Volunteering Coordinator

Volunteering Coordinator  

Reporting to: Volunteer Recruitment Manager 

Salary: £24,570 - £25,340 pro rata  

Hours:          Flexible between 30-37.5 hours per week  

Terms: Permanent, 25 days Holiday pa (pro rata, exc. Bank Holidays), 5% pension contribution  

Location: Bristol with occasional travel 

Closing Date:  9:00am 14th April with interviews being held on 21st, 23rd and 24th April, however applications will be reviewed as they are received and FSSW may close the role at an earlier date.  

About FareShare South West 

FareShare South West (FSSW) joins the dots between food waste and hunger, empowering communities to turn an environmental problem into lasting social good. We rescue tonnes of quality surplus food from the industry and share it with charities and schools to bring health, dignity and routes out of poverty for people across the south west. Our supportive volunteering and employability programmes offer local people the opportunity to thrive. 

By joining us, you'll be part of an inclusive, friendly team in a small but fast-growing charity that helps fight the injustice of who gets to afford a healthy diet. 

FSSW is an independent local charity, working in partnership with FareShare UK. By being part of the national FareShare network, we can help rescue more food. By being small and independent, we can remain close to our local partners and people and continuously adapt to meet the needs of local communities. The member charities we share food with transform lives, using food to connect people with other support and routes out of poverty, including children and families, people on low incomes, homeless people, refugees, domestic abuse survivors, people in recovery, older people and many others. 

Purpose of the role:  

Volunteers are the backbone of our operation at FSSW, we recruit over 350 volunteers from a myriad of backgrounds, who make up around 90% of our team. The volunteers help with every aspect of the operation from driving our vans, picking orders to administrative duties.  They gift their time to FSSW for many reasons including wanting to be part of the solution to food waste, ensuring perfectly good in-date surplus reaches people in need, giving back to their local community or some are looking for professional and/or personal development.  

We have built a volunteer programme which supports a wide demographic of people. This role will primarily lead on: 

Rota and Data Management 

• Work with the Warehouse Managers and the wider FSSW team to ensure the roles advertised reflect the needs of the operation 

  • Work with the Volunteer Recruitment Manager to ensure the rota is filled and monitor patterns, themes or fluctuations.  

    • Attend any required meetings with the operations team around volunteer roles, rota, and retention.  

      • Ensure the CRM system (Salesforce) is kept up to date  

        • Maintain volunteer information and confidentiality, ensuring compliance with GDPR and safeguarding policies 

Recruitment and Retention Support 

• Support the Volunteer recruitment manager in aspects of the recruitment process including responding to enquiries, inductions and developing the volunteer retention and recruitment plan.  

  • Work with the wider FSSW team to support and develop volunteering opportunities for corporate supporters and food partners 

    • Work with the Head of Department, volunteering team & employability teams to feed into volunteer and employability programmes 

      • Analyse and monitor volunteer retention, noting positive reasons for moving on and be part of developing strategies to improve retention  

Communications  

• Respond to/answer any enquiries/communications via telephone, email, in person or via inhouse IT/systems 

  • Respond to volunteer no shows or gaps in the rota to solve any connected issues 

    • Be part of delivering an ongoing internal communications plan to ensure staff and volunteers are up to date with plans, developments and activities involving volunteers  

      • Work with the communications and volunteering teams to actively engage and promote the volunteer programme across Bristol   

Volunteer experience and pastoral care  

• Maintain a positive and supportive volunteer programme and experience 

  • Lead on volunteer wellbeing throughout the shift and provide appropriate support where needed 

    • Host corporate volunteering days across Bristol 

      • Support and progress the volunteers FSSW journey and experience to create positive community impact and support volunteer retention 

        • Work with the volunteer team to develop opportunities within the volunteer shift or events that enhance the volunteer experience, wellbeing, and retention.  

          • Ensure volunteer policies, procedures, and risk assessments are adhered to, including safeguarding with vulnerable adults 

Person specification – knowledge, skills, experience, and values:  

It is not expected that the successful candidate will necessarily have all the following criteria. FareShare South West is committed to helping individuals develop professionally and personally, and your application is encouraged.  

Essential 

• A working knowledge of the voluntary sector and/or experience of carrying out voluntary work 

  • An understanding of what drives volunteers 

    • Experience managing and supporting volunteers and/or teams 

      • Ability to establish and develop positive relationships with volunteers as well as a range of external partnerships and beneficiaries 

        • Excellent organisational and time management skills to prioritise work, handle conflicting demands and meet tight deadlines 

          • Working knowledge of software packages and databases and good IT skills   

            • Ability to contribute data to and write reports for internal management purposes 

              • Ability to inspire and motivate volunteers across the organisation 

                • Willingness of occasional travel and work outside of standard working hours for specific events/requirements.  

                  • An interest in and commitment to FareShare South West's mission and core values 

                    • Integrity and sensitivity to vulnerability issues and different support needs 

                      • Excellent communication, presentation, and interpersonal skills with volunteers 

Desirable 

• Ability to remain calm and solution-focused under pressure 

  • Ability to follow processes with an attention to detail  

    • Ability to analyse workforce requirements and targets 

      • Administration experience, including database and record-keeping 

        • Experience of supporting the pastoral care and professional development of others   

          • Driving Licence 

Why work for FareShare South West? 

• Real Living Wage employer 

  • Benchmarked pay scales 

    • Employee Assistance Programme – free advice and counselling 

      • Access to a free professional coach 

        • Annual budget for personal development training for every staff member 

          • Staff wellbeing group 

            • Inclusive, welcoming culture 

              • Rewarding roles with genuine positive impact on the environment and local people through food, volunteering and employability skills 

We actively encourage applications from people of all lived experiences, including but not limited to people from the global majority, LGBTQIA+ people, disabled people, a working-class background, not from a University-attending family. We value the positive impact that wide representation has on FareShare South West. 

We want to work with you to make sure that the recruitment process is accessible for you. If you have any questions about the post, please contact Samantha Robinson and Kate Meyler at 0117 954 2220 to let us know how we can support your access needs. 

To apply please send your CV and a cover letter explaining why you would be a good fit for the role.