Volunteering - make a difference

We want to encourage and recruit volunteers who will improve the service and support children, young people and their families. 

Our aim is not to replace staff or to deliver services cheaper, but to create opportunities for people to join our service and help support families.

We know from that children, young people parents and carers benefit by:  

• hearing about peer experiences
• feeling less stigmatised and more at ease through working with volunteers who freely give up their time to help and support 
• feeling positive about having a voice in shaping the Early Help service and local offer with support of the volunteer 

Why volunteer?   

Volunteering has a huge impact on our wellbeing. Helping and supporting others makes us feel good.   

Volunteers tell us they want to: 

• help people, and have a positive impact on the lives of children, young people and their families   
• belong to a service with a culture of strong relationships, empowering, supporting and helping others to make and sustain positive change 
• help us improve our services and have a say in how services are designed and delivered   
• contribute and support your own community and community members 
• gain access to new knowledge, new skills and training around engaging and working with children young people and families   
• have an opportunity to gain more insight into ‘helping services’ or to test out their own interests and career choices for the future 

There are four main roles:

Family and Community Volunteer   

Working closely with communities, the Voluntary Community Sector (VCS), and partners to develop family and community services such as:  

• helping parents and carers prepare their children for school 
• supporting a range of group activities for children and their families 
• providing creative and practical support for families 
• providing a befriending and helping hands milies, hand holding to groups and sessions, link in with early year’s campaigns, NSPCC - Look Say Sing Play, other language and learning projects – Book Start, 1000 words. Healthy eating, healthy lifestyles, emotional health, and wellbeing support for families, signposting to other services, age-appropriate play, positive activities for families, engaging with voluntary and community sector and families in need of ‘lower level support’   

Parenting Support and Group Support Volunteer  

Supporting the delivery of group activities and courses, such as:  

• reducing parental conflict  
• understanding your child, baby and teenagers 
• engaging fathers 

Or supporting parents and carers to access self-help tools, such as the range on line courses and workshops 

Family Support Volunteer  

Providing one-to-one support for children, young people and their families. Working with the Early Help practitioner in developing positive relationships and:

• supporting the attendance of various appointments 
• encouraging attendance at community events 
• helping to build and strengthen confidence, positive friendships, getting involved 
• providing practical help within the home, cooking, routines and boundaries  
• providing basic parenting skills 

 SEN (Special Education Needs) Family Support Volunteer  

Working closely with the Early Help SEN practitioner supporting parents who have a child with a diagnosed / undiagnosed/ newly diagnosed SEN needs, including:

• supporting the delivery of specific groups 
• supporting the delivery of specific courses for parents and carers (for example, cygnet course)
• being an advocate and providing one-to-one support and befriending of families 
• supporting through diagnosis processes
• working with other services and referring families into other appropriate services 

We hold a bi-monthly parent and carer forum. This provides a non-judgemental space where parents and carers can meet other parents/carers, Early Help practitioners and partners. You can gain support, knowledge and have your voice heard on the planning and development of Early Help local services. 

Our parent and carer forum includes: 

• regular training sessions to help understand, support and advocate for their child, young people and wider family members 
• consultations with the local authority - specifically Early Help, but can also include invited guests  from partners (for example children’s social care, education colleagues, health colleagues, voluntary services) in order to co-design, co-produce and to help evaluate and shape the development of services, ensuring they meet the needs of children, young people and their families.