Weekend Activities Volunteer - Children and Young People’s Service (CSVA)

About the Role

Our volunteers play a crucial role in our organisation, enabling us to provide a diverse range of additional services to the people we support. By helping as a CYPS volunteer, you will develop your interpersonal skills and learn what is required to support at events that our CYPS team organise. You will be assisting a young person or child who is blind or partially sighted during the activity and their siblings and families.

Our CYPS volunteers support our regular activities programme that takes place at weekends and during school holidays. Events range from art and craft activities to climbing and skiing. We try to offer a varied programme so no event is ever the same! As a CYPS volunteer, it would be beneficial to have worked or volunteered with children and young people before.

Time Commitment

This role would suit someone who can offer either a monthly commitment and/or is looking for something more ad hoc. Timings will vary but will predominantly be during the day at weekends or during school holidays with the potential for the odd evening request.

Benefits

Sensory Services by Sight for Surrey will reimburse travel expenses. For car users we pay 45 pence a mile for the journeys you undertake on behalf of the organisation. For those using public transport we would require tickets or proof of payment. We hold regular social events and an annual celebration which allows our volunteers to meet each other. We offer ongoing support and training on topics such as safeguarding, dementia awareness and other relevant topics.

What skills do I need?

Requirements

We are looking for someone reliable, with strong communication and interpersonal skills. We organise 1-2 events a month, one of which is usually an event where blind or partially sighted children participate without their parent/carer and require 1:1 supervision.

All volunteers are required to have training appropriate to the role, these can include safeguarding, lone working and how to safely guide someone with a visual impairment. Please note that you won’t be expected to undertake personal care.