Volunteer Co-ordinator - Recruitment and Support
Bedfordshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
As a Volunteer Coordinator, you will be responsible for the recruitment, training and coordinating the activity of volunteers, who will support our patients, their families and staff. You will work collaboratively with teams across the hospital, to ensure we deliver a high quality service at our hospitals.
This role will suit an individual with a passion for volunteering and a good understanding of recruitment and relationship management.
Experience of building and maintaining strong relationships with volunteers/clients and networking across a wide range of services.
Experience of supervising and motivating volunteers.
High level of relationship skills: Empathy; caring; acceptance; mutual affirmation; supportive and can give constructive feedback.
Good IT skills including the use of Microsoft Office applications.
Excellent written and oral communication skills.
Excellent organisational skills and attention to detail, with the ability to prioritise own workload and work autonomously and as part of a team.
Lateral thinking and problem-solving skills and the ability to adapt to changing and emerging needs.
Experience of data collection, administration and recording procedures, use of a bespoke database, production of reports.
Full driving license, own car and business insurance is essential.
Please note: This role is not eligible for Visa application support or sponsorship.
Main duties of the job
* Support in delivering Charity and Trust strategic aims and enhancing the experience of patients, visitors and staff.
* Focus on the recruitment of new volunteers in line with NHS Employers guidelines, and the retention of existing volunteers through appropriate support on a day-to-day basis.
* Collaborate with clinical and non-clinical teams across the hospitals to support requests for volunteer support and the development of volunteer role descriptions and risk assessments.
* Maintain accurate and up-to-date data and administrative systems with the ability to use a CRM database.
* Ensure volunteers are appropriately trained, including supporting the training of Mealtime Assistants on the wards.
* Produce reports on service activity as required and contribute to the development of evaluation and outcome measures.
* With a high level of written and verbal communication skills, assist with marketing and promotion of volunteer roles, testimonials and successes, including social media and website content, presentations and representing at community events.
* Ensure regular communication with all volunteers.
About us
Bedfordshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust provides hospital services to a growing population of around 700,000 people living across Bedfordshire and the surrounding areas across two busy hospital sites in Bedford and Luton. Both hospital sites offer key services such as A&E, Obstetrics-led Maternity and Paediatrics. You will be joining a friendly, high performing Trust committed to ensuring the health and wellbeing of staff. As one of the largest NHS Trusts in our region you will have access to a programme of high quality training and development to help you grow your career. The Trust continues to be committed to delivering the best patient care using the best clinical knowledge and technology.
Our Values
We not only recruit based on qualifications and experience - we recruit individuals who demonstrate the behaviours which underpin our Trusts core values. We achieve this by using values based recruitment. We are dedicated to making our recruitment practices as inclusive as possible for everyone, we are committed to promoting equality and diversity, and creating a culture that values differences.
Please note that vacancies may close prior to the advertised closing date when sufficient number of applications have been received. All new staff will be subject to a probationary period covering first 6 months in post. Travel between hospital sites may be required. Please review all documents attached to ensure you familiarize yourself with all requirements of the job.
Job responsibilities
Volunteer Recruitment and Programme Development A key part of your objectives will be to increase volunteer numbers and placement opportunities: Support the management and development of a quality volunteering service designed to enhance the patient experience, maintaining continuous volunteer recruitment across the Luton and Bedford sites. Ensure all volunteering activities meet with the Trusts service needs and are carried out in line with policies regarding health and safety, legal requirements, environmental, equal opportunities and general duty of care. Take responsibility for the volunteer recruitment process from enquiry to interview and placement, working with the Charity Administrator Volunteer Lead (Luton) and the Team Administrator (Bedford) to oversee all related administrative processes including taking up references, arranging DBS checks and health screening. Collaborate with wards and departments requesting support to develop role descriptions, identifying appropriate tasks, carrying out risk assessments against personal, environmental risk and job substitution, and matching individual volunteer skills to our patient and ward/department needs. Assist with identifying gaps in service that volunteer support could alleviate, negotiating and arranging appropriate placements for volunteers throughout the Trust to maximise support to patients, their relatives, visitors and staff. Place and induct new volunteers; introduce new volunteers to placement staff and ensure both parties understand the tasks to be completed; encourage the development of volunteers within placements in conjunction with staff; ensure safe practice that is compliant with national guidance and provide ongoing support to volunteers and staff. Maintain accurate and up-to-date records and administrative systems including the database and sign in app supported by the Luton and Bedford Admin Support team members. Monitor new volunteer starters to ensure wellbeing, appropriate support from the placement area and overall role satisfaction, addressing any immediate issues. Be accessible and offer support to all volunteers as needed in an open and friendly manner, and proactively engaging with them on a regular basis. Discuss and resolve difficulties and sensitive issues between volunteers and staff, assist staff with (HR) advice appropriate to volunteers. Identify any additional specialist training requirements through an ongoing training needs analysis and coordinate the delivery of any relevant training - facilitate and encourage the development of volunteer skills, knowledge and experience. Work with the Work Experience and Student Volunteer Lead to ensure Volunteers undertaking the Mealtime Assistant role are fully trained and supported. Where required, work alongside and supervise volunteers within the hospital, explaining tasks and working guidelines ensuring that they are understood. Collaborate with nursing, therapies and other service leads to ensure volunteers receive appropriate training to gain the knowledge and skills required to enable safe, confident and effective support. Assist with the organisation of training events for volunteers and contribute to the delivery of this training. Authorise expenses for volunteers, and maintain and monitor budget relating to this. Produce monthly, quarterly and annual reports on service activity. Respond to general office enquiries.
