Community Buddy

Community Buddy Volunteers support children and young people aged 10 to 17 with disabilities and/or additional needs to access their local community, helping them develop key life skills and meet outcomes outlined at the start of their Buddy journey.

Buddy Volunteers are matched with a child or young person and offer one-to-one support during an activity or outing into the community. A crucial aspect of the volunteering role is the ability to build positive relationships with a child or young person with a disability and/or additional need, enabling them to build confidence to access the community or their chosen club/activity.

Participation in activities, clubs or accessing the community will be set out by the child or young person and their parents/carers and may take place in a variety of local settings. Examples of the type of support a volunteer would provide include:

• Visiting cafes
• Going shopping
• Accessing public transport
• Taking part in sports activities
• Attending a youth club

Buddy Volunteers will receive a fully flexible training programme which will equip them to provide support when out and about as a Buddy Volunteer with their child or young person. As part of the support package, Buddy Volunteers will have regular access to a dedicated Volunteer Coordinator who will provide them with guidance, advice and supervision while they are delivering their volunteering activities.

Skills

Training and support will be provided, therefore previous experience is not essential.

We are seeking volunteers who feel able to:

• Communicate and ensure children and young people, with varied levels of ability understand information in order to access the community successfully.
• Build and maintain positive relationships with children and young people with a disability or additional need.
• Listen and remain calm and impartial when dealing with children and young people.
• Record information.
• Respect differing views of individuals and work in a non-judgmental way.
• Respect confidentiality and the agreed information sharing process.
• Have the confidence to report concerns.