About us

Prospect Hospice’s vision is of a community where death is no longer a taboo, and everyone lives and dies well. We provide excellent, personalised, and compassionate care for everyone in our community who is affected by a life-limiting illness. We work in close partnership with other organisations – and specifically with local health and social care professionals – to ensure that anyone can access the best possible care whenever and wherever they need it, and we do so completely free of charge.

Overview

We work with our community to lead, provide and influence excellent care so that everyone affected by a life-limiting illness can access personalised care when and where they need it.

As a hospice ambassador you will raise the profile of Prospect Hospice services in local communities and encourage engagement from potential supporters who may not already be aware of the services we offer.

Description of role

To support the team by attending community events and meeting with community groups as a representative of the hospice.

You will act as an ambassador for the hospice within the community and suitable training will be given to enable you to provide speeches and presentations about the hospice, as well as to respond in an informative end appropriate way to questions and enquiries people may have about the hospice – concerning our services, costs to deliver said services and the different ways people can support us i.e. through fundraising and volunteering.

Bookings will be generated by the fundraising team, however, ad-hoc reactive bookings are also expected. You will only be expected to attend events that fit with your own availability. Full briefings will take place before attending each event.

Role Responsibilities

• To speak with confidence about all our services and the impact they have on local people in an engaging way with a variety of different groups of all ages.
• To be trained, available and prepared to represent Prospect Hospice at prearranged community functions and meetings, from coffee mornings, village fetes and group meetings through to evening fundraising activities/performances.
• To talk informatively and confidently about the costs of running our services and how important it is for people to support us through fundraising and volunteering.
• To handle the collection of funds where required, raised by local community groups and facilitate the onward delivery of these funds to staff at Prospect Hospice, following the cash handling policy in place.
• To attend occasional training and information update sessions as required.
• To appear presentable and appropriately dressed at all engagements, wearing an Identification badge at all times.
• To adhere to Prospect Hospice lone working guidelines and out-of-hours procedures for your own safety. It is important to note that this role is a ‘lone working’ role for which appropriate training and support will be given.
• Identify opportunities where we can raise our profile and work with our clinical teams to help support the local community.
• Promote yourself as a representative of the hospice and proactively seek opportunities to talk to people/groups and at events about the work of the hospice.

Personal responsibilities:

• To undertake a structured induction to learn about the services Prospect Hospice provides, before becoming active in the role.
• To retain up-to-date knowledge of the range of services available in the geographical area.
• To adhere to Prospect Hospice’s confidentiality and personal safety policies.
• To be aware of and follow health and safety regulations.
• To seek help or support when needed.
• To give at least 24 hours’ notice where possible if you will not be able to fulfil a commitment.
• To complete statutory and mandatory training as required.

Volunteers will be reimbursed for reasonable out-of-pocket expenses incurred upon completion of the appropriate claim form.

Everyone at Prospect Hospice works to a set of core values – we are authentic, specialist, person-centred, inclusive, resilient and pursue excellence.

How we bring our values to life everyday

• We take responsibility for our actions and behaviour, always being our authentic selves whilst being professional, welcoming, and caring to our colleagues and customers.
• We are experts educating, training, sharing our knowledge and influencing others. As an Ambassador of Prospect Hospice, we promote our services in the local community.
• We act with empathy, striving to listen to and understand others. Every customer receives an individual experience tailored to their needs.
• We work together as a team and a community by being approachable and non-judgemental.
• We excel in delivering the best service, always seeking to improve and learn new skills.

Keeping you safe

Every volunteer role is risk assessed to ensure you and the people you come into contact with are kept safe, and the person overseeing your role will help you to familiarise yourself with the risk assessment for your specific role before undertaking activities. Alongside this, you’ll need to complete some mandatory training before fully starting your new role. Your safety and wellbeing is important to us, and we ask that you let us know if anything doesn’t feel right at any time.

In some roles you may be given a uniform you’ll need to wear, but we will make sure we let you know about that before you join the team.

Additionally, you can claim out of pocket expenses incurred travelling to your location on submission of a claim form and receipts. The person overseeing your role will be able to talk you through how to do this.

Skills and experiences

Our promise to you

Our volunteers are so important to us, quite simply we would not be able to do what we do without you.  In return for your valuable time, we commit to making sure you are well supported in your role. We will ensure you receive a thorough induction and training.  We run a series of events to thank you for your contribution, and volunteers have access to a range of benefits (subject to availability), thanks to the generosity of some of our local businesses.  The person overseeing your role is available to support you and answer any questions you may have day to day, and they will also provide regular catch-up sessions to review your activities, ensure you and the patient(s) you are supporting remain safe, and provide development as appropriate. For concerns relating to your volunteering experience, the Voluntary Services team are always available.