As a Witness Service court-based Volunteer you would:
- Give witnesses and their supporters emotional support, guidance and information at court
- Show witnesses and others around the courtroom before a trial so they are familiar and at ease in the environment
- Identify additional support to which we can signpost or refer witnesses.
- Work as part of a team with other Witness Service volunteers and staff as well as liaising with court personnel.
What's in it for you?
- Have a positive impact in your community and on the lives of witnesses and their supporters
- Training, accreditation and continued personal development and support in the role
- Use your skills and life experiences to help others
- The opportunity to take on additional roles such as a buddy / IT champion
- Gain valuable experience and development of interpersonal skills
- Reimbursement of agreed out of pocket expenses
You don’t need specific qualifications but you’ll need to:
- Be friendly, caring, supportive and empathetic towards others.
- Be non-judgemental and impartial.
- Have good communication skills; both written and verbal, as well as being a good listener.
- Be able to work effectively as part of a diverse team
- Be reliable, committed and flexible.
- Be willing to use computers for training and communication.
- The ability to handle challenging situations and use your initiative, experience and training to solve problems and make appropriate decisions.
You’ll also need an Enhanced level DBS disclosure (a criminal record check), which we will arrange. Having a criminal record is not in itself a barrier to volunteering with us.
- It can take around 3 months to become fully accredited as a Witness Service Volunteer. The expectation is that you can volunteer for a minimum of 12 months after you’ve completed your training.
- We’ll ask you can offer one day per week at court usually from 9am-5pm (Barnstaple has trial Tuesdays)
- You’d also be invited to and expected to attend - ongoing training, volunteer meetings and regular one-to-one support sessions, which are typically held every quarter.
Our volunteers come from a range of backgrounds and we particularly welcome applications from people with physical or mental health conditions, and people from Black Asian Minority Ethnic (BAME) and LGBT+ communities.
We are committed to offering a welcoming and inclusive environment to witnesses, staff, and volunteers, and expect volunteers to share this value.