Are you caring, non-judgmental, empathetic and passionate about supporting others? Can you commit to our training course and give a little of your time each week to support families across Scotland If so, please get in touch - we’d love to hear from you. At Children 1st our ambition is for every child in Scotland to be safe, loved and well with their family. As a charity we offer emotional, practical, and financial support to help families to put children first and campaign to uphold the rights of every child. With over 25 years of experience, Children 1st Parentline is more than just a helpline. It is a national digital family support service which provides one easy point of immediate access for families to receive a range of support bespoke to them, to help them cope with the challenges they face whether practical or emotional. Through our relationships with parents and carers, we promote early intervention, supporting families to build resilience and prevent those challenges from escalating. Volunteering for Children 1st Parentline is a fantastic opportunity to make a real difference to the lives of children and families across Scotland. “I would say if you’re thinking about volunteering, just go for it. Everyone has something to bring, and it can lead you to places that you might not have thought about or even thought possible.” (Helpline Volunteer) What will I be doing? As a Helpline Volunteer you would provide emotional and practical support and advice about anything to do with children to adults by phone, webchat and email. Offering a kind and skilled listening ear you would build supportive relationships and work in partnership with Helpline Supervisors to ensure that the safety and wellbeing of children is a central focus of all contacts. As every family is different you would work alongside individuals to think through what would work best for them and their children and where appropriate signpost them to other sources of support. “No matter how many calls I have taken, I still find that there are no such things as two identical calls. Every person is an individual with their own particular issues and this keeps you interested in the role.” (Helpline Volunteer) You will become part of a friendly, supportive team where trained staff are always on hand to provide support and guidance. Our volunteers tell us that they develop lifelong skills and gain practical experience which are valuable to them in many different ways. “As a Helpline Volunteer you develop valuable and very transferable skills, communication and listening skills being big part of that. My time at Parentline increased confidence in my abilities and has since led me into employment in the advice area and into a job that I would not have thought about or have had the relevant skills to approach, had it not been for the skills I’ve learnt at Parentline.” (Helpline Volunteer) What do I need to know? A caring, kind and non-judgemental response can make a real difference to someone who wants to talk. No previous experience or formal qualifications are necessary however good communication skills are essential to enable you to listen to and support those who contact Children 1st Parentline. The helpline is open Monday-Friday 9am-9pm and 9am-12 noon Saturday and Sunday throughout the year. On completion of training, we ask our volunteers to give a weekly commitment of around 4 hours for a minimum of a year. There are a range of options for days/times based at the Children 1st Edinburgh office. Training and support We provide a comprehensive introductory training course that will equip you with the skills and knowledge that you need. Our next training course will run on the following dates: • Sat 19th Oct – 9.30am-4.30pm • Sat 26th Oct – 9.30am-4.30pm • Sat 2nd Nov – 9.30am-4.30pm • Weds 6th Nov – 5.45pm-9.00pm • Weds 13th Nov - 5.45pm-9.00pm Training sessions will take place at our office: 83 Whitehouse Loan, Edinburgh, EH9 1AT. We are planning to start another training course January 2025 so please get in touch if the dates above don’t suit you. We provide all of our volunteers with ongoing support and opportunities to develop in the role. We also reimburse reasonable out-of-pocket expenses for travel and costs incurred as part of the volunteering role. Further Information If you would like to find out more about the role or have any questions please get in touch via volunteer@children1st.org.uk - we’d love to hear from you. To apply please select the link below.

We are recruiting new volunteers to be part of our Dementia Helpline team. Can you spare 8 hour per month to make sure nobody faces dementia alone? Our next Helpline Volunteer Preparation Programme will run during October and November 2024 (mixture of online and in person in Glasgow) For further information on this and other training dates please email helpline@alzscot.org

Are you a good listener? More than 130,000 people live with multiple sclerosis (MS) in the UK. Every one of them shares the uncertainty of life with MS. People are most likely to find out they have MS in their thirties, forties and fifties; news that can be worrying and heart breaking. MS can get steadily worse, or symptoms can come and go unpredictably throughout someone’s life. Could you spare two or three hours a week to provide emotional support and information to those affected by MS? If so, the MS Helpline team would like to hear from you. We’re the UK charity for people with MS. We’re fighting for better treatment and care to help people with MS take control of their lives, and we’re funding research that we believe will stop MS for good. We’ve already made important breakthroughs, and big advances in MS treatments are possible within our lifetimes. With your support, we will stop MS. Time and Commitment The MS Helpline is open from Monday to Friday 9am to 7pm. All of our MS Helpline volunteers carry out their volunteering from home and give emotional support and information to people affected by MS by telephone. We are looking for volunteers that can commit to a 2 or 3 hour telephone shift a week. You will be attending comprehensive helpline volunteer training programme throughout May 2024. The first training sessions will take place 7th-10th May of two full day training sessions, then the rest of the trainings will take place from 13th-31st May as three 1½ sessions every week - including two assessments you need to pass before being accepted for the MS Helpline Volunteer role. All training sessions will be remote via Zoom during weekdays between 10am-4pm. There will be pre-reading and exercise tasks to complete in between training sessions. About you We do not ask for previous experience although we are looking for people with good listening skills and a clear, warm telephone voice. You should have good IT skills as the role will require use of Microsoft Office such as Outlook and Teams, internal databases and call handling system. You will receive training on the internal databases and call handling system. We also ask that you have access to a confidential and comfortable working space, computer and broadband suitable for MS Helpline Volunteer role. If you are shortlisted for the role interview, we will ask you about your home and equipment set up, as unfortunately not everyone may have the appropriate set up and equipment for MS Helpline Volunteer role. What will you get from volunteering with us? A chance to learn new skills Meet new people Be part of a supportive, caring team Ongoing support for your development as a volunteer A rewarding role supporting the MS community Before applying please ensure you will be able to meet the following considerations: If you are shortlisted, there will be a 30 minute role interview w\c 22nd April 2024 on Zoom – including a short role play. If you think you meet the criteria and would like to find out more, please contact Ahra An, Helpline Services Volunteer Manager at Ahra.An@mssociety.org.uk or Tel: 020 8438 0704 The deadline for applications is Sunday 14th April 2024.

FCSS has been created to challenge the inflexibility of current childcare provision across the country and to ensure equity of early years’ and childcare experience for all children regardless of family circumstances, location or specific needs. We are now seeking new Trustees to join our board and help us to drive flexible childcare across Scotland. Board Trustees are responsible for the charity’s governance and strategy, and for making sure that the charity is administered effectively. Help us to tackle child poverty by making flexible childcare the rule, not the exception!