and skills do not match any current volunteering opportunities, your details will be kept on file and we will contact you as soon as suitable vacancies occur.

There are things you could do now that will help us immensely: