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What you'll do
As a Young Witness volunteer you'll provide information and advice to children and young people who have to give evidence at court – as well as their family, friends and supporters. You'll support these young witnesses before, during and after the trial, working alongside social workers and other trained staff.
How you'll help
"The help I got made me feel relaxed and not worried about giving evidence."
A Young Witness Service user
Having to go to a court building can be worrying for a child. It can be an intimidating environment where children may fear seeing or bumping into an alleged perpetrator. That’s what makes our Young Witness Service so vital.
Last year we supported almost 370 children in courts.
Source: Young Witness Service
Explanation: In 2018/19 the Young Witness Service supported 622 children and their families in Northern Ireland.
What you'll get out of it
The opportunity to go out and meet a young person, to be there for them during a vulnerable time, is so valuable.
Margaret, Young Witness volunteer
As a Young Witness volunteer you'll get to:
- develop new skills
- make new friends as part of a tight-knit team
- support children going through a challenging experience.
Key details
|
Role title |
Young Witness volunteer |
|
Activity type |
Volunteering with children – supporting young witnesses and their families to give evidence in court |
|
Location |
Northern Ireland only |
|
Commitment |
Flexible |
|
Availability |
Weekdays |
Not right for you?
There are so many ways to get involved and help children, and we’d love to have you on our team.
Whether you can spare an hour or two, or want to get involved more often, whatever time you can give is invaluable.
Training and support
As a Young Witness volunteer you'll be provided with all the training and support you need to play your part:
- 8 days of initial training
- 2 refresher training days per year
- ongoing supervision
- group volunteer meetings.
Who's right for the role?
Our Young Witness Service is currently only running in Northern Ireland, so you'll need to be based in Northern Ireland to become a Young Witness volunteer.
While we think our Young Witness volunteer roles are suitable for a whole range of people, we are particularly looking for those with the following qualities and experience:
- can communicate and engage with children, their families and professionals
- is good at building relationships
- remains calm and reassuring in stressful situations
- copes with distressing information appropriately
- has at least one year’s experience working with children or in a caring, supportive environment.
We’ll also need to do some routine safeguarding checks. It’s nothing to worry about, and we can answer any questions you have about this.
Not right for you?
There are so many ways to get involved and help children, and we’d love to have you on our team.
Whether you can spare an hour or two, or want to get involved more often, whatever time you can give is invaluable.
Still have questions?
Speak to our team for more information on our volunteer roles.
Call: 0121 227 7577
Email: [email protected]
