Street Team Volunteer (Glasgow)

Background

This is an essential and rewarding volunteer role that supports vulnerable people
in our city. We help people who are experiencing homelessness, or are worried
about their accommodation, and offer personal support that matches what they
need.
We’ve been doing this work for over 50 years.
The Street Team is part of our RSVP (Rough Sleepers and Vulnerable People) Team
based in Glasgow. The Team is made up of a dedicated Street Team and Street
Cycles Team that cover Glasgow City and its outskirts, an Intensive Outreach
Support Team that work with people facing more complex and difficult
circumstances and The Access Hub, our multi-agency support hub on Argyle Street.
For as little as four hours per week/fortnight you could make a huge difference to
someone’s life, pick up valuable skills and experience, and contribute to societal
change within your own community.

Role Purpose

Our vision is that everyone should have a safe place to live and access to the
support they need. As a Street Team volunteer you could help us achieve this quite
simple but simply challenging vision.
For people who have fallen on hard times, face-to-face support can really help. Our
aim is to get people off the street as quickly as possible and into accommodation
where they are safe, warm and supported. This can mean meeting people,
listening to their situation and linking them with necessary services to meet their
immediate needs.
We stick by people and support them to work out the solutions that work best for
them.

Specific Tasks

● Work street shifts on foot with our trained staff team
● Provide positive, practical support to people who are at risk of rough sleeping
in Glasgow
● Provide people with support and encouragement to seek and achieve positive
solutions
● Offer practical help such as distribution of safer injecting provisions, basic
necessities and Period Friendly Packs
● Maintain a record of the people you have been in contact with throughout
your shift (using Netsuite)
● Participate in group team meetings to aid continuous improvement of our
service user and volunteer experience

Skills and Qualities Required

Successful Street Team Volunteers will:
● Have the ability to work with people in a way that takes into consideration their
individual and cultural beliefs without expressing personal opinion
● Be able to approach your volunteering role and tasks with a flexible and non
judgemental attitude
● Have a reasonable level of fitness to be able to walk for hours on shift in
changeable weather
● Be empathetic towards our client group
● Have good communication and people skills
● Enjoy meeting and interacting with people from diverse backgrounds

Commitment

We welcome volunteers to stay with us and continue to help us make a difference
in people’s lives. 12 months would be the ideal minimum but we respect your time
and commitment’s elsewhere.
For this role we ask for a minimum of four hours per week/fortnight.
Our recruitment follows the Safer Recruitment process, which means giving
consideration to safeguarding arrangements at every step. We will ask you to
attend an informal interview, provide us with two references and attend our Mini
IMPACT training – a shortened version of our dynamic five day staff programme.

Support and Training

● A full and comprehensive induction is provided for this role
● In-role training is available – we value our volunteers and want to ensure you
are equipped with the skills you need to fulfil your role
● Shadow shifts will help you prepare for the role – you will complete at least
three before becoming a fully fledged member of the team
● Simon Community Scotland together with Volunteer Scotland and Disclosure
Scotland will support you with the required PVG process

What’s in it for me?

For as little as four hours per week/fortnight you have the chance to meet new
people and be part of an amazing team who are passionate about what they do.
Everything we do is about and for people: the people we support, our staff, our
partners and everyone affected by homelessness. Each person involved brings
their individual skills and creativity to the work we do. This is a chance for you to
make a real difference to the most vulnerable people within your community and
pick up essential skills that are valuable to employers.

Our expectations

We need people who care about our client group and who are enthusiastic and
able to respond flexibly to a role that can sometimes be challenging, but brings
great rewards and satisfaction.
We need you to be fully committed to Simon Community Scotland’s Mission and
Core Values and adhere to our policies/procedures and Code of Practice.

If you need any help completing this form please contact us: volunteering@simonscotland.