Our incredible volunteers are at the very centre of the work we do supporting families who need us. Every year, we support families across the country to work through difficult experiences such as poverty, behavioural problems, relationship stresses, and countless other issues. We could not support these families without the dedication, passion and generosity of over 300 volunteers.
We have a wide range of volunteering roles available, from admin support, befriending a family, to taking calls on our helpline. Take a look at our current volunteer roles and join our fantastic team of volunteers. You can see current opportunities here.
There are many different volunteering roles available. Find out what volunteer roles are available near you, or if you want to know more about volunteering for Family Lives, download our Volunteer Information Pack.
Our volunteers often tell us how rewarding their time with us is: you'll be part of a compassionate community and feel a real sense of pride for what you do. You'll meet new people, gain valuable experience, and develop your skillset.
We're passionate about helping people to reach their full potential, so we'll offer you full training suitable for the role, supervision from a named member of staff, including help setting personal development goals, and opportunities to increase skills and input into practice via regular Practice Development Groups.
We are committed to ensuring that everyone who volunteers at Family Lives enjoys their experience with us. Volunteers have told us that they value: making a difference to families, parents and young people, doing something inspiring/different, learning skills and improving their CVs. Volunteers also enjoy meeting new people and becoming part of Family Lives.
Family Lives has over 40 years' experience of working with volunteers. We have best practice policies and procedures in place to make sure that all volunteers and those we support have a positive and high quality experience with us. To ensure high standards of service we:
We have gained the Investing in Volunteers quality standard for good practice in volunteer management.
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Here are the answers to our most frequently asked questions about volunteering.
Family Lives is delighted to be a recipient of The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Volunteering Award 2012, which commemorated Her Majesty’s 60-year reign. We have also gained the Investing in Volunteers quality standard.
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This Outsiders booklet is for individuals experiencing the imprisonment of a family member. It explains the impact on the family from the point of initial arrest to imprisonment itself, providing helpful information ranging from visiting prison to becoming familiar with prison jargon.
This Outsiders booklet provides helpful and practical information about the impact that imprisonment of a parent has on the children. The booklet covers a wide range of issues from what to say to the children, dealing with the child’s changing role in the family to coping with changes in a child’s behaviour.
This booklet is for individuals experiencing the imprisonment of a family member. It explains the impact that separation can have on you, your imprisoned partner and the children involved. It also offers practical help about how to cope with your changing roles.
This booklet discusses the issues for families as they prepare for the release and resettlement of a family member from prison. It provides helpful and practical information on some common hopes and fears expressed by both the person in prison and the family on the outside. Featuring quotes from ex-prisoners and their partners, the booklet covers issues ranging from the practicalities of finding employment to getting to know each other again and re-establishing a relationship.