Volunteer to be a

• Gateway Assessor
• Adviser
• Receptionist
• Administrator

Volunteers

If you want to be a part of a vital service at the heart of your local community, and you would like to develop your skills, consider volunteering for CAB.

Voluntary roles available at Stratford CAB are:

• Gateway Assessors, who make an initial assessment of client needs and decide on next steps.
• Advisers, who provide advice and information to members of the public.
• Receptionists, who meet and greet clients and allocate the daily advice appointments.
• Administrators, who undertake a variety of clerical tasks.

The descriptions below set out what is involved in each role.

Gateway Assessment role

Our gateway approach helps clients to be quickly assessed and their issues progressed to the most appropriate next stage. That might be self-help information or an appointment with a specialist adviser. Gateway interviews can be carried out face-to-face or by telephone.

As a Gateway Assessor you will:

• Greet clients and explain the gateway assessment process
• Explore the client's problem(s) and situation
• Assess the risk/urgency of the client's issue and their ability to deal with the problem themselves
• Identify the next step that needs to be taken
• Summarise the content of the interview for the client and explain what happens next
• Ensure clients know they can return if necessary
• Update the database, completing the gateway assessment screens

Specific qualifications or experience are not required to train to be a Gateway Assessor.

You need to:

• Be good at listening
• Have a good manner when talking to people
• Have basic computing skills
• Be open minded and non-judgemental
• Enjoy helping people

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Generalist Adviser Role

Advisers see clients with problems across a wide range of enquiry areas including debt and benefits, employment, housing, family and personal matters and consumer problems. Without our trained volunteer advisers we could not continue to meet the demands for advice. All advisers are given free formal and on the job training and you are supported every step of the way.

As a Generalist Adviser you will:

• Interview clients
• Help them negotiate with people such as creditors or service providers
• Draft letters
• Make telephone calls on behalf of clients
• Refer them to other agencies

Specific qualifications or experience are not required to train to be a Generalist Adviser.

You need to be:

• Good at listening
• Able to work in a team
• Able to read and write English
• Able to do basic arithmetic
• Able to navigate computer information
• Open-minded and non-judgmental
• Enjoy helping people

Attention all law students

If you train as a CAB adviser, you can get up to six months off your solicitor training contracts!

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Receptionist Role

Receptionists are the public face of the Citizens Advice service, meeting clients on a daily basis.

As a Receptionist you will:

• Greet clients and other visitors
• Explain the services available
• Make appointments
• Answer the telephone
• Ensure clients know what is happening and how long they have to wait
• Point out and hand out leaflets, lists and self-help materials
• Maintain the reception area
• Enter information into computer systems

Specific qualifications and experience are not required to take on the reception role. You need to:

• Have a good manner when talking to people
• Have basic computing skills
• Understand and be committed to the need for confidentiality
• Be friendly and approachable

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Administrator Role

Administrators are involved in a variety of administration tasks including typing, photocopying and filing. Training is given for specific tasks.

As an administrator you will help to ensure the smooth running of the bureau including:

• Word processing
• File management
• Arranging events
• Using databases and spreadsheets
• Answering emails and phone calls
• Updating local information

You need to be:

• Good at listening
• Able to work in a team
• Able to read and write English
• Able to do basic arithmetic

If you would like more information on becoming a volunteer please download our volunteer fact sheet by clicking here or email Ann Goodman.

You will need to provide details such as your name, address and contact number and specify which area of volunteering you are interested in. Once we have received your email we will contact you in due course.

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