Would you like to help parents give their children the best start in life? Home-Start volunteers give emotional and practical support to families in need in Southwark and Lewisham.
The families Home-Start support could be experiencing a range of issues including: mental health issues; disability; special educational needs; illness; isolation as a result of being newly arrived in the UK or new to the borough as a result of fleeing domestic abuse; overcrowding; or multiple births. As a Home-Start volunteer you will:
- Visit families in their homes for two hours once a week for approximately six months.
- Provide emotional and practical support to help build parents confidence and resilience, strengthen their relationships with their children and widen their links with the local community.
- Help a family access a local playgroup or park, playing with a young child or providing a listening ear to a lonely parent.
While volunteering with Home-Start Southwark our volunteers receive:
- A free 7-day Volunteer Preparation Course covering all aspects of Family Support.
- A high quality ongoing training programme often run by experts in fields such as Mental Health, Domestic Abuse, Autism.
- Regular support and supervision.
- Out-of-pocket expenses.
- References after volunteering.
- Our volunteers have the opportunity to develop valuable skills and experience in working with families which they can use for career development or further studies.
- They meet like-minded members of their community and they experience the boost to wellbeing and self-esteem that comes from helping others and being part of a friendly, caring organisation.
We are looking for someone who can tick some or all of the below:
- Is understanding and supportive.
- Wants to help local families who are going through difficult times.
- Can commit to attend our Volunteer Preparation Course (one 4-hour session per week for 7 weeks).
- Can spare 2-3 hours a week on a regular basis.
- Can travel to families in the Borough of Southwark and/or Lewisham.
- Can speak other languages, as some of the families we work with do not have English as their first language (non essential).
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