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When the world of work isn’t working, recruiters are looking for unicorns, and employers appear to have developed an allergy to training. Finding an employer who is doing things differently brings to mind the proverbial needle in a haystack.
But here at Brave Starts Towers, we think we might just have done it. That’s why we invited Volunteer Development Officer, Kiran Nahal, Head of People and Culture, Anna Rojek, and Corporate Volunteering Officer, Eleanor Roberts, all from Citizens Advice, to a lunchtime session in December.
And what a question-packed, fact-filled session it was.
Go Local
To cover off a few basics: Citizens Advice is a federated organisation, made up of a national organisation plus 235 local Citizens Advice services, some of which have more than one branch. Every service is an individual charity with a board of trustees and a need to fundraise. Between them, they have over 19,000 volunteers and 9,800 paid staff. Last year, 1.79 million people used their telephone service, 904,000 were helped by webchat or email, and 627,000 were helped via face-to-face meetings.
Each service advertises the roles it requires – both paid-for and volunteer – on its own website.
Top tip: always go local first. It’s also worth knowing that 80% of its paid roles are filled by people who are volunteers. In fact, volunteers are guaranteed interviews plus useful feedback and support if they are unsuccessful. (Remember useful feedback? Me neither.)
As a volunteer employer, they’re more interested in attitude than qualifications. They want people who are non-judgemental and willing to listen and help – the charity’s mission is to give people the knowledge and confidence to find their way forward, whoever they are and whatever their problem.
Big Range of Roles
While many people may be familiar with the advisor roles the charity provides – via webchat, face-to-face and over the phone – there’s a lot more on offer than that. They are also looking for volunteer trustees, social media and traditional media, research, admin for other volunteers – there’s a long list.
They’re also happy to be flexible and help people find their niche. It’s not unheard of for volunteers to divide their time between roles as they search for what’s best for them.
Training is tailored to the individual and depends on background, but there is a focus on volunteer resilience – there are often multiple problems to work through and some can be distressing or triggering for volunteers; for instance, financial issues may be connected to domestic abuse.
Strengths and Weaknesses
Citizens Advice services’ strength is in its localism – they’re tuned into the issues that affect the local community, which means volunteers can see the effect of the work they’re doing. It’s also its weakness as there isn’t an overall approach. For instance, in the service Anna works with, a volunteer who can only offer an hour a week is gratefully accepted, while other services want a bigger time commitment.
That also might have an effect for people on Universal Credit who are committed to looking for paid-for roles – in the North West area, there’s a partnership between DWP’s over-50 job coaches and Citizens Advice to enable volunteering, but that might not be the case everywhere.
Fundamentally, Citizens Advice is offering a ‘try before you buy’ service that enables both parties to find the best fit. For those who can afford to volunteer and who want to help people, it’s definitely worth looking into. For those who need to find paid-for work, it’s a harder decision, although the possibility of acquiring experience in something new does make it worth investigating. The biggest concern for the over-50s is that Kiran, Anna and Eleanor all looked under 50!
Watch the live session here: Working With Citizens Advice
