Our recent workshop on supervision skills for those managing volunteers, shared tips on how best to manage the supervision.
Prepare
What has happened since the last meeting with the volunteer?
Are there any current issues involving the volunteer? If you need to give critical feedback do your homework first.
Is there any news you wish to share with them?
Have you set aside enough time and space? Don’t take calls or allow interruptions. Decide how long the supervision should be and arrange the meeting with the volunteer letting them know how long to allow. Be prepared to manage the time.
Make the setting friendly and informal? Don’t use the desk as a barrier, maybe offer a drink, check the volunteer is comfortable, and check if they have any time constraints.
For first time supervision: explain to the volunteer in advance what the meeting is for:
For the volunteer to:
give their feedback
highlight anything they might need to help them with their role
For the supervisor to:
give feedback on the volunteers performance in the role, recognising and building on strengths and exploring any areas for improvement
highlight any organisational issues that might impact on the volunteer
Together:
Agree any actions to be taken
Start with the volunteer ASK & LISTEN
What has gone well since the last supervision?
What have been the challenges/difficulties?
What might you do differently to overcome these?
What do we need to do differently to support you?
Are there any ideas or questions that you would like to raise about your role or the organisation as a whole?
If you have queries on this, or anything else relating to running a voluntary group, get in touch with us on enquiries@cambridgecvs.org.uk
Our Volunteering for All project, supported by Cambridge City Council, works to reduce the barriers many people experience in accessing volunteering. At a recent workshop we shared some of what we have learned from this work and pulled in best practice from providers from around the world[1].
A significant proportion of the population experience barriers to volunteering; we tend to think of barriers relating to those with physical impairments, but others affected include people with mental ill health, neurodivergent individuals, people from different cultures, people with criminal records, people with caring responsibilities and those unable to afford the time or the associated expense of volunteering.
In addition to physical barriers people can face psychological and organisational barriers. People might have a fear of taking on something new in a different environment, they might fear rejection. They might come up against unhelpful attitudes from existing staff and volunteers or a rigid inflexible approach to how things are done.
There are compelling reasons organisations should seek to be inclusive. To meet their statutory responsibilities and deliver on their equality policies but also to widen the pool of talent, embrace the expertise of volunteers with lived experience and improve their own future sustainability.
Inclusive organisations have:
a welcoming and open culture
a clearly communicated equality policy
volunteer roles that offer flexibility and work with individual need
fair and open recruitment and management procedures
a zero tolerance of discrimination
a demographic that reflects the community they serve.
To be more inclusive here are a few things to think about:
How and where you advertise roles – could you extend your reach to where different groups of people will see your information?
Think about the language you use – is it plain English, would other languages be appropriate. could you offer information in another format such as video or an audio file?
Review your recruitment process and only include what is essential. Think about creating entry level roles that allow people to develop. If you need references can you ask for character references rather than from an employer, can you just ask for one reference rather that two?
Can you more flexible, review the length of shifts, can some tasks be undertaken at home, can people volunteer as a group or as a family?
Can you do more to communicate the environment people will volunteer in taking away the anxiety some may feel in going somewhere new, you might invite them on a visit or send a video or some photographs?
Can you provide information on transport or arrange lift shares?
Think about flexible ways to share information with volunteers, can you set up a system where people share information on the phone not just via email? Can you offer training or handbooks in different formats?
Hello! It’s Amy here again and I’m writing about how to find a new voluntary role. If you haven’t done voluntary work before, it might help you to know how to go about it and this article should give you some guidance.
Voluntary work is similar to a job (but you don’t get paid for it). It can be quite daunting doing something new, but there are ways of getting support as you take this step towards volunteering. I can say from my own experience that it will be worth it!
If you need support, get in touch with Ellie from CCVS who will offer you an informal chat where you will be able to discuss what kind of roles you’re interested in and all the steps you will need to take. At the moment meetings are only online or over the phone. That can be challenging for some, and you might want somebody to help you with it, but it’s good to try to do this independently if you feel that you can. This will show what you can do for yourself. Doing things for the first time helps build your confidence and can prepare you for future work interviews. CCVS knows a lot about charities and volunteering, and they can really help. If you’re uncomfortable with a 1:1 chat, there is an online group option which you may prefer.
You can get in touch with ellie@cambridgecvs.org.uk for more details.
Another option would be to ask people that you know (friends or family) who are already volunteering or can help guide you towards the right opportunities, but bear in mind that sometimes what works for them might not work for you. For instance, you may disagree on what kind of volunteering would be good for you.
Doing research on the internet might help (but you’ll need to know what you’re looking for). If you know the name of some places or organisations that offer the kind of work you want to do, you could look them up on Google and look at their website. Sometimes websites are not up to date, but whatever barriers you face in looking for voluntary work, don’t give up! If you use social media (like Facebook or Instagram), you could look for opportunities on there.
