Welcome to Swansea:
Mentor handbook 2015 (7).
Contents
Introduction
Purpose of scheme and how it works
Who you are volunteering for
Volunteer recruitment
Application form
Checks
Before you begin volunteering
Induction and training
Preparing for the role
The first session
Developing a person-centred plan
Planning ongoing visits
Ideas for activities
Supervision and ongoing support
Paperwork
Rights and responsibilities
What you can expect from us
What we expect from you
Expenses
Travel
Child care
Food and resources
Gifts
Dealing with difficult situations
Reporting problems
Urgent problems
Less urgent problems
People’s personal cases/ asylum applications
Protection of vulnerable persons
Keeping boundaries
Things a mentor should not be doing
Communications
Health and safety
Insurance
Driving
Risk assessments
Lone working
Confidentiality
Representing the organisation
Language
Dress
Actions
Time commitments
Information storage and monitoring
Concerns and compliments
Raising a concern about us
If we have concerns about you
Ending your volunteering placement
Finishing early
Volunteering again
Appendix a: volunteering process:
Appendix B: Useful questions and resources
Questions
Resources
Appendix C: supervision form
Appendix D: useful contacts
Emergencies:
Out of hour’s social work:
Non-emergency medical support
Out of hours GP:
Advice and listening lines
Asylum Help services
Staff contact numbers:
Introduction
We hope that your journey of volunteering as a mentor on the “Welcome to Swansea”scheme will be an enriching experience. In order to ensure that this process runs as smoothly as possible we ask all volunteers to read this handbook. You can also find more general information on our website.
Purpose of scheme and how it works
The purpose of the scheme is to promote integration between asylum seekers or refugees and the local Swansea community. It aims to increase knowledge of the Swansea area and encourage participation in day to day activities by:
- Welcoming: ensuring that newly arrived asylum seekers (participants) are greeted and welcomed by a friendly face.
- Building confidence: supporting participants to feel more confident in understanding systems
- Sharing knowledge: Supporting participants to build up a knowledge-base of where useful services and groups are located and what they offer.
- Empowering: the project aims to be a project that empowers people to do things for themselves, rather than doing things for them.
Volunteer mentors meet with participants for 2-8 visits and support them to develop their own personal plan regarding their goals and aspirations within their new community. The mentor’s role is to support participants to begin on this journey.
The role is not about telling people what to do or doing things for people. The role is to encourage participants to develop knowledge, skills and confidence which will enable them to do things independently in the future.This will work by continually progressing towards achieving agreed goals.
Mentors also play an important role in measuring the achievements of the project by carrying out essential paperwork and taking part in evaluations.
Who you are volunteering for
Swansea City of Sanctuary is a part of a national movement that works to welcome and support refugees and asylum seekers and to celebrate the contribution that people seeking sanctuary make in Swansea and across the UK. Swansea City of Sanctuary was established in 2010, it was the first city of sanctuary in Wales, and is a part of a network that includes almost 40 cities, boroughs and valleys in the UK. We are delighted that you have agreed to volunteer with us; a key motto of the City of Sanctuary movement is that we are ‘what our supporters do’ and welcome your voluntary support!
TheWales Cities of Sanctuary Projectis managed by Displaced People in Action.
The project aims to strengthen the existing workthat members ofSwansea City of Sanctuaryalready do and to set up some new projects too. Project staff will also be developing closer links withCardiff City of Sanctuarywith the aim of Wales becoming the first ever Nation of Sanctuary!
The project employs three staff members in Swansea:
Coordinator– Richenda Leonard () 07496 172895
Richenda coordiantes the work in Swansea working closely with Hannah and Eleri. She is working on raising the profile of the City of Sanctuary movement through working with high profile organisations, strategic work planning, as well as working with the receiving community to strengthen the vision of welcome for sanctuary seekers in Swansea.
Development Worker– Eleri Williams () 07496 172898
Eleri is working closely with pledged supporters to implement practical actions to support and involve people seeking sanctuary, sitting on the Swansea City of Sanctuary Working Groups and creating Refugee Speakers Teams.
Integration Officer– Hannah Chapman () 07496 172896
Hannah is the Swansea Integration Officer coordinating a project to welcome asylum seekers when they first arrive in Swansea via a mentoring scheme.
Hannah is also involved in developing resources for asylum seekers and supporting sanctuary seekers to find volunteering and other meaningful opportunities.
Volunteer recruitment
A Swansea City of Sanctuary Volunteer is someone who chooses freely to commit their time and energy to support our objectives without material gain.
We aim to support volunteers throughout their volunteering experience. For a visual diagram of the volunteering process please see appendix A.
Application form
All potential volunteers will be asked to complete an application form.
Checks
We ask all volunteers to provide us with a letter of reference or the details of a person who can act as a referee. We also use the initial meeting and training session as an opportunity to ensure that both you, and we, feel the role is suitable for you.
