DASH Volunteer Counsellor in Southampton

Role Terms

• Hours: Monday – 9.30am – 2.30pm, 10am – 2pm; Tuesday – 10am – 2pm, 2pm – 5pm; Wednesday – 9am – 12pm (twice); Thursday – 10am – 1pm, 10am – 6pm, 4pm – 8pm. Please let us know if you are interested in Friday or Saturday slots. You would need to be available for one of the above session slots each week. Please indicate your availability on your application form.
• Place of work: No Limits Head Office, 34/35 The Avenue, Southampton, SO17 1XN; No Limits Advice Centre, High Street, Southampton, SO14 2DF.
• Responsible to: Operations Manager – Therapeutic Services.
• Disclosure and Barring Service Check (DBS): Enhanced DBS – Child and Adult Barred List.
• Essential driver? No, but must be able to independently travel to the role location.
• Closing Date: 9am Tuesday, 21st of April 2026.
• Interview Date: Wednesday 6th of May.

Role Description

Join us as a Drug & Alcohol Support Hub (DASH) Volunteer Counsellor to develop your skills and experience, while making a real difference to children and young people. Our Charity No Limits is the leading youth services charity in Southampton, supporting children and young people in the city and across Hampshire. At No Limits, it is important our staff and volunteers reflect, represent, and have experience of the challenges faced by the children and young people we support. We are proud of and appreciate our many staff and volunteers who use their own lived experience to support the children and young people they work with. With this in mind, we are committed to diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) in all aspects of our work and organisational culture – and when recruiting, it’s important to us that we continue diversifying our staff and volunteer teams, with children and young people at the centre of everything we do.

Your Role

Are you looking for a supportive volunteering opportunity in a friendly organisation, where you are valued, and helped to grow? This role works with clients who will also be under the Drug & Alcohol Support Hub team within No Limits. Our Drug & Alcohol Support Hub (DASH) for young people under 25 in the SO14 – SO19 postcodes is the place to go if you want support for your usage, information about substances, or are being affected by the substance use of a friend or family member. Our DASH team gives you a wide range of information, advice and support around any substance, its effects and risks, as well as how to keep yourself safe. To ensure you have a full cohort of clients, you will also be allocated clients from our Southampton 11 – 18 (or 25 if SEN or care leaver). Part of our Therapeutic Services team, our counselling placements provide first-hand experience, allowing you to develop your skills, access Continuous Professional Development (CPD) opportunities and gain practical insight of working with children and young people.

What we offer

• Opportunity to typically support, on average, three children and young people each week, to develop your practice.
• Dedicated Manager support from a qualified practitioner, regular team meetings and opportunities for peer support with other Trainee and Volunteer Counsellors.
• Access to free mandatory training, such as safeguarding and health and safety, as well as other online and face-to-face training and opportunities, to support your personal and CPD.
• Commitment to supporting the growth of our Trainee and Volunteer Counsellors.
• FREE clinical supervision – 1.5 hours every other week.
• No Limits has dedicated Admin support.
• Expenses are paid, if you need to travel to see a child or young person for your placement.

Requirements

• Studying at Level 5, or above, in a relevant counselling qualification.
• Have your fitness/readiness to practice.
• Are a member of a professional, ethical counselling body.
• Able to work with 11 to 17 year olds – most of our counselling referrals are for this age group, so please only apply if you are able to work with this age group.
• You must also be available for one of the following regular sessions, please let us know your preferred slot in your application.

We are committed to making a difference in the lives of the children and young people we work with, and as such, you must show a willingness to demonstrate commitment to the values and behaviours which flow from the No Limits ethos. Safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people is paramount. We particularly welcome applicants from diverse backgrounds and those who have had experiences similar to the young people we aim to support. We are committed to creating a diverse environment where people can be their authentic selves, where their experiences and opinions are valued, and we are all open to learning from each other.

Our Benefits

• 36 days annual leave (including public holidays).
• Two additional wellbeing days per year.
• Pension scheme – Supporting your future by matching your additional pension contributions up to 2%.
• Life assurance scheme – Giving you peace of mind with 2x annual salary cover for pension members.
• Hybrid and flexible working – Giving the flexibility to work in the best way for your role.
• Comprehensive induction and training offer.
• Employee Assistance Programme – Providing you with counselling, financial, personal support and health and wellbeing services.

Interested..? We’d love to hear from you! We’d be happy to have an informal discussion and answer any immediate questions you might have. If you’d like an initial discussion please contact The People Team on people@nolimitshelp.org.uk. To apply, please complete an application form and upload using the portal below, before the closing date of 9am on Tuesday, 21st of April 2026. Please contact people@nolimitshelp.org.uk if you need your application in an alternative format.