Who can volunteer?

You don’t need qualifications or previous experience of this kind of work to volunteer for Victim Support. All you need is the willingness to help and a little time – we’ll do the rest. You can get involved in volunteering as early as 13 but you’ll need to be over the age of 18 to take on one of our support roles.

As part of your application to volunteer for Victim Support, we may have to do a check with the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS). This is for the protection of the people we help. We will also need to check your Right to Work/Volunteer status; we will ask for proof of your right of residency in the UK.

If you’re a student, we’d love to hear from you and may have roles that would fit well around your studies. We do ask that you consider how long you are able to commit for if you’re applying for one of our community support roles, due to the financial investment we make in our training. If you’re not sure whether you’ll be able to commit to a longer term volunteering opportunity then why not get involved in some fundraising!

Victim Support is actively committed to encouraging and promoting the positive contribution of our diverse volunteers and service users. We embrace anyone who wants to volunteer with us or who receives our services, regardless of age, race, colour, nationality, ethnic or national origin, sexuality, gender, disability, marital or civil partnership status, gender reassignment status, socio-economic background, religion or belief.

We will ensure that this is reflected in our practices, policies and services. We’re working towards the elimination of discrimination (whether direct, indirect or through victimisation or harassment) and will not tolerate any discrimination relating to issues of equality, diversity or inclusion. Everyone at Victim Support has a responsibility to ensure equality, diversity and inclusion are upheld in all we do.

Find out more about our Equality, Diversity and Inclusion policy.

We sometimes receive enquiries from individuals and organisations looking to place job seekers in mandatory community work placements, such as those that are part of the Help to Work scheme, launched in May 2014.

Our position on these placements is outlined below:

Victim Support is a charity built on the commitment and dedication of our volunteers. Without them we would not be able to continue to provide the same level of support for victims and witnesses of crime across England and Wales. We want anyone who volunteers for us to give their time, energy and experience freely and willingly. We understand that mandatory community work placements are not voluntary, and therefore Victim Support will not be taking part in these schemes.

However, we recognise that volunteering can be an excellent way of building skills, experience and confidence for those looking to get back into work. We’re always happy to discuss volunteering opportunities with anyone who is looking for work and choosing to volunteer of their own free will. Victim Support has a variety of volunteering opportunities available and we strive to ensure they are equally accessible to all. Please take a look at our current volunteer roles to apply.

We have shared our position internally at Victim Support to ensure all staff are aware of it and do not participate in mandatory back to work schemes.