Volunteer for Dr Kershaw’s

We ask that you are at least 16 years old when you apply to volunteer with us, but there is no upper age limit! All we ask is that you feel physically and mentally prepared for any role you are interested in. Each of our role descriptions provides information about the demands and responsibilities it entails and there will be an opportunity for you to talk to us about any concerns you may have about the demands of the role.

We have a partnership arrangement for clinical placements with local universities, so please enquire at your training provider about opportunities. If you are interested in a placement supporting another function, please check the Volunteer vacancies page in the first instance.

In short, as long as you are at least 16 years old and able to commit for at least 6 months, yes!

We have a number of young people who complete their D of E volunteering section with us, and would love to be able to support more people in achieving their Duke of Edinburgh Award. We can only allocate you to a role based on the hours and vacancies available so please be aware that most of our D of E volunteers are based in retail roles. If you have any questions please contact us.

Not necessarily, though some convictions may be incompatible with some of our roles.

Volunteering at the Hospice is not exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (1974) as it may involve contact with patients, and therefore we must ask you to declare any convictions you may have had including those which may be considered spent.

Any information given is, of course, in confidence and considered only in relation to the role for which you are applying. Please be prepared to discuss the nature of the offence and when it occurred in confidence with our Volunteering Team.

This information will not prevent us from inviting you in to discuss volunteering with us but all roles involving potential contact with patients are subject to a DBS check.

This will depend on the role you are interested in, but will normally be between 2 and 4 hours per week, or a morning/afternoon if you are volunteering in one of the shops.

It is sometimes possible to ‘role share’ with another volunteer, so please let us know if you think fortnightly volunteering would suit you better.

In order to provide operational continuity for our users and supporters, we ask for a minimum commitment of 6-12 months for most roles. We are aware that circumstances can alter quickly for volunteers, so ask that you just keep us up to date with any changes to your availability. You can also help us plan for operational continuity by letting us know of any planned holidays or other absences when you join the team.

The quick answer is no! We do however ask that prospective volunteers want to join the team and feel they have the skills, attitudes and aptitudes outlined on the role description…or the willingness to work towards them.

That said, there are some roles such as counselling and complementary therapies which require professional qualifications and in some cases your own insurance.

The easiest way to apply is by completing our Volunteer Application Form.

After we have received your Application Form, we will contact you, usually by email. We will then invite you in for an informal interview at the Hospice, where we can discuss your availability and preferences.

We ask all volunteer applicants to provide at least two references, which should be from people who are able to comment on your suitability and aptitudes for the role(s) you are interested in.

We are pleased to offer a reference to any volunteer who has completed at least six months of regular volunteering with us. This length of time allows us to comment in sufficient detail for prospective employers and to support university applications.