What does a Helpline Volunteer do?

Helpline Volunteers deliver Parenting NI's unique helpline - offering a listening ear, support, and guidance to parents facing any kind of family difficulty.

Across Northern Ireland, we deal with approximately 5,000 calls each year. These range from the day-to-day anxieties that every family faces, to more serious concerns for a child’s safety.

The role of the Helpline Volunteer is to support and empower parents and to protect children. They do this by ...

providing person-centred support, information and guidance to people who contact the Parenting NI helpline
accurately and fully completing all necessary records after each contact
being punctual and reliable in fulfilling at least one four-hour shift per week
participating in monthly supervision group meetings and ongoing skills development workshops
continually monitoring their own practice, and obtaining guidance and support from their Supervisor, Peer Supervision Group or Director (as appropriate)
working in a respectful and supportive way with staff and volunteer colleagues
complying with all the policies and procedures of Parenting NI, paying particular attention to child protection and confidentiality
contributing to raising awareness of Parenting NI in the local area.

The Parenting NI Helpline Volunteering Experience

James, a volunteer who joined us this year, has described his Helpline Volunteer experience,

“Volunteering with the Parenting NI helpline has been such a rewarding experience. The work is very varied and I am constantly learning whilst providing support, guidance and a ‘listening ear’ to the families who contact the helpline.

The accredited training course was invaluable in preparing me for my role and I developed skills that I have been able to apply to my personal and professional life. As a Helpline Volunteer I am offered on-going skills development, excellent supervision and have met lots of interesting, friendly people, with the opportunity to participate in a variety of social events.

Being a parent is such an important role for which so many parents feel unprepared and I feel privileged that as a Helpline Volunteer I can make a significant difference to a family’s life – I would recommend it to anyone.”

A Registered Charity - Inland Revenue Number XO492/80