Befriending Scheme Coordinator

We have an exciting part time opportunity to join our Befriending Service which aims to ease loneliness and isolation of older people across Dacorum.

You will be responsible for coordinating our volunteers who either provide companionship through home visits or friendly telephone chats. You will also help to promote volunteering throughout Dacorum.

This rewarding position offers flexibility and autonomy in the way that you work.

It requires someone with excellent communication and organisation skills.

As you will be required to travel throughout the Dacorum area, a full driving licence with daily use of a car is essential.

Main purpose of Role

The purpose of the role is to coordinate the Befriending Service by carefully matching volunteers to visit an older lonely, isolated person in their own home to provide friendship and company.

Key Responsibilities

• Receive and record referrals for the befriending scheme from a variety of health and social care professionals, voluntary organisations, or family and friends


• Make contact with potential clients by undertaking initial telephone assessments and carrying out initial assessment visits, taking time to understand the needs of the clients and to assess suitability for the befriending scheme


• Actively recruit volunteers for both the visiting service. This will include interviewing potential volunteers and completion of DBS and references checks


• Provide individual inductions for all new volunteers recruited within the locality, ensuring that volunteers are appropriately trained to carry out their befriending role


• Carefully match volunteers with a client to ensure compatibility, and personally introduce visiting volunteers to clients


• Maintain regular contact with volunteers and clients to offer ongoing support and advice


• Manage and organise own administration work, ensuring that it is accurate and meets quality targets


• Complete and record monitoring forms


• Respect the confidentiality and dignity of clients and their rights to make their own decision


• Promote volunteering throughout the district by using a variety of media, attending public events and generally raising the profile of Age UK Hertfordshire


• Maintain the database, keeping up to date and accurate records


• Attend all training and meetings as requested by the Service Manager


• Work within AUKH policies and procedures and keep up to date with legislation for volunteer based projects.
  
  Proven IT skills including MS Office and Outlook to an intermediate level as well as database management experience


• Excellent communication skills, both written and verbal together with the ability to tailor your communication style to your audience


• The ability to work both as part of a team as well as independently


• Excellent organisational skills where you are able to priorities tasks in order to meet deadlines and/or expectations


• A positive, helpful, conscientious work ethic


• Full UK driving licence and own car


• The ability to be flexible in working hours from time to time


Desirable

• Experience of dealing with either volunteers and /or the elderly/vulnerable. This could have been gained from a previous role or a personal situation


• Experience of when you have had to assess clients needs in a sensitive manner


• Knowledge of the local area
  
  Training and development, travel expenses and a contributory pension scheme