Light the North is a public art sculpture trail which will see 50 large lighthouse sculptures plus 90 little lighthouse sculptures, each which have been individually hand painted by an artist, school or community group, go on display in towns and communities across north east Scotland from August – October 2021. We have a variety of roles to choose from – from set-up and installation, trail ambassadors, merchandise and retail to the Farewell Weekend and Auction events! We need volunteers from across the north east – from Shetland to Stonehaven and everywhere in between. You can volunteer as an individual, as a group of friends and family, as a corporate team or as a community group! Whether you have a few hours to spare or can commit to volunteer regularly throughout the trail, we’d love for you to join our Volunteer Team.

Volunteer Handy Person required to assist with odd jobs in and around Market House. Volunteer with us at Voluntary Action Shetland to learn about the organisation, build up experience, benefit from training and gain personal experience. Tasks may include: maintenance of tables and chairs etc, ensure the building is tidy including some sweeping and weeding. Help with general housekeeping. Heavy lifting may be required. All relevant equipment provided. Travel expenses reimbursed.

We’re looking for volunteers to operate our national helpline, supporting individuals over the phone. You’ll provide support for people who have received a digital device as part of Connecting Scotland, supporting the most vulnerable to get online. Queries range from enquiries about the programme, to basic support with turning on or using a device. We call these volunteers Digital Champions. This role is done remotely at the moment due to COVID-19 but there is possibility to work from our Edinburgh office in the future. The role is open to the whole of Scotland. The role tasks include: covering a minimum of one weekly 2-hour helpline shift, providing responses to enquiries and basic digital support to callers, logging any calls that require follow-up , supporting our staff in obtaining monitoring details from callers.

Join Victim Support Scotland in a volunteering role like no other! As we recover from the Coronavirus pandemic, we are on the lookout for talented and committed people to help victims, witnesses and their families to move forward after a crime. Victims of crime often feel a range of emotions such as anxiety, confusion and anger, while witnesses may feel confused, anxious and overwhelmed by the court system. As a support volunteer, you will provide help and support in both local communities and within the court environment, ensuring people receive the high-quality support and care they need. You will: • Discuss service users’ needs by telephone, face-to-face visits or other means, agreeing next steps at the end of each contact • Help witnesses feel more confident at court by arranging and conducting court familiarisation visits • Support service users in the court room and other appropriate locations on the day of a trial, liaising with court officials on behalf of service users • Give feedback and agree follow-up actions with staff members • Provide administrative support in completing service users’ journeys This is a great opportunity to: • Learn new skills and gain experience of working within the criminal justice sector • Gain access to a range of in-depth training courses that are relevant to your volunteering role, resulting in accreditation • Positively affect your community as a member of a team actively working to reduce the impact of crime For a full role description, visit: victimsupport.scot/volunteer

Would you like to support people who have served in the Armed Forces? You don’t need a military background, just the ability to listen, some basic I.T skills and good written and spoken English. If so, this could be the role for you. What is a caseworker? Caseworkers work with clients to figure out what type of help they need. Next, they find the right sources of support and arrange for clients to access it. This might be funds for special equipment for someone with a disability, adaptions to a property so an older client can remain at home or funds for a rental deposit. Caseworkers also sign-post clients onto specialist local services for advice on benefits, housing, mental health, debt, finding work etc. Why do we need you? Volunteer Caseworkers are the lifeblood of SSAFA, supporting a growing number of people in need of financial, practical and emotional support. Clients come from all backgrounds and age groups and may have served in WW2 or in a more recent conflict like Iraq or Afghanistan. Our trained volunteers listen without judgement to assess and provide tailored support to help people navigate life in and beyond military service. We need you to join your local SSAFA team to help us achieve this. When would you be needed and where would you be based? The essential part of the role is interacting with clients, so you may be visiting clients or doing this virtually. You may need access to a vehicle or another way to travel to meet clients at home or in a care home setting. As part of your local branch you might have access to an office, but many volunteers are based at home. What does this role involve? • Contacting clients and arranging to meet them at a mutually convenient time either face-to-face or remotely • Liaising with clients and completing a form to assess their circumstances • Sign-posting clients onto local services providing specialist advice • Applying on the client’s behalf to military and non-military sources of charitable funding • Arranging for the purchase of goods and services • Keeping in touch with the client so they know how their case is progressing • Keeping in touch with your branch so they know your availability • Keeping up to date with training and SSAFA news so that you are best able to support clients • Being a positive ambassador for SSAFA remembering that anyone you meet could be a potential client, volunteer or fundraiser • Volunteering within the standards and values of SSAFA including observing our policies such as the Volunteering policy and data protection policy (these will be covered in your training and local induction.) What can you gain from this volunteering role? • Support people in your community with a military background • Use your skills, knowledge and life experience to benefit others • Support and friendship from your local SSAFA branch and the wider SSAFA community • Experience, training and skills that you can highlight on your CV and in job interviews • Better physical and mental health – studies show that volunteers live longer and experience lower levels of stress and depression! What skills or experience do you need? • Good listening and communication skills including written and spoken English • Ability to be respectful and non-judgemental with clients, their family, other agencies and SSAFA colleagues • Ability to send and receive emails – you will receive your own SSAFA email address • Ability to make enquires on behalf of clients by phone, email, letter or by filling in forms • Willingness to use our on-line case management system (this is covered in the caseworker training course) • Ability to keep within boundaries of the role with regards to friendship or giving advice • Reliable attitude, contact clients promptly, keep appointments, update the branch regarding your availability • Ability to maintain confidentiality and keep information safely • Able to provide two referees: former employers or other people that know you well (other than relatives) To apply please visit us on line at https://www.ssafa.org.uk/volunteer-ssafa, put your postcode in and fill out the very short application form, alternatively call our friendly central Volunteer Team on 0800 032 5612.

