JUSTPEOPLE: VOLUNTEERING FOR JUSTICE
JustPeople has hundreds of volunteers across the two counties. JustPeople volunteers have a huge diversity of experiences, skills and qualifications:
- many volunteer alongside their paid employment
- some are ex-offenders
- some are students
- others are unemployed and seeking to add valuable skills and experience to their CV
If you’re interested in volunteering in the criminal justice system, get in touch - and see what JustPeople can do for you.
JustPeople volunteers complement and bring added value to the existing workforce. They are Criminal Records Bureau checked and undertake a comprehensive induction programme before being allocated to a volunteering position. They work to the same code of conduct as the staff in the agency they join.
What do volunteers do?
JustPeople volunteers carry out a range of roles, including:
- assisting statutory criminal justice agencies in offender management
- mentoring in the community – providing support and advice to offenders, helping them with a range of issues including poor social skills, low self-esteem, addiction or physical/mental health support needs
- transport – helping offenders attend probation and other appointments. This support is usually provided to offenders who live in rural areas, or have a physical or mental disability that makes independent travel difficult
- supporting a range of specialist projects – such as courts advice desks, adult literacy support, skills for life projects and resettlement services
What to expect if you volunteer with JustPeople
- a common foundation training package providing an introduction to the criminal justice system and your role within it
- specialist training for advanced volunteering roles such as mentoring
- a Criminal Records Bureau check. If you have criminal convictions
yourself, that need not rule you out - risk-assessed volunteering opportunities. We are committed to ensuring our volunteers are not exposed to unnecessary or inappropriate risk
- ongoing contact and support to ensure your volunteering role is
appropriate and rewarding
What’s in it for criminal justice agencies?
- access to increased numbers of good quality volunteers through our recruitment links with universities and colleges, local volunteer bureaux, faith and community groups, and targeted recruitment drives
- a matching service, placing volunteers with your agency whose
skills, experience and backgrounds are well-suited to the volunteering opportunities you offer - volunteers who receive a foundation training package before they join your organisation, to ensure they understand the complexities of the criminal justice system and their role within it
- vetting for all new volunteers in our capacity as a CRB Umbrella Agency
- specialist advice and guidance to agencies seeking volunteers, or seeking to involve volunteers for the first time
Contact JustPeople
For more information, contact Su Starkey, JustPeople Co-ordinator:
- phone 01752 600370
- info@justvolunteer.org.uk
