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ThanksVolunteering
We are a small and friendly charity and we always need volunteers so that we can carry out our work effectively.
What is a volunteer advocate?
Basically, an advocate is someone who speaks up for someone who is unable to do this for themselves. Without knowing it, you’ve probably done this yourself at some point. Perhaps you spoke up for a friend when they were in trouble, or even if you just felt annoyed when someone was being given a ‘raw deal’. People with a learning disability are often unable to speak up for themselves, and this is when you as a potential volunteer come in.
As a volunteer you would be matched with one of our clients who needs someone to support them.
This could be with one issue in particular (such as if they were moving or making a major change in their lives)
but it could also be because they need someone just to help them with general day-to-day things.
Having someone ‘by your side’ can make a huge difference to a person's self-confidence
and sense of well-being.
What hours do you need me to volunteer?
We always aim to be flexible with our volunteers, which means that, if you are interested in volunteering, you can fit it into your lifestyle. For instance, some people can only volunteer at weekends or in the evenings whereas others are available during the day. If you decide to be a volunteer advocate for someone with a learning disability, we would match you up with someone who needs an advocate, and then together you can work out when and how often you meet up. You can expect it to be a very rewarding partnership.
Other volunteers help with the various groups we run. This is particularly helpful
if you would like an introduction to working with adults with a learning disability.
We have a fortnightly Craft Group in Chelmsley Wood (on a Tuesday from 10.30-12) and a Coffee Morning
in Solihull on the first Thursday of every month from 10.30-12. We are also involved with a weekly
social group called Night Owls run by SOLO, which meets on a Monday at 6.30pm.
Please contact us for more details on any of these groups.
What sort of people volunteer with SAtA?
We are lucky enough to have volunteers from all walks of life – some are retired, some are students,
and some are people who are looking for more experience with our client group to improve their job prospects.
Whatever your reasons for volunteering are, we welcome people who are tolerant, patient and who believe
that people with a learning disability should have the same rights as everyone else in society.
What are the good things about volunteering with SAtA?
Apart from training and out-of-pocket expenses, we offer the opportunity to work with a genuinely caring and supportive team.
Our clients also come from all walks of life so if you think you’d like to work with a younger person, that should be fine, or if you would prefer group work, we have groups you can help at. If you would like to learn more about our work and want to be a volunteer, we can arrange for you to ‘shadow’ one of our advocacy workers.
Join the Management Committee
Our management committee members are all trustees of our charity and volunteer their time to ensure that Solihull Action through Advocacy continues to function as it should.
Their role is to:
Consider the development of the organisation; checking whether the charity's constitution and aims, still represent the work of Solihull Action through Advocacy or whether changes need to be made.
Ensure the charity has the resources, including finances, to carry out its work.
Support the advocacy manager to carry out her job.
Be a responsible employer, monitoring the activity of Solihull Action through Advocacy to make sure that our practice lives up to our policies.
To carry out these the roles the committee meets every 6 to 8 weeks as well as offering support in between. The committee also has input from the ‘Changing Lives’ group who feed in their views of Solihull Advocacy’s work and ideas for its development.
Our committee benefits from members from various backgrounds with many different skills. Members of the committee are elected at each Annual General Meeting. If you feel that you could help Solihull Action through Advocacy by becoming a member of our committee please contact our advocacy manager by phone – 0121 603 5576 or email nicky@solihulladvocacy.org.uk I’m sure you’d have something to offer.
Become a Volunteer
The simplest way to contact us about becoming a volunteer is by filling out the form below and we will send you an email with information about all of our volunteering opportunities, as well as a volunteer application form should you choose to become a volunteer.
Alternatively if you're eager to get stuck in you can just download a copy of the volunteer application form directly from this site:
Volunteer Application Form (.doc)
Volunteer Application Form (.pdf)
And then send it to the following address:
Solihull Action through Advocacy,
St Andrew's Church Centre, Pike Drive,
Chelmsley Wood,
B37 7US
If you are just looking for a bit more information about volunteering opportunities you could always download our volunteer brochure: