Volunteer Funeral and Bereavement Guide

Background to Caledonia Funeral Aid and Caledonia Cremation*

Caledonia Funeral Aid is a social enterprise owned and operated by the Scottish anti-poverty charity [Employer hidden — view at passion-project.co.uk]

Our vision is for a Scotland where everyone can afford a dignified funeral, personal to their needs.

We offer free support to members of the public or those who work with bereaved people who have experienced a loss. We do not provide bereavement counselling but focus on ensuring people have the immediate support they need and seek to address all aspects of funeral poverty.

Caledonia Cremation is a not-for-profit funeral director service provided as one part of Caledonia Funeral Aid’s work. We provide dignified and caring funerals to bereaved people across mainland Scotland, with a focus on supporting those facing funeral poverty.

www.communityrenewal.org.uk

This volunteering position is related to Caledonia Funeral Aid’s advice provision and community engagement – it is not a role working within a funeral director service itself.

Aims of Caledonia Funeral Aid:

• To provide practical and emotional support to the recently bereaved people across Scotland, regardless of which funeral director they use.
• To provide practical guidance around all aspects of planning or arranging a funeral.
• To provide unbiased advice with end-of-life plans.
• To advise on all aspects of funeral finance and signpost to financial assistance from the Scottish Government, grants, and charities.
• To support people coping with grief by advising them on bereavement support available
• To ensure that all users of the service are communicated to with compassion and dignity, irrespective of their personal circumstances, their ability to pay, their ethnicity or gender.

Role Title

Volunteer Funeral and Bereavement Guide

Department

Caledonia Funeral Aid

Reporting to

Jan Power and Emma Kelso - Funeral Advisors

John Halliday – Chair

Hours and Location

We support bereaved people Scotland-wide, so hours and location are flexible.

Based on your availability and experience, we will sort out which regular day you will volunteer on, and what activities you spend more time doing.

However, we envisage more activity will take place in Edinburgh, Glasgow, and Fife, so we particularly welcome applicants from those areas

The role will mostly involve home working (manning an advice line), but also arranging and staffing community events in your local area.

The minimum commitment to volunteer is at least ½ day per week, most weeks for one year.

The Volunteer Role

Potential duties will depend on your experience – you don’t need to do all these activities. Full training will be given, so you don’t need experience around funeral advice.

Activities will consist of some or all from the following list:

1. To support community members by working with us to arrange and host/attend various public events such as death cafes, drop-in sessions, workshops, and advice sessions in your local area.
2. Upon completion of training, assist with funeral advice queries from people facing bereavement issues or funeral poverty, either via email or phone and with the support from the advisors, to provide detailed, unbiased information as requested
3. To field phone calls to the advice line during office hours and, when needed, during out of hours. To respond to queries and escalate according to need.
4. To support the work of the Funeral Advisors promoting the work of Caledonia Funeral Aid (e.g. helping create Facebook posts).
5. To be able to provide administrative assistance as needed, and to be able to assist with research activities.
6. As a representative of Caledonia Funeral Aid, to observe confidentiality and all the organisation’s policies and procedures which will be provided upon joining the team

Person Specification

Ideally, a volunteer should have some of the following skills and abilities:

Communication Skills

• To be able to talk confidently to members of the public in a calm non-judgmental way.
• To be able to speak clearly on the phone
• To have a good level of written English
• To demonstrate sensitivity in all interactions

Organisation

• To be able to help organise and plan outreach events.
• To be able to research future outreach activities which Caledonia Funeral Aid could attend
• To be prompt and reliable if attendance in person is required

Administrative

• To be able to use Microsoft Office products such as Outlook, Teams, and Word

Personal Skills

• Volunteers must be aged 18+
• To be able to travel to events either on public transport or by use of your own vehicle (expenses will be paid)
• As the role involves supporting bereaved people who may be distressed or vulnerable, a sympathetic and practical approach is required
• A level of resilience when dealing with potentially distressing cases

If you would like to join the team, then please complete the accompanying application form, and send back to us by email - [contact hidden]

Thank you.

*Caledonia Funeral Aid CIC is a social enterprise managed by [Employer hidden]

Caledonia Cremation is part of Caledonia Funeral Aid CIC – a social enterprise managed by [Employer hidden]