Reception Volunteer

Reception Volunteer

Role Description

We are supported by over 100 volunteers at our Centre, and they do incredible things for our charity and animals. We are now looking for an individual with a strong commitment to animal welfare, who would like to join us as a Reception Volunteer.

Reception Volunteers make a huge contribution to the organisation, and we simply couldn’t do what we do without our volunteers at Bristol A.R.C. Reception Volunteers help to provide a warm welcome to visitors to the Centre, as well as being a friendly voice on the end of the phone – providing advice and information to members of the public. Along with this, Volunteers in this role support the department with administrative and computer-based tasks.

Every volunteer contribution makes a difference and our Reception Volunteers are such a support to our team – helping us at the forefront of our work and making a vital difference to the journeys of the animals who come into our care.

What would I be doing as a Reception Volunteer?

As part of this role, you may be:

• Providing a warm welcome to visitors to Bristol A.R.C.
• Answering phone enquiries, and signposting callers or visitors to further information and other services
  
• Helping with the administrative elements of the animal intake and rehoming processes
  
• Assisting with the arrangement of appointments and associated paperwork
• Seeing that details of any communications with the public, regarding animal intake or rehoming, are recorded as necessary
• Ensuring that all information is treated in confidence and with sensitivity
• Adding information relating to animal adoptions (and other key information) to our database
• Promoting the Rescue Centre in a positive manner, engaging with our visitors and helping them to discover more about the work we do and ways they can support us
• Showing visitors the merchandise and goods available in our reception shop, keeping up to date with the products we sell, and keeping the shop well stocked
•  Keeping our leaflets and posters up to date and well presented
• Receiving and processing visitor donations (these may be either items donated for the animals, or financial donations) 
• Assisting with cash handling and cashing up procedures where appropriate
• Undertaking paperwork and data management as directed by staff to help us ensure that records are kept updated for all animals
• Supporting to keep Reception and public areas clean and tidy

What’s important for me to know?

We ask our Reception Volunteers to adhere to our protocols and procedures, and volunteer in line with any training.

We also ask that anyone wishing to volunteer bears in mind that this is a frontline role at our Centre, which will involve contact with members of the public, as well as seeing animals coming to us from differing backgrounds, in differing conditions.

Due to the nature of our work, this can at times involve emotive circumstances and sensitive material – and volunteers may on occasion, see animals who have come from adverse situations. Whilst volunteers might not always be involved in dealing with these particular cases, they may still observe or hear about them. It is important that any prospective volunteers are conscious of this. Volunteers have access to support from their supervisor, as well as the Volunteer Coordinators in their roles.

How are the shifts arranged, and how often would I volunteer?

Shifts are weekly and are usually morning or afternoon – We are currently recruiting for Monday, Saturday and Sunday 

What other dates do I need to be available for?

Subject to shortlisting, we shall be holding informal volunteer interviews for this role during the mid-part of the day, on the following dates:

Wednesday the 8th of July
Wednesday the 15th of July

Initial on-site training for the role will be due to begin on the week of 27th of July.

Who will I be volunteering with?

• Our Reception staff will be the people you will volunteer alongside directly
  
• Reception is the central hub of our Centre, and often has members of other teams passing through. Because of this, you may well have contact with members of the Animal Care and Clinic Teams, as well as other volunteers and our office staff
  
• We also often have an ‘office dog’ in Reception – this may be a different dog each time, and is usually a dog that would benefit from the extra social time
  

What skills and attributes might I need for this role, ideally?

Experience, enthusiasm and a willingness to get involved is always useful, and we would welcome hearing in particular about your:

•      People skills and ability to communicate with others
•      Ability in administration or managing paperwork, records, data etc.
•      Experience in dealing with people in emotional or difficult personal situations 
•      Ability to follow instructions and work using your initiative when needed
•      Knowledge about, or enthusiasm for animals and their welfare
•      Alignment with our work and our ethos

What can I hope to get out of the experience?

• We will offer you the training and guidance you need in your role. This will include general information, as well as specifics about volunteering in Reception
  
• The chance to observe animals going off to their new homes
  
• Ongoing support from the Reception Team and a designated Volunteer Supervisor, as well as the Volunteer Coordinators
  
• We hope you will enjoy using your existing skills or gaining new ones, and getting to know the members of our team
  
• The chance to learn about animal rescue and the ‘behind the scenes’ aspects of an animal welfare organisation
  
• Occasions to make new friends or connections through your volunteering

I haven’t had much experience. Can I still apply?

We welcome applications from anyone, and even if you have not had experience in a Reception environment, we would be happy to hear from you. We know that lots of skills are transferable, although we are particularly keen to hear from people who have some experience or qualities relevant to this role.

What else might I need to consider, before I apply?

• The shift will be mainly spent in the Main Reception. There may be some tasks which involve basic manual handling, or walking across the site – although the majority of the role will be desk-based.
• If you are interested in applying for this role please note that we close for applications of Thursday 26th February.
• We hope that our volunteers will stay with us for a period of at least six months, as we think this will allow the chance to get the best out of the experience. If wish for a shorter-term or more ad-hoc role, you may wish to consider our Fundraising or Events Volunteer roles
• We welcome applications from anyone over the age of 18 years old

If this role doesn’t feel quite the right match for you, we have a wider variety of roles that we advertise for periodically on our website, or you can contact us at volunteering@bristolarc.org.uk