If you are . . . The Compassionate Friends (TCF) is a charitable organisation of bereaved parents, siblings and grandparents dedicated to the support and care of other similarly bereaved family members who have suffered the death of a child or children of any age and from any cause. Many people who have suffered the loss of a child feel a bond with others in the same situation and wish to extend the hand of friendship. We offer support, both directly to bereaved families, and indirectly by fostering understanding and good practice amongst professionals concerned with child death and by increasing public awareness. Our National Helpline provides support and information to bereaved parents, siblings and grandparents, and professionals working with families, every day of the year. If you would like to volunteer with us by donating just a few hours per month, answering calls from your own home, we would love to have you as part of our wonderful Helpline Team – helping us to continue providing a professional, helpful, warm and caring response to callers. We ask that helpline members have lost a child of 1 month old up to an adult child. We ask too that you commit to at least 3 helpline sessions per month (each session is 3 hours long with additional time required for admin follow up). at least three years past your own bereavement have or would be willing to join TCF as a donating member have been supported by TCF in some way, either via the Helpline or a local or group support contact, have attended a supportive weekend or participated in the online Forum or Facebook groups emotionally resilient so you can support others an empathic, compassionate listener, committed to helping others non-judgmental, respectful of others’ attitudes and beliefs trustworthy and reliable computer literate and with excellent writing skills . . . then we would love to hear from you. We offer training and support to anyone selected.

The Compassionate Friends (TCF) is a charitable organisation of bereaved parents, siblings and grandparents dedicated to the support and care of other similarly bereaved family members who have suffered the death of a child or children of any age and from any cause. Many people who have suffered the loss of a child feel a bond with others in the same situation and wish to extend the hand of friendship. Local Support Volunteers befriend and support other bereaved parents in their local area. You will be using your own experience and ways of coping to be alongside another bereaved parent through offering empathy, understanding, reassurance and hope. Your support will be offered via telephone, email or face-to-face meetings. Bereaved parents may be referred to you by our national helpline, through word of mouth or because you have publicised your support locally. You will be supporting newly bereaved parents in the first months of their loss as well as parents who are longer bereaved. The parents you will be supporting will have lost a child aged between 1 month old up to an adult child. Their loss may be through any circumstances. Some parents may only require support for a short period of time, others will need your support for longer. Where appropriate, you may put parents in your area (often with similar bereavement experiences) in touch with one another so that they can support each other and develop friendships. You may also work closely with your local volunteer group facilitator (if there is a group nearby) to encourage parents to access this group support too, where appropriate. For this volunteer support role, we ask that you have been bereaved for at least three years. This is a general guideline and may vary from volunteer to volunteer have or are willing to join TCF as a donating member have been supported by TCF in some way, either via the Helpline or a local or group support contact, have attended a supportive weekend or participated in the online Forum or Facebook groups attend a Group Facilitation Information and Training Day or other training, where relevant, read the Volunteer Handbook, and make every effort to attend any on-going Information and Development Days abide by TCF’s aims and objectives, policies, procedures and code of conduct

The Compassionate Friends (TCF) is a charitable organisation of bereaved parents, siblings and grandparents dedicated to the support and care of other similarly bereaved family members who have suffered the death of a child or children of any age and from any cause. Many people who have suffered the loss of a child feel a bond with others in the same situation and wish to extend the hand of friendship. We offer support, both directly to bereaved families, and indirectly by fostering understanding and good practice amongst professionals concerned with child death and by increasing public awareness. A support group facilitator runs (often with one or more other facilitators) a monthly support group meeting for bereaved parents, siblings and/or grandparents. Support group facilitators create a caring, safe and supportive atmosphere that encourages group members to share their grief and experiences. A support group facilitator will do more listening than talking and will be resilient and comfortable listening to the experiences and feelings of others. We offer all support group facilitators an Information and Training Day which equips you with the information and skills to run group meetings, as well as guidance in applying one’s own experience to support others. The facilitator also has the support of our regional coordinators and TCF office staff. The group facilitator role is a very rewarding one, and epitomises the best of peer support. In supporting others, we also support ourselves. We are looking for bereaved parents who are at least 3 years on from their own bereavement and who are feeling more ‘resilient’ around their loss. As a local group facilitator, you will be using your own experience and ways of coping to support other bereaved parents. Some of the qualities that make a good support group facilitator are: good listening and communication skills; high level of empathy; non-judgemental approach; confident and able to hold your own in group situations; respectful of others’ beliefs and opinions; consistent and dependable; resilient around your own loss; able to maintain confidentiality at all times at least three years past your own bereavement have or would be willing to join TCF as a donating member have been supported by TCF in some way, either via the Helpline or a local or group support contact, have attended a supportive weekend or participated in the online Forum or Facebook groups

The Shetland Conservation Volunteers is a RSPB run team of enthusiastic volunteers who deliver practical conservation work in Shetland for environmental and community benefit. An ongoing programme of activities will be proposed, with an aim of a day of action every month in spring and summer. Tasks could include infrastructure maintenance at RSPB reserves and providing help to local projects such as weeding, pruning and planting in community gardens. There is no minimum commitment, volunteers can take part in one or more projects. This is an opportunity to learn and share skills, join a friendly team and actively contribute to protecting Shetland's environment. This opportunity is seasonal and will be dependent on guidance around COVID-19 for 2020/2021

Volunteers are matched up on a one-to-one basis with a vulnerable adult. The matches meet regularly either weekly or fortnightly for a few hours at a time. The aim is to engage in purposeful activities within the community which will help to reduce social isolation and feelings of loneliness. It is also about continuing to support the adult to engage in their own community and have positive social connections.