Youth Volunteering Programme

Youth Volunteer Programme

Our youth programme is currently CLOSED to applications and will reopen in 2025.

Our youth volunteering programme is aimed at 16 and 17 year olds who are interested in a future job in healthcare. We are committed to supporting young people in their career aspirations within the NHS.

There are many areas you can volunteer throughout our hospitals. You can meet patients and direct them to right area of the hospitals, or assist staff with drink rounds and mealtimes on the wards, or can you support staff with small errands – there are many ways volunteers help to support staff and patients.

As a youth volunteer you will gain knowledge and experience within the hospital environment as well as helping people along the way.

We ask all volunteers for a minimum commitment of 6 months/50 hours of volunteering however many of volunteers are happy to stay with us for longer. We ask for a weekly commitment of at least 3-4 hours per week, however this can vary according to specific volunteer roles. We aim to be flexible, with volunteer placements available during the day, evenings and weekends. If you are thinking of applying to volunteer at the Trust, we ask that you are able to provide this level of commitment.

If you are looking for more short-term opportunities such as 1-2 weeks work experience placements, shadowing or elective placements, please contact sath.wideningparticipation@nhs.net, as we are not able to offer this through volunteering.

Why become a Youth Volunteer?

  • Build a wealth of skills, experience and connections across the Trust
  • Receive a certificate when you reach 50 hours of volunteering for your record of achievement
  • Show future employers that you are committed and dedicated to your professional and personal development
  • Help with CV building and career-based workshops
  • Explore different vocations and open doors into careers within the NHS
  • Meet new people
  • Build your confidence
  • Make a difference
  • Advice on job applications

Volunteer Placements

Volunteers will be placed in the same area for a minimum of 2 months. After 2 months, you will be contacted by the Volunteer Team with the option to change to a different ward/area/category of placement.

This is a very popular option for youth volunteers as you will be volunteering alongside a number of different staff members to help our patients. Ward Support volunteers support patients with drinks rounds, mealtime distribution, provide companionship to patients and relatives, they help ward staff with duties such as transporting items (prescriptions, patient belongings, notes), restocking, answering phones/taking messages, photocopying or pushing patients in wheelchairs (if trained). Volunteers work as part of a team, they do not shadow clinicians nor undertake any clinical tasks such as washing, toileting or feeding patients.

Spending time with a patient, even for short time, can make a huge difference to a patient’s hospital stay – particularly those who may not have many or any visitors. Volunteers will support by keeping patients company, playing games or doing activities with patients. Volunteers are not there to provide clinical information and should refer any queries to staff.

A warm smile and an offer to help can make a huge difference to someone who maybe visiting our hospital for the first time, who may be confused or stressed or simply rushing to get to an appointment and needs quick and simple advice to help them get to their destination. Meet and Greet Volunteers are on hand to support patients and visitors when they come onto the hospital sites. We have meet and greet roles in a number of departments across both hospital sites

Frequently Asked Questions

We expect volunteers to complete the recruitment process within 4-8 weeks after the interview. Naturally, this depends on applicants completing their paperwork in a timely manner. It also depends on the DBS check and Occupational Health check. There could be delays caused by the DBS check or if we need to refer you for any further health checks before you start. We will always communicate this to you.

We ask all Trust volunteers to commit to a minimum of one volunteering shift of between 3-4 hours per week for at least 6 months, unless we specifically state otherwise. Volunteers should advise their tutor and the Volunteer Team of any absences immediately.

Volunteers provide non-clinical support to our patients, their relatives and visitors to our hospitals. Volunteers do not provide (or shadow) clinical work and volunteering is different to going on a work experience placement. If you are interested in a work experience placement, we can signpost you to the relevant team. The Volunteer Office is unable to deal with work experience requests. We only recruit to specific roles and ask for a minimum of 6 months commitment to the role.

We issue 50 hour certificates to everyone completing their 50 hours with SaTH. We can also provide references to those who complete their 50 hours.

Yes, you can access our expenses claim form from the document library on My Impact. You can only claim expenses for bus fares, train fares or personal mileage within a 20 mile radius of the hospital. You must keep your receipts for buses and trains.