If this is likely to prove as a barrier to you becoming a mentor then please do let us know so we can look at other options together.
Before you begin volunteering
Induction and training
Introductory training is an essential part of your volunteering experience and nobody is allowed to mentor before they have attended. As well as learning about the organisation, your own role description and how you will monitor your own progress, it is also a chance to meet other volunteers.
Sessions are run regularly and if no sessions are available then a one to one appointment will be offered instead.
Preparing for the role
Often we are given very short notice that a referral has been made. Once we receive a referral the Integration officer will contact the participant and volunteers to arrange a suitable match.
Volunteers can help themselves to prepare for the role by taking part in other volunteering roles with the Cities of Sanctuary project, reading useful information (please see the ‘useful resources’ section) and taking on further training opportunities.
The first session
Where possible the first session takes place with a member of staff. This will be either in the office, in the participant’s home or in a public place. As a volunteer’s confidence grows they may wish to carry out the first session without a staff member present.
Following the session, the staff member will get in contact with the volunteer to share any useful ideas for activity.
Developing a person-centred plan
Many sanctuary seekers have been asked to tell their ‘story’ many times and the purpose of this project is to support participants to find a way to look forward and find solutions to their current situation.
We make a loose plan with people so that mentors have an idea of areas that are important for the participant. We can also use the plan to measure how successful we have been in meeting the needs and wants of the participant.
The plan will include:
- Identifying the participant’s best hopes
- Identifying where they are at now
- Some ideas on how they feel these hopes can be realised
The creation of the plan should be led by the participant, with volunteers and staff offering ideas only where appropriate. It is a plan about their personal hopes and aspirations and therefore they are the best person to decide what should go into it.
We aim to keep the plan focused on a persons’ own solutions and aspirations. We also aim to keep it flexible. This is because sometimes when people set very specific goals, it can lead to feelings of disappointment or failure if these are not achieved. Rather than giving very specific tasks/ aims, the plan aims to focus a person’s thoughts broadly on where they wish to be. In this way it is a guide to ensure the mentor is working in the right areas. It is not a strict work plan for the mentor.
Planning ongoing visits
The theme of the following visits (usually between 2 and 8) will be guided by the plan. However, it is common for plans to change and adjust. This is absolutely fine - we just ask mentors to keep a track of activity so we can check we are still meeting the participant’s wishes.
The emphasis of the scheme is on people doing things for themselves so mentors may wish to take a ‘graded’ approach. Please see an example of a graded approach below:
- Session 1: Travel with participant to a drop-in and introduce them to people.
- Session 2: Participant travels to drop-in independently and volunteer meets them off the bus and attends with them. Volunteer calls them afterwards to check they got home ok.
- Session 3: participant and volunteer meet at drop-in and volunteer stays in background/ is there for support if needed.
- Session 4: participant attends drop-in independently. Volunteer phones afterwards to see how it went.
Although we ask volunteers not to ‘do for’ people, sometimes it can be difficult to do this. If you are unsure youshould ask yourself ‘if I do this on this occasion, will my mentee be able to do it more independently next time?’
Ideas for activities
The list below gives an example of some ‘typical’ volunteer activities. It is, however, in no way exhaustive and we encourage people to be creative in thinking of new ideas!
Orientation
- An initial visit to the project office to meet staff
- A walking tour of the city centre
- Practicing bus routes
- Understanding what signs and symbols in public places mean.
Health and social care
- Registering with statutory services
- Showing where free health services are i.e. Walk-in physiotherapy/ podiatry clinics and the Health Access Team.
- Showing where to get help in an emergency i.e. 999, or emotional support i.e. Samaritans, Child line.
Shopping
- Finding out where shops are in their local community and visiting them
- Learning how to use British money.
- Showing affordable places to shop i.e. charity shops, pound shops
- Showing online sites such as Freecycle
Leisure
- Accessing the library
- Finding out about cheap or free leisure activities
- Attending drop-ins and support groups together
- Sharing outdoor spaces i.e. the beach, outdoor gyms
- Finding out about upcoming community events.
Learning and volunteering opportunities
- Finding out about opportunities to learn English and making appointments
- Finding out about free courses and training opportunities and making appointments.
- Finding out about volunteering opportunities and making appointments.
Sharing cultures
- Sharing British/ Welsh cultural ‘norms’
As you can see sometimes many of these areas can be covered in one session.
Supervision and ongoing support
All Welcome to Swansea volunteers are offered support and supervision from a staff member or trained volunteer. To reflect on their practice, mentors may wish to use the supervision form (appendix C) as a tool.
We also hold regular ‘group supervision’ sessions for mentors to get to know each other and share ideas.
