Volunteering at the Refugee Forum is an opportunity to make a positive impact for asylum seekers and refugees in Nottingham. That is true for both volunteers from the host community, showing their welcome and support to those seeking safety in our city, as well as for asylum seekers and refugees themselves, who volunteer to gain skills and experience, increase their social networks, and improve their confidence.
We are proud of our diverse team of volunteers who come from over 52 countries across 6 continents, speaking over 40 different languages, supporting our work in more than a dozen different roles.
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volunteers in 2022/23
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hours given by volunteers each week
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of volunteers have lived experience of seeking asylum
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no of countries our volunteers come from
Getting Involved
We offer a range of remote and face-to-face volunteer roles and are always looking for committed volunteers to join the team. There are a few simple steps to follow:
1. Look out for volunteering opportunities on our website, social media, the NCVS volunteering portal, or send an enquiry to volunteer@nottsrefugeeforum.org.uk
2. Complete the volunteer application form
3. Our volunteer coordinator, or other relevant staff member, will contact you to discuss the role, your availability and expectations
4. Our volunteer coordinator will invite you to a mandatory 2-hour induction session and provide you a Volunteer Handbook
5. We will obtain a reference for you
6. You can start shadowing experienced volunteers or attend additional role-specific training
7. A dedicated staff member will support you throughout your volunteering journey
There’s an ocean of need but I feel I can make a tiny bit of difference
Volunteer
Best practice in volunteering
We are extremely proud that we have, once again, been accredited with Investing in Volunteers, demonstrating excellent practice in volunteer management across the organisation. During the year-long process of self-improvement and assessment, we have updated key policies, clarified procedures, provided training for staff who manage volunteers and engaged volunteers in several consultations.
We are committed to:-
– Transparent recruitment and onboarding process
– Equal opportunities for candidates with protected characteristics, including immigration status (asylum seekers and refugees are especially welcome to volunteer!)
– Reimbursing volunteer expenses
– Having a dedicated staff member and trustee to support and represent volunteers
– Providing training and development opportunities for volunteers
– Volunteers joining key committees and working groups (alongside staff and trustees), depending on their interest and expertise
– Offering references and support letters to volunteers
– Celebrating volunteers’ achievements and contributions
What our volunteers say
A long-term volunteer made use of the safeguarding training opportunity to (confidentially) highlight examples they have had to deal with in the course of their volunteering. Through group discussion and guidance for trainer, they understood what they could have done differently before, and clarified their understanding of their safeguarding responsibilities. This proved to be very useful when they demonstrated their knowledge of safeguarding in a relevant job interview which they successfully passed!
“I enjoyed the interaction with the service users who genuinely seemed to appreciate someone listening to their concerns and caring about their situation. It felt like I was making a genuine difference or at least part of the process which would do so.”
“The staff have done a wonderful job of setting up a remote advice service and I am very proud to have been part of it. Great to learn new skills, e.g. taking part in three way telephone conversations with a client and an interpreter. Doing things I wouldn’t have imagined I’d ever do this time last year.”
