Location: Berkshire (any one of the following areas: Thatcham, Reading, Slough), Hillingdon and Hounslow
Duration: Minimum 3 months
Hours: 3-4 hours per week (afternoons)
Reports to: Social Worker
Start date: Rolling

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About the Position
Volunteer Support Workers support age-disputed unaccompanied asylum-seeking children who are residing in accommodations intended only for adults. Volunteers support the delivery of child friendly activities in one of the locations listed above. RYS provides a compulsory and thorough induction process to ensure that each volunteer feels confident and fully equipped to support the children.

 

About the project
In 2021, there was an increase of 195% of unaccompanied asylum-seeking children being unlawfully assessed as adults upon arrival in the UK; exposing children to heightens the risks of potential abuse, exploitation, and mental and physical harm. Many reported having suicidal thoughts as a result of the unstable and dangerous conditions in these centres.

In response to this, RYS’ No Children in Hotels Project supports these age-disputed asylum-seeking children to leave adult hotel accommodations and enter the appropriate child protection systems. The project provides immediate emotional support and respite, and referrals to statutory services or lawyers who can make this happen. Through recreational activities RYS also provides immediate emotional support, monitoring children’s well-being and raising the alarm when mental health deteriorates.

 

Tasks

• Be a positive role model
• Support the delivery of activities to children from a range of backgrounds, aged between 15 and 17
• Work in unison with all team members with a child-centred approach
• Communicate with the youth team, working together to take any necessary safeguarding measures
• Comply with all RYS’ policies and procedures, including the RYS Code of Conduct, Safeguarding Policy and Data Protection Policy and Procedures

 

Relevant skills and experience

Essential

• Ability to work with people from different cultural backgrounds, gender and sexualities
• A commitment to the human rights of all people, irrespective of immigration status
• Be prepared to work with disadvantaged children who have likely experienced trauma on their journey to the UK, and commit to all training opportunities provided by RYS
• Ability to work in teams and take initiative
• Adaptability to the changing needs of RYS
• An enhanced DBS check (this can be completed by RYS free of charge)

 

Desirable

• Experience working with children and young people who have been displaced and are unaccompanied
• Lived experience of the issues faced by unaccompanied children
• A driver’s licence and willingness to drive as part of the role (using a company vehicle)
• Knowledge of children’s/adolescent’s rights and related matters
• Ability to communicate in any of the languages spoken by the children supported (indicatively Pashto, Dari, Arabic, Tigrinya, French)

 

RYS will provide a comprehensive reference for any volunteer who requests one.

 

How to apply
To apply for this position, send your CV and either a single-page motivation letter or a short video* (2 minutes max) to: info@refugeeyouthservice.org.
If you have any questions about the role and/or the application process, please contact us using the e-mail address above.

*To submit a video, upload it to a video-sharing platform and send us the link. Please note we are not judging the production or video quality, a recording on a phone is fine.

 

Apply