Volunteering with us

Whether you want to help give a voice to people in your community or develop your professional skills in a health and social care environment, there are many benefits of volunteering for us.

Join us as a volunteer!

We wouldn't be able to operate without the dedicated support of our volunteers, who are at the heart of what we do.

We would love to hear from you if you would like to volunteer for Healthwatch South Glos. We welcome applications from people aged 18 and over, and you'll play a vital role in improving health and social care.

We need support in a variety of ways, from attending events in the community and finding out if local health and social care services are working for people, to attending meetings on our behalf or helping with administration.

  • We can offer you training, support, and the opportunity to meet new people 
  • Learn new skills or improve existing ones
  • Gain knowledge and experience that could be a stepping-stone into employment or training
  • Reasonable travel expenses paid
  • Make a difference in your local community by giving people the opportunity to speak up about local health and social care services

Current volunteering roles

Engagement and feedback volunteer

In this role, you'll be the first person a member of the public meets when they come into our Healthwatch Hub. Using your communication skills, you'll listen to people's experiences and record their feedback about health and social care services. Feedback gets shared with providers such as the NHS and local council, so they know what's working and where services need to improve. 

You'll be based at our Bristol Hub (Unit 21, Union Gallery, The Galleries, Bristol BS1 3XD) and have the chance to attend external engagement events city-wide. There's also the opportunity to help with specific projects, such as focus groups of looking at a particular service or area. We ask for a minimum commitment of 2.5hrs in the morning or afternoon either once a week or every two weeks.

Information and guidance volunteer

People look to us to give them information about local services that can support them. Some people may need to know where they can get support with a health or social care issue. Others may have concerns around food or fuel poverty, housing, immigration, or benefits.

We keep a directory of local organisations that can we can signpost people to, and updated regularly to ensure we can direct people to the best organisation to meet their needs.

You'll be based at our Bristol Hub (Unit 21, Union Gallery, The Galleries, Bristol BS1 3XD). We ask for a minimum commitment of 2.5hrs in the morning or afternoon either once a week or every two weeks.

Click to watch our video and find out more about Healthwatch South Glos.

If you are interested in volunteering with us with us, please fill in the below volunteer application form and our equality and diversity form, and return both to our Volunteer Coordinator, Jacqui Reeves, at jacqui@healthwatchbnssg.co.uk.

For more information about our volunteering opportunities, you can also call 0330 055 3251.

Downloads

Volunteer application form
Equality and diversity form

Safeguarding

We are committed to following safeguarding guidelines for both children and vulnerable adults and will provide training in this area where appropriate. All of our volunteers will be asked to undergo a DBS check which is at no cost to yourself as part of the application process.

Investing in Volunteers accredited

Click here to find out more about the Investing in Volunteers accreditation.

Investing in Volunteers logo

Help people in your community have their say on health and social care

Our volunteers play a vital role speaking to local people about their experiences and giving them opportunities to share their views and ideas for how services can improve. Many of our volunteers spend time in our community finding out what people think of local services and raising awareness of Healthwatch.

Help improve local services

We train some of our volunteers to visit health and social care services and report on people's experiences. You might be observing the service, gathering the views of patients, residents and staff, and contributing to reports which highlight your findings.

Help raise awareness of Healthwatch

As a volunteer, you could be attending community events to raise awareness of Healthwatch and encourage people to share their feedback on health and social care in our community.

Develop your professional skills

Volunteering with us is a great way to sharpen your existing skills and develop new ones. A volunteer position can help provide useful experience for your CV as well as giving you an opportunity to learn and improve on your areas of interest such as design and marketing, planning and administration or leading a project.