We are seeking a Befriending and Volunteering Facilitator to join our team. In January 2023, Scottish Families launched its first Befriending and Volunteering programme, supported by the Health and Social Care Alliance Self-Management Fund. This includes a family befriending project and wider volunteering opportunities with Scottish Families. The befriending project engages with adult family members (aged 16+ years) who are affected by someone else’s alcohol or drug use, and it is primarily delivered by peer volunteers (i.e. other affected family members). This post will support the ongoing development and delivery of our befriending and volunteering programme.

The post will be based at Edward House, Glasgow – Scottish Families’ national office. (Note that staff are currently working between home and office). The post has a Scotland-wide remit and may involve some travel and occasional out-of-hours working. The post will be part of the Scottish Families’ staff team and be supervised by the Fundraising Manager.

The post-holder will be responsible for facilitating the further development and delivery of Scottish Families’ befriending project and wider volunteering programme, with the assistance and support of the Fundraising Manager, and with input from family members; building relationships with volunteers in order to provide meaningful volunteer opportunities; and working with staff to encourage volunteer participation in events and other activities. The post also involves facilitating the recruitment, support, and retention of volunteer befrienders and wider volunteers within the organisation; and facilitating the induction of new volunteer befrienders and wider volunteers, and their ongoing training and development; as well as supporting the process for identifying adult family members (aged 16+) in need of befriending support and matching these with suitable volunteer befrienders; and for matching wider volunteers with appropriate opportunities.

We are seeking applicants who are educated to HNC level, vocational qualification (level 3) or relevant professional qualification, with experience of working with volunteers. Applicants should have an understanding of the principles and benefits of befriending, as well as understanding of the needs and motivation of volunteers and the ability to adapt to those needs. You should be able to facilitate volunteer training, have strong organisational skills, and effective interpersonal and communication skills.

You can find out more information about our work in ‘The Cost of Loving, our Strategic Plan 2023-26 and our Impact Report 2023-24.

Due to a significant period of change and growth for the charity, we’re looking to fill new posts. SCLD are recruiting for:

1 x Full Time Equivalent Permanent Project Advisor 35 hours (Full time or part time applications welcome)

1 x Part-time (Fixed Term 1 Year) Project Advisor 21 hours

Please submit your application and specify the role that you are applying for and your preferred working hours.

The Project Advisor will work across SCLD’s projects and operational activity to create opportunities for co-production, meaningful engagement, and participation to ensure that people with learning disabilities are central to SCLD’s work.

The post holder will deliver co-production, participation, and engagement work with people with learning disabilities to ensure SCLD’s co-production and engagement work continues to be sector leading.

The post holder will be expected to meet the accessibility requirements for all group participants. This may be creating Easy Read information, video or audio files etc.

The post holder must have effective communication and organisation skills and experience of supporting people with learning disabilities to contribute individually and in group settings.

About SCLD:

The Scottish Commission for People with Learning Disabilities (SCLD) vision is of a fairer Scotland where people with learning disabilities live full, safe, loving, and equal lives.

SCLD is a human rights defender organisation and aims to make a significant contribution to systems and culture change across Scotland to

ensure people with learning disabilities are empowered to live the life they choose.

People with learning disabilities drive the charity’s work and are at the heart of all design and delivery.

Our key aims:

1. People with learning disabilities champion and defend their own and other people's human rights and lead the work to improve policy, practice, and legislation.
2. People with learning disabilities are confident about what they can achieve and use their voices to lead, participate and influence change.
3. Practitioners and service providers learn from shared experiences, resulting in improved practice and services informed by human rights standards, data, and evidence.

Street Connect is a Christian organisation with a mission to offer hope and opportunity of recovery for people disadvantaged by addiction, homelessness and poor mental health.

As a Projects Worker you can contribute to profound and lasting changes in the lives of highly vulnerable individuals. In 2023/24 working with our church partners, Street Connect benefitted over 2,166 people overall with 806 people receiving support through one-to-one appointments or groupwork, with 160 of those individuals receiving formal key work support, and we supported 16 entries to residential rehabilitation. Our participants report stability and improvements not only in their recovery from drug and alcohol problems, but also in their living skills and situations, social skills and relationships, and in their physical, mental and spiritual health and wellbeing.

The focal point of the role of Projects Worker will be in supporting church partners and volunteers. Our experience has shown us that working closely with partner churches to deliver support within communities is a successful way for people to access the support that they need. We currently have Street Connect partner churches and projects in Glasgow city centre, Royston, Clydebank, Paisley central, Paisley Kilnside, Greenock, Motherwell, Dunoon and Wishaw. As we continue our vital work in each of these areas our aim is to grow into new communities and allow as many people as possible to access the support they need.

In this role you will be part of the Street Connect team seeking to develop and deliver community recovery support through a range of different routes to both male and female service participants who have a background of complex needs such as addiction, homelessness, and mental health issues, who are now at different stages in their recovery journey. This will include both those in aftercare who are living independently and free from such issues and those at an earlier stage in their recovery.

About the Organisation

St Paul’s Youth Forum (SPYF) aims to alleviate the worst effects of poverty in the Blackhill/Provanmill area of Glasgow through our programmes focusing on Eating, Education, Exercise and Empowerment.

Purpose of the Role

As part of our programme to ensure that everyone can get ‘On Bikes’ we are looking for an SPYF Bike Mechanic who will help SPYF meet its aims and vision. This will compliment wider Scottish Government policies to encourage people to actively travel instead of using private cars for transport.

The Bike Mechanic will specifically support our partnership with North Glasgow Homes (ngh) with additional support for other projects headed up by On Bikes. This will include the Free Bikes Project, the Cycle Friendly Schools Fund and the SPYF On Bikes social enterprise shop at the Hogganfield Loch.

The post holder is key to ensuring the relationship between St Paul’s Youth Forum and ngh is positively maintained, and as such work will include not only mechanics, but also a variety of Active Travel community engagement activities dependent on the postholder’s skill set.

A crucial part of the role will also be to work as part of the wider St Paul’s Youth Forum team to build referrals and add value to other projects and activities which we run, increasing overall engagement of the wider community and maximising the ways we can help fulfil local need.

This post will entail some evening and weekend working.