Do- it website is dedicated to help matching people and organisations locally, but it can be a little bit difficult to use. However always a good starting point to see what is out there.
Visiting the place where you’re interested in volunteering might give you more of an idea if it’s right for you, but you may need to ring first to make an appointment. You’ll be able to ask to speak to someone about volunteering, if they are recruiting (which means looking for) volunteers and finding out about the application process. Visiting beforehand gives you a chance to see if the place would suit you, is it too busy, too noisy, too big, or will it send you into a sensory overload.
Every organisation or group that recruit volunteers have different procedures. You may be required to send a CV, an application form or cover letter or both. Some places may want you to come in and have an induction meeting and spend a bit of time working at the place to see what it’s like. In some cases, you may be asked to come for a meeting and then wait to be contacted about whether, and when you can start your volunteering. You may be asked why you want to do the role and what it is that makes you a good volunteer to take on and what skills you have. There will be an opportunity to talk to them about the kind of support that would help you best.
Myself and CCVS can help with interview tips, we’ll dedicate a whole piece on that alone in future.
No matter how it goes, do celebrate your achievement: it is challenging to find a suitable role, and you should be very proud of yourself for having taken the challenge on!
The last couple of years has resulted in many of us rethinking how we do things. In early 2022 CCVS decided to host some free online volunteer fairs, aimed at the public, to support local voluntary groups with the challenging task of recruiting the volunteers they need. Our aim was to capitalise on people’s New Year resolutions and the loosening of Covid restrictions and help raise the profile of volunteering for local groups. Although the fairs were tied in with the City Council Volunteer for Cambridge initiative, many of the groups involved are looking to recruit volunteers throughout the county.
We know from research1 that to attract more people into volunteering groups need to be visible, accessible and flexible. People showed during the pandemic that they were interested in helping others, but now with their lives starting to return to something like normal, many feel they lack time to commit and don’t know where to find roles that are a good fit for them. Our volunteer fairs looked to highlight a few of the many volunteer opportunities available, with varying levels of flexibility and time requirements. It also gave people the chance to put a face to a group and invited them to ask questions and fill in a simple form or contact the group direct to hear more.
We worked with 10 voluntary groups supporting them to produce 5-minute recordings outlining their volunteer opportunities. We hosted the fairs as two lunchtime sessions to which any member of the public with internet access could sign up and where the groups showed their presentations and answered questions live.
As a result of a lot of promotional effort nearly 100 tickets were booked for the two fairs. Everyone who signed up to the fairs has received links to all the presentations and the contact form and have been encouraged to share the information with friends and family – we hope this will extend the impact of the fairs beyond the events themselves.
The Initial feedback from the public suggests they enjoyed being able to easily hear about different opportunities and ask questions without leaving their desks or their homes. Some of the voluntary groups taking part have reported increased traffic to their volunteer pages on their websites and some have already seen an increase in people getting in touch to find out more about volunteering. We’ll be checking in with the groups to see if this increase in interest converts to more volunteers supporting their work in the community. If the feedback is positive, we’ll consider running more online fairs in the future.
To watch presentations from groups who attended our Volunteer Fair in early 2022 visit this link
We are delighted to announce the appointment of Flóra Raffai as the new CCVS Chair of Trustees.
Mark Freeman, our CEO welcomes Flóra and gives thanks to our outgoing Chair, Mary Sanders:
“I am really pleased that Flóra has been elected as the new Chair of CCVS and I am looking forward to working with her as CCVS moves into the future. I know that all the staff will join with me to welcome her into the new role. Flóra brings knowledge of the sector and a keen insight into the work we do, and I know that she will help us on to bigger and better things.
I am grateful to Mary for all the support she has given me, and the organisation over the years. Having such a knowledgeable and respected chair has been a real benefit to CCVS, and I am incredibly glad that she will remain as a trustee. Mary has overseen some big changes at CCVS and has helped to steer the organisation to where it is now. What is more she has helped me in the transition to the CEO role and I am hugely thankful for all she has done to support me.”
Flóra has been a CCVS Trustee since November 2018. Flóra tells us:
“I am honoured to be appointed as the new Chair of the Trustee Board at CCVS. Having previously benefited from the outstanding support CCVS provides to local charities, I am delighted to have an opportunity to give back. I am very much looking forward to working with my fellow trustees, the CCVS staff team, and the entire CCVS membership to champion local voluntary and community groups, the need for which has never been greater.”
Read more about why Flóra became a CCVS Trustee and what she enjoys about the role in this blog written for Trustees’ Week 2021.
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