What we do?
Help us offer a free, in-person drop-in service for people who are deaf, have hearing loss or tinnitus, or want to get their hearing checked.
RNID Near You volunteers do 6 main activities to help us make life fully inclusive for deaf people and people with hearing loss and tinnitus.
You don’t have to do all 6 of these activities – you can pick the activities you find most interesting and match your skills and experience.
1. Maintaining hearing aids
Our volunteers support hearing aid users by cleaning their hearing aids and replacing batteries and tubing. They provide tips for getting the most from hearing aids.
Don’t worry if you don’t have experience maintaining hearing aids. We give our volunteers full training so they’re knowledgeable and confident setting up and using the hearing aid maintenance kit.
2. Helping people check their hearing
Our volunteers help people take the RNID online hearing check. They take people through the steps in person on a digital tablet.
It usually takes 10-15 minutes and will suggest if the person’s hearing is in a normal range or if they may have hearing loss.
3. Informing People
Our volunteers help deaf people and those with hearing loss and tinnitus find information about:
- getting used to hearing aids and getting the most out of them
- using technology and assistive devices
- applying for benefits
- finding employment
- finding support with employment
- and many other important topics.
4. Meeting & Greeting
Our in-person volunteers welcome people to our services. They have a chat with visitors, find out what service or information they’re looking for and direct them to the right place.
5. Finding supporters and donors
Our volunteers do important work to help us find people who can support our services and people who can donate money to help us fund our services.
If you’re interested in helping us find supporters and donors, we’ll give you full training so you feel confident and prepared.
6. Administration
Our volunteers help us run our services by doing administrative tasks. This might include something like data entry or managing copies of leaflets.
Training and Support
You’ll receive a full induction and training so you feel prepared and confident before your first session. You’ll also get our volunteering handbook and volunteering policies to refer to.
You’ll be assigned a supervisor who will provide ongoing support and we’ll also introduce you to our community of volunteers.
What you'll get in return
As a volunteer, you will:
- make a real difference to the people you support
- help us run this important service
- receive training and learn new skills
- meet people in different situations
- raise awareness of deafness in the community
- have reasonable, out-of-pocket and pre-approved travel expenses repaid.
Apply here: RNID Near You volunteer, Devon - RNID