Prison in reach volunteer (Chelmsford)
Prison in reach volunteers support members of the Armed Forces community who are in prison. They make a real difference by providing essential support during these incredibly difficult times.
Our volunteers work closely with veterans in custody support officers, attending veteran forums in prisons, and offering one to one support, including making applications for financial assistance. Prison in Reach volunteers also connect clients with organisations, to help support pathways for positive change. The support provided will often be life changing.
If you are passionate about second chances and helping people to rebuild their lives, we would encourage you to apply.
Requirements Access to public transport or a car to travel to the prison is required. You will need access to IT equipment such as a laptop and the internet to carry out administration.
Time commitment Prison in reach volunteers visit their prison monthly. These visits take place during Monday to Friday and normally between 8am and 4pm. Prison visits cannot take place at weekends. You'll need the flexibility for visits to be determined by prison staff availability. We ask volunteers to commit approximately 4 to 10 hours a month to the prison in reach volunteer role.
Support Full training is provided for this role. You will be supported by SSAFA’s Veterans in the Criminal Justice System Team, who will provide advice and guidance, as well as supervision.
SSAFA Values For SSAFA, our values of; commitment, compassion, integrity and understanding underpin everything we do, and we ask that all volunteers are equally committed to them.
Accessibility If you require any adjustments to make or support an application to volunteer, please get in touch with us at ve.support@ssafa.org.uk
After making an application Once you’ve applied, you’ll receive updates to the email address you provided in your application. Sometimes the emails we send go into junk folders, so do keep an eye out in the days following your application.
More about this role
Volunteer role | Prison in reach volunteer |
Volunteer manager | Business Support Coordinator (VCJS) |
Where you will be based | Community |
Why we want you
Prison in reach volunteers support members of the Armed Forces community who are in prison. They make a real difference by providing essential support during these incredibly difficult times.
Our volunteers work closely with veterans in custody support officers, attending veteran forums, and offering one to one support, including making applications for financial assistance. We also connect clients with organisations, to help support pathways for positive change.
Come and join our team! We value all our volunteers and the unique skills and experience they bring.
We are keen to increase volunteer diversity, especially from under-represented groups such as young people, those of working age and individuals from minoritised groups.
What you will be doing
- Attend group forums for veterans within the prison environment.
- Complete individual assessments and complete one to one personalised support for veterans within the prison environment, which includes casework.
- Promote the services available to family members.
- Establish an agreement around the rate of visits with the VCJS team and the prison.
- Record the support offered to veterans accordingly and appropriately.
- Complete monitoring reports.
The skills you need
- Be over 21.
- Have a good level of fitness to able to move around a prison quickly - including stairs.
- Excellent listening skills.
- Awareness of boundaries and confidentiality.
- Good written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to communicate effectively with a range of people, including prison staff, other agencies, SSAFA colleagues and clients.
- Positive, committed and non-judgemental.
- Non-judgemental and empathetic attitude.
- Good IT skills.
- An enhanced DBS check is required for this role. Individual prisons will determine if they authorise individuals to be based in their facilities based on security considerations. Security Vetting by His Majesty’s Prison Service is often required. For further discussion, please get in touch.
- You will need to declare potential conflicts of interest, for example any family connection with the prison.
What's in it for you
- Full training provided with regular ongoing support.
- You gain criminal justice sector experience and build your CV.
- You can make a real difference to the lives of Veterans who are in the justice system.
Disclaimer
SSAFA is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of all those involved in our work and expects volunteers to share this commitment. This role qualifies for a criminal record check, which will be carried out at no cost for you. If you have a criminal record, it won't necessarily stop you becoming a volunteer. Please read our Volunteer Vetting Guidance for more information.
Other information
Minimum age 21
Community based
Location
Chelmsford, United Kingdom
When you can volunteer
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Apply
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