The role of a volunteer Parent Link Volunteer is to promote Parent Link courses within their communities and to work with the coordinator and facilitators to deliver the appropriate courses. Volunteers will be expected to have attended one course and shown interest in helping develop the project within their community.

The task of a Parent Link Volunteer

The tasks undertaken by a volunteer will vary depending upon the needs of families within their community but will at all times be governed by the policies and procedures operated by Voluntary Action Shetland. The following list provides the range of tasks and the approach to be adopted by a volunteer whilst working with the project:

To help establish the need and demand for Parent Link’s parenting courses within the community by linking with toddler groups, nurseries, schools etc

To work with the coordinator and facilitators to help organise courses at times and in location that are locally accessible.

To encourage families to access Parent Link Shetland courses

To assist and advise the coordinator and other agencies to establish if there are families within their community who have not engaged with existing groups or courses and to encourage and support them to attend these courses and other support services

To agree to abide by the confidentiality policy and the other policies and procedures of the project

To work in conjunction with the staff of Voluntary Action Shetland to provide a quality service, by participating in support and supervision sessions with VAS staff where needed

To offer a supportive presence and work in a non-discriminatory manner

Experience, Skills and Attitudes required

Parent Link Shetland aims to promote an inclusive project that recognises the wide range of skills and experiences that volunteers can bring to the project. Volunteers will come from all walks of life, with a range of experiences and skills to offer. There are no specific educational qualifications required and we aim to recruit people with potential as well as those with relevant experience or qualifications. We are looking for people who will embrace the principles and values that we promote when working with families and see something of themselves in the following descriptions:

The following volunteer person specification outlines the range of skills, experience and attitudes that we feel would be relevant to this post.

Personal Qualities

Able to communicate well with other people, particularly parents and be a good listener
Are self aware and able to reflect on how different situations and circumstances may affect families in the community
Are comfortable working on your own, relying on your own initiative and common sense, but also know when to seek support
Are reliable, consistent, dependable and have an ability to maintain confidentiality
Are able relate to the issues and challenges facing families

Personal Values

An ability to accept people for who they are
A respect for others as being of equal worth and not to impose your own values and beliefs on others
An ability to understand others choices and lifestyles and their right to make decisions for themselves and value the differences between people
A belief that we can make a difference

If you wish to become a Parent Link Shetland volunteer or want an informal discussion about the role please email parentlink@shetland.org