Butterfly Trust (The) (Midlothian)

The Butterfly Trust provides support in the community for people affected by cystic fibrosis throughout Scotland. Our team of trained volunteers provide face to face support services that include emotional support, help to negotiate official systems in regard to housing, education and employment issues, mentoring for young people with cystic fibrosis, massage therapy for young adults with the condition and transport to hospital appointments for people who are not sick enough to qualify for mobility help and cannot afford a car.


Current opportunities

Cystic Fibrosis is a progressive, life-limiting, genetically inherited condition with no cure. We are the leading provider of social support to the Cystic Fibrosis community of Scotland, providing face-to-face services for individuals and families, and access to the support needed to ensure they benefit from optimum homecare and enjoy the best quality of life. Volunteering is a fantastic way to make a difference to the life of someone else, and an opportunity to enhance your own life and build new skills. The support worker undertakes tasks that make a real difference to the quality of life for the young people we support. He/she is our first point of contact with clients responding to requests that are often for practical help but also just someone to talk to. Support workers receive training to develop skills in understanding and completing official forms, and can be trained to provide advocacy if they wish to be more challenged.

Befriending is a fantastic and rewarding way to make a real difference to the life of someone else. Apart from the personal satisfaction of helping someone, it is also an opportunity to enhance your own life experience and build new skills. A minimum commitment of 1 year is needed to ensure these goals can be met. Cystic Fibrosis (CF) is a life limiting condition that currently affects around 1200 people in Scotland. The Butterfly Trust aspires to improving the quality of life for people affected by Cystic Fibrosis by providing support, promoting people's rights and helping them to live independently. Our befrienders offer one to one face-to-face support to a young person aged 8 to 18, who has Cystic Fibrosis. Young people living with this condition have a demanding daily treatment regime at home and sometimes experience limitations that can affect their confidence and ability to cope with the challenges of everyday living. They may also be socially isolated because of their condition. A befriender will meet with the young person for around 3 hours every 1 to 2 weeks, away from the home environment, to build a trusting one to one relationship. A session might simply be an opportunity to chat, eg over a snack or coffee, or may involve a specific activity such as sport or creative/arts. This will allow the young person space and a suitable environment to explore their feelings, discuss their fears, develop life skills and grow in the areas where they may be struggling. Befrienders MUST have held a full driving licence for at least 2 years and have the use of a smoke free car.

Volunteering is a fantastic way to make a difference to the life of someone else. It can also be an incredible opportunity to enhance your own life and build new skills to help your personal and career development. Our drivers provide transport for people affected by Cystic Fibrosis to hospital appointments. Our clients do not need any physical help getting in and out of the vehicle. Children and young people with Cystic Fibrosis have to attend clinic appointments in hospitals to have their health monitored, usually every three months. Traveling in public transport poses risks of infection and waiting for transport in our typical inclement weather is undesirable because of their chronic lung condition. Our drivers provide transport from home ensuring a safe and comfortable journey. This service makes a real difference by reducing some of the pressure on families at this time.

Mentoring is a fantastic and rewarding way to make a difference to the life of someone else. Apart from the personal satisfaction of helping someone, it is also an opportunity to enhance your own life and build new skills. A minimum commitment of 1 year is needed to ensure these goals can be met. Our mentors offer crucial support to young adults with Cystic Fibrosis in improving socialisation, broadening horizons and exploring concerns to improve self-esteem, enhance coping skills and the person's quality of life. Young adults living with this condition have a demanding daily treatment regime at home and sometimes experience limitations that can affect their confidence and ability to cope with the challenges of everyday living. They may also be socially isolated because of their condition. A mentor will meet with a young adult regularly (every 2-3 weeks) to build a trusting one-to-one relationship allowing the person to explore their feelings, discuss their aspirations and grow life skills, to support them in achieving goals or just giving them someone to talk to. This opportunity also gives the mentor the chance to expand their own experience and enhance their life skills. The young adult will live within a reasonable distance of the mentor, who may sometimes take them in their car to an activity or environment away from home.