Job Title: Befriending Service Co-ordinator
Location: SWAN Women’s Centre – Litherland, Liverpool
Hours: 15 hours per week, 2 Days per week, (Currently Wednesday and Thursday)
Salary: £25,000 per annum, pro rata, (F/T is 35 hours)
Reporting to: Chief Executive
Closing date for application Midnight 7th April 2025
SWAN Women's Centre is a mental health and wellbeing charity that supports women and girls who live in the Sefton/Liverpool area. We provide a range of support services including Counselling, Mental Health support, Befriending Service, Peer Support groups, Counsellor led support groups as well as activities that aim to improve mental health and wellbeing as well as reducing isolation and loneliness.
We are seeking an experienced trainer with good administration skills who has an understanding of the impact of loneliness and social isolation on mental health. The successful candidate will be based at SWAN Women's Centre. It is an essential requirement of the role that you have written and delivered training as well as having successfully recruited, trained and supervised volunteers previously.
The project will recruit female volunteers who may have experienced poor mental health themselves in the past. You will recruit, train and match them with women in the community who are currently experiencing loneliness and isolation, stress or other mental health issues.
The Befriending volunteer will provide social companionship, emotional support as well as practical support such as accompanying women to appointments. The aim of the service is to reduce loneliness and isolation and support women to successfully re-engage with their local community as part of their recovery process.
Role
Your role will be to recruit, train and supervise a team of volunteers who will act as befrienders for women with mental health problems who live in Sefton. You will develop and deliver the training programme to ensure that the volunteers are adequately prepared for what may sometimes be, a complex role. You will be the main point of contact for the befriending volunteers and the women that they are matched with.
A key element of this role will be ensuring that you match the skills, experiences and expectations of specific volunteers to the women they are befriending. There is another member of the team, whom you will manage and support.
Key Tasks
Writing volunteer befriender training programme for volunteer befrienders.
Recruitment and selection of befriending volunteers.
Planning for volunteer retention and replacement.
Management and supervision of befriending volunteers.
Maintain regular support and contact with women who are matched with a volunteer Befriender.
Developing and managing policies, procedures and standards for volunteer befrienders.
Maintaining volunteer records and information.
Managing the paperwork for volunteer expenditure on this project (volunteer expenses).
Communicating with people from diverse backgrounds.
Resolving conflict or managing the grievance process.
Completing relevant checks ( such as a DBS check)
Identifying and managing risks and understanding the impact.
Ensuring that volunteers follow the policies and procedures that will reduce those risks.
All administrative tasks relating to Volunteer Befrienders Managing the Befriending Project Worker.
Additional Information:
Working hours: 15 hours per week, currently over 2 days (Wednesday and Thursday) Office based
Flexible working hours may be considered.
25 Days annual leave plus Bank Holidays (pro rata)
Day off for your Birthday
Supportive Working environment
Committed to continual professional development
Miscellaneous Accountabilities
To develop professional working relationships with women who use the services, internally with colleagues and with external agencies.
Take an active and constructive role in supervision and appraisal.
Comply at all times with SWAN’s policies and procedures
Maintain confidentiality of sensitive information pertaining to SWAN.
Exhibit a professional, friendly and approachable demeanour to clients, colleagues and other professionals at all times.
Utilise effective time management techniques to ensure all tasks are completed within agreed deadlines.
Support the running of the centre, as a small team we all do what is necessary to ensure that clients are responded to quickly.
Any other duty that may be required, commensurate with job title and salary (SWAN services are continually changing – flexibility and adaptability is essential).
This job description is not exhaustive and serves to highlight the main requirements of the post holder. The job description will be reviewed regularly and may be subject to change.
Person Specification – Befriending Service Co-ordinator
SKILLS & KNOWLEDGE REQUIRED
ESSENTIAL
Managing of staff and/or volunteers
Experience of volunteer recruitment
Experience of developing and delivering training
Understanding of the role of a Befriender
Excellent communication skills
Experience of providing supervision
Experienced problem solver
Able to work on your own initiative
Understanding of the impact of poor mental health
Good working knowledge of Microsoft Office
Full, clean driving license and use of car.
Ability to work flexibly as the role requires.
Desirable
Training/teaching qualification
Please submit your CV and a cover letter outlining your suitability for the role to Karen Christie – Chief Executive Email: [email protected].
If you wish to discuss this role, please feel free to contact Karen Christie, CEO either via email on [email protected] or ring 07804 894241