We also have a confidential online forum specifically for this project at . We would encourage volunteers to share useful information such as groups, classes and activities on this site so that other mentors can use this information.
Paperwork
An important part of the project lies in measuring how successful it is. This means that we can identify areas for development and carry on doing the things we do well. For this reason we ask all volunteers to complete or view some paperwork during their mentoring placement. This might include:
- Risk assessments: there is a copy of the risk assessment for the scheme on the website.
- Action plan paperwork/ records: each volunteer will work to an action plan specific to their participant. We ask that volunteers fill out the paperwork after every visit.
- Project activity diary sheets and outcome measures: These forms are used on every session to record what you have done together and to measure progress.
- Evaluation: we ask that all volunteers give us feedback following their experience. This can be on a paper form or online. It is space to offer anonymous suggestions.
Rights and responsibilities
What you can expect from us
- Access to a volunteering opportunity that meets your professional development requirements as best as is possible.
- To be treated with respect and to have your details treated with confidentiality in line with our confidentiality policy.
- To be provided with suitable training, induction, supervision and evaluation opportunities.
- To be listened to and taken seriously if you come to us with problems or concerns.
- To be reimbursed reasonable volunteering-related expenses.
- To receive a certificate for your involvement. This will be issued in accordance with the criteria outlined in your role description.
- To be consulted on the running and direction of the organisation and invited to consultation events and meetings.
- To be given the opportunity to evaluate your personal progress
- To be made aware if we feel you are unsuitable for the role and to be given support to access other opportunities.
What we expect from you
- To be familiar and act within our procedures, policies and guidelines
- To act in a way that does not bring the reputation of the organisation into disrepute unnecessarily.
- To attend introductory training and subsequent supervision sessions as requested.
- To complete any paperwork and evaluations asked of you- this is vital to our funding and development as an organisation.
- To treat the people you encounter through Cities of Sanctuary with respect and dignity and to act as an ambassador for the organisation.
- To report to us any concerns you have about anybody you encounter through Cities of Sanctuary in line with our protection of vulnerable adults and child protection policies.
- To submit expenses in line with our expenses procedure and policies (see general volunteer handbook).
- To act on any feedback given.
Expenses
Travel
Public transport travel expenses will be reimbursed upon the receipt of original or photo of (not photocopied) tickets along with the accompanying completed claim form up to the value of £11. DPIA discourages the use of taxis or private vehicle. If a volunteer is unable to use either the bus or the train, then they should get in touch with the designated member of staff before incurring any potential travel costs.
If you feel you need to use your car for the role then please speak to a member of staff.
Child care
Childcare can be provided but, as we have a limited amount of funding to be able to cover this cost, any childcare arrangements must be pre-approved by the designated member of staff before any provisions are arranged.
Any childcare providers must be on the CSSIW approved register. DPIA will not pay for the services of non-registered or unapproved providers. It is the responsibility of the childcare provider (not DPIA) for the welfare and safety of the children whilst within the premises of the child care centre.
The CSSIW registered childcare provider should invoice DPIA directly. DPIA will then pay any invoices by cheque payment after receipt of such invoices. This arrangement must be made clear to the provider prior to booking in order to prevent any financial issues arising.
Volunteering should never cost the volunteer anything. DPIA will endeavour to supply or reimburse the cost of any necessary resources, however, any such consequential costs must be pre-approved by the designated staff member.
Food and resources
Light refreshments can be reimbursed with the submission of original receipts up to the value of £5 when a volunteer is working over 5 hours in one session.
From time to time you may find that you need additional resources or funds to support you in your role as a volunteer. If this is the case then please let us know before spending money as it will need to be authorised first. Without prior authorisation we may not be able to reimburse you.
Gifts
We encourage volunteers not to give gifts from the people they encounter whilst volunteering. This is because gifts can be interpreted as a contractual agreement by some people. If volunteers do receive gifts, we ask that they make the organisation aware of the gift.
We also ask that volunteers do not give gifts to the people they encounter whilst volunteering. It is acceptable for a gift to be given at the end of a placement as a thank you or for a special occasion, but volunteers should not regularly give gifts.
Donations
Many volunteers find that they end up supporting people to source donations i.e. clothes and household items. This is not a problem and there are organisations in Swansea with whom we can put you in contact. Participants receive donations on the grounds that they may not be perfect, however we do ask that volunteers aim to obtain donations from reliable and safe sources.
Dealing with difficult situations
Volunteers will be working on their own initiative much of the time and for this reason may encounter difficult situations. As an organisation we aim to provide the best support possible to our volunteers are urge them to approach us at the soonest possible time to make us aware of difficulties or concerns.
Reporting problems
If a volunteer encounters a problem whilst on project then they can speak to a Cities of Sanctuary project staff member or a Displaced People in Action member of staff or trustee. If possible then make a written note of the problem when it happens.