Strategic and Management Responsibilities As a key member of the team you will: Support the Head of Charity, Community Engagement and Voluntary Services Manager, and other Charity team leads in developing and delivering on the Charity and Trusts strategic aims and objectives, enhancing the experience of patients, visitors and staff. Guide, support and direct members of the team in achieving personal development goals whilst contributing to Volunteer Service and Charity objectives. Deputise for the Community Engagement and Voluntary Services Manager and Special Projects Volunteer Co-ordinators as necessary in handling issues and queries relating to volunteers. Assist in the delivery of well-managed, high quality volunteer services focusing on the recruitment and retention of appropriate volunteers to fulfil service requests for support. Establish and maintain positive working relationships with relevant stakeholders to promote best practice and offer support to peers. This includes developing relationships with organisations regionally and nationally to assist the development of volunteer services which reflect shared objectives. Be able to innovate and offer creative solutions in the development of new volunteer roles to address patient and service needs. Be self-aware with strong interpersonal and emotional intelligence skills and be able to work with and support team members and volunteers from diverse communities, ensuring inclusivity and respect is maintained. Uphold and lead by example in relation to the Trusts values of Teamwork, Honesty and Openness, Respect, Inclusivity, Valuing People and Excellence (THRIVE).
Communication and sharing knowledge/best practice Demonstrate a high level of verbal and written communication skills in relation to all aspects of service and project delivery. Communicate complex information to a wide range of volunteers, staff and managers at all levels of the organisation. Communicate effectively and appropriately with patients, carers, families and colleagues. This involves demonstrating awareness of sensitive issues and dealing with difficult situations, plus an awareness of barriers to effective communication e.g. hearing loss, altered perception, dementing illness, memory loss, pain, fear and the effective use of verbal / non-verbal communication as appropriate. Work as part of a team and include the sharing of skills and co-ordination of issues in order to enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of the Voluntary Services and Charity Team. Contribute to the compilation and assist with the dissemination of information to volunteers about the Voluntary Services department and the Charity, including newsletters. Assist with educating ward and department staff across the Trust on the remit and value of volunteers. Be proficient in IT skills, including Microsoft Office applications to enable effective communication. Participate in networking across the region and nationally via the National Association of Voluntary Services Managers, NHSE and other relevant platforms, to share and learn developments in best practice and innovation.
Service Promotion and Events Assist with arrangements for functions/events as part of the Trusts support for volunteers and the Charity. Attend events in the hospitals and in the community, including community organisations, to promote volunteering and the Charity. Contribute to appropriate working groups/meetings that are relative to volunteer involvement. Integrate into the local wider community of volunteer co-ordinators to ensure the Trusts services are promoted and kept up to date with current local issues and targets. Assist with articles for internal and external publications, social media posts, website, intranet and notice board updates, plus targeted recruitment campaigns. Retention and Service Deliverables Increased volunteer numbers across the Trust and efficiency improvements in volunteer recruitment timelines and processing. New volunteer roles developed for volunteers to meet service user, community and staff needs. Continuous service improvement including visibility and awareness across the Trust with increased understanding and appreciation of volunteer support. Contribute to the enhanced Trust reputation as a respected quality volunteer service provider in the region. Contribute to the development of outcome measures to assist service evaluation and growth, including through record keeping, assisting with audits and surveys, and ideas for service development.
Person Specification
* Good admin skills and attention to detail.
* Good knowledge of Microsoft applications.
* Ability to extract data and produce impactful reports.
* Experience in the effective use of a CRM Database.
Promotional skills
* Evidences use of the internet.
* Evidences use of social media platforms.
* Ability to update web content.
* Ability to organise events.
Recruitment and People Skills
* Experience dealing with people from a range of different backgrounds.
* Ability to extract data and produce reports.
* Experience delivering training.
* Experience dealing with community groups.
* Demonstrate good teamworking.
* Good interpersonal skills and ability to handle sensitive situations.
Qualifications
* Maths GCSE.
* Full UK Driving Licence and access to a vehicle.
* Project Management Qualification.
Disclosure and Barring Service Check
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.
Bedfordshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
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