Dementia Volunteer Co-ordinator

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Detailed job description and main responsibilities

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:
• Support the management and development of a quality, dynamic and creative Dementia Volunteer Service designed to enhance patient experience, including full Forget Me Not volunteer recruitment for both hospital sites from promotion/advertising and applications to interviews, clearances in line with Trust Policies, ongoing mandatory and specific role related training and placement.
• Support the wellbeing of the volunteers on a day-to-day basis through regular in-person contact and communications, feedback, praise and thanks, encouraging and engendering motivation and loyalty, and ensuring that their role is valued.
• Ongoing promotion and awareness of the Service across the Trust and to the wider communities we serve via articles, website, posters, social media, events.
• Work collaboratively with internal stakeholders, building good working relationships with the multi-disciplinary teams (MDT) to enhance Service delivery and ensure the smooth running of the service.
• Ensure that support for dementia patients and families is available at all points of care from presentation at ED and planned admissions, care on our wards through to patient discharge, post-discharge support and outpatient appointments.
• Work collaboratively with external stakeholders, including specialist organisations such as the Alzheimers Society, Carers in Bedfordshire, relevant VCSEs, Primary Care Networks (PCN) and the ICB to maintain up-to-date training and information, opportunities for community networking and outreach, ensuring inclusivity, a volunteer team that reflects the communities we serve and is designed to support the Trust in reducing healthcare inequalities.
• Work with all stakeholders to develop a longer term programme of community outreach to deliver information and education via volunteers to ethnic minorities, seldom heard communities, deprived communities and those with protected characteristics to build trust and confidence in healthcare services, encouraging earlier access to healthcare when needed, improving care at home and contributing to the alleviation of service pressures through admissions and re-admissions avoidance.
• Attend Trust staff inductions and specific staff group training sessions (e.g. Care Support Workers) to ensure new starters are familiarised with the Service and the Forget Me Not volunteer remit.
• Contribute to the development and implementation of the Bedfordshire Hospitals NHS Charity Strategy, Dementia Strategy and align the Service to wider Trust Strategy, Objectives and Vision.
• Ensure all Forget Me Not volunteering activities meet with the Trust's service needs and are carried out in line with relevant policies and procedures.
• In collaboration with the Dementia and Ward Nursing Teams, source and purchase merchandise to support the delivery of the Service and ensure wards have the required materials to create awareness and to promote a compassionate and inclusive environment.
• Attend relevant meetings, present and lead discussions and raise the profile of the Service and other projects.

MANAGEMENT RESPONSIBILITIES:
• Coordinate and create a weekly rota/assignment system for Forget Me Not volunteers at each site in line with service needs and as directed by the Dementia Lead.
• Contribute to the development of outcome measures to assist Service evaluation and annual review, to include stakeholder surveys.
• Maintain accurate data input collection utilising appropriate systems such as the Charity CRM Database (Harlequin), IQVIA and Microsoft Office software to analyse information and produce reports on Service activity and performance to be delivered to a variety of stakeholders.
• Create and submit internal reports to the Community Engagement and Voluntary Services Manager for submission to the Board and the Charitable Funds Committee.
• Demonstrate a high level of verbal and written communication skills and work with the communications team to ensure continual promotion/visibility of the Service and sharing of feedback, specifically across social media, our website and internal and external publications.
• Co-ordinate and manage internal and external functions to include promotion of the service, projects and Thank You Events, and other Charity and Volunteering events.
• Take responsibility for continued personal professional development by identifying and undertaking additional training to complement and support delivery of the role and service improvement.
• With support from the Community Engagement and Voluntary Services Manager, and Dementia team if required, address initial stages of conflict, grievances and complaints as appropriate and progress if required with the support of the Community Engagement and Voluntary Services Manager in alignment with the Volunteer Policy Problem Solving Procedure.
• Work collaboratively with the Community Engagement and Voluntary Services Manager and Dementia Lead to identify and enable Service development and enhancements across sites and within the community, including importing additional specialist therapies (music, arts and crafts), community talks and opportunities to link in with communities via volunteers acting as advocates for the Service and the hospitals.
• Keeping continually abreast of national developments and ensuring networking and sharing of best practice with external counterparts, including other acute trusts, providing dementia volunteer support.
• Deputise for the Community Engagement and Voluntary Services Manager, Special Projects Co-ordinator and Volunteer Co-ordinator (Recruitment and Support) as necessary in handling issues and queries in relation to volunteers.
• Be self-aware with strong interpersonal and emotional intelligence skills, and be able to work with and support team members and volunteers from diverse communities, ensuring inclusivity and respect is maintained.
• Uphold and lead by example in relation to the Trust's values of Teamwork, Honesty and Openness, Respect, Inclusivity, Valuing People and Excellence (THRIVE).

FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT
• In conjunction with The Charity, Voluntary Services Team and Dementia Lead, explore funding streams to develop and further support projects to include dementia patients and their families and for the acquisition of materials to support the Service.
• Build and nurture the relationships with donors to ensure their continued support.
• Manage Service donations to include appropriate recording of income and gifts in kind, liaising with Financial Services as required.
• In conjunction with the Community Engagement and Voluntary Services Manager, take responsibility for expenditure to support purchase of Service-related items that enable us to provide the best quality of care, to include ordering on Agresso.

WORKING WITH PEERS:
• Understand the organisation and its agreed systems and working procedures (e.g. Charity and Voluntary Services Functions and roles within the team).
• Ensure a positive and proactive working relationship with team members at all times, as well as within the broader Hospital environment.
• Ensure that expertise within specialist role is maintained by continual connection and collaboration with peers and external specialists to include Dementia and Nursing Teams.
• Develop and maintain connections in Dementia and other relative areas to ensure networking and peer support.
• Keep track of assigned projects and tasks to ensure that support is optimised.
• Support across the Trust.
• Working within the Charity Team at the Hospital, be a collaborative member of the team, and a positive ambassador for the Charity at all times.

OTHER
• Highest standard of honesty and personal integrity at all times.
• Attend team meetings and other cross-departmental meetings.
• Promote development activities to Hospital staff at all levels and foster positive working relationships across the organisation.
• Ensure that all written communication and materials produced comply with corporate design standards and appropriate legislation (e.g. style guides, document templates, legal wordings, etc).
• Undertake any other duties as may be reasonably requested by more senior staff and senior representatives from other functions within the organisation.
• Must be presentable and professionally dressed.

Person specification

Strategic and Management Responsibilities

Essential criteria

• Evidence of working with volunteers
• Demonstrate working within recruitment
• Examples of working within the community
• Customer Service Skills evidenced
• Has worked with a CRM Database

Desirable criteria

• Has worked as a volunteer co-ordinator
• Has worked within HR

Qualifications

Essential criteria

• Trained in use of Microsoft Office
• Medium level numeracy (GCSE Maths)
• Medium level of literacy (GCSE English)

Desirable criteria

• Full Driving Licence
• Project Management Qualification
• HR qualification

Communications

Essential criteria

• Demonstrates Presentation Skills
• Demonstrates Use of Social Media
• Evidence dealing with a diverse range of people
• Demonstrates ability to use internet
• Good face to face, interpersonal skills, confident phone and conversational manner

Desirable criteria

• Has updated website content

General

Essential criteria

• Good administrative, organisation and prioritisation skills
• Demonstrates reporting capability
• Confident in Word and IT applicaitons
• Good supporting statement relevant to role

Desirable criteria

• Understanding of NHS
• Evidences experience or knowledge of people with dementia

It is an exciting time to join the newly formed Bedfordshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. We run two busy hospital sites in Bedford and Luton. Our 7,500 staff provide high quality care for a growing population of around 700,000 across Bedfordshire and the surrounding areas.

You will be joining a friendly, high performing Trust committed to ensuring the health and wellbeing of staff. As one of the largest NHS Trusts in our region you will have access to a programme of high quality training and development to help you grow your career. Travel between hospital sites may be required. We have state-of-the art facilities placing us at the heart of cutting edge health care. The Trust continues to be committed to delivering the best patient care using the best clinical knowledge and technology available.

All new staff will be subject to a probationary period covering their first six months in post.

Employer certification / accreditation badges

Applicant requirements

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service.

Documents to download

• Job Description (PDF, 248.6KB)
• Person Specification (PDF, 152.4KB)
• Functional Aspects (PDF, 144.4KB)
• L&D Hospital site map (PDF, 96.8KB)
• Disclosure & Barring Information and Recruitment of Ex-Offenders (PDF, 78.5KB)
• Staff Diversity Network (PDF, 140.3KB)
• Information for Disabled Applicants (PDF, 98.7KB)
• Staff Benefits (PNG, 1.6MB)