Volunteering Opportunity: Remote Volunteer Family Support Worker National Helpline with Family Lives

Family Lives operate a free confidential helpline for anyone experiencing difficulties in their family or relationship.

Our volunteers take calls from parents and carers on a wide range of subjects, whether that might be issues around separation and divorce, isolation, depression, bullying and abuse, dealing with behavioural problems, etc. You can find out more about our services on our website.

We are a national service with home-based call takers county wide and a call centre in Old Hatfield Hertfordshire. Once trained volunteers sign up for a weekly 4-hour shift comprising 3 hours ‘online’ followed by a debrief session with your supervisor which can lasts around half to one hour.

We recruit volunteers with a range of backgrounds and experiences though we ask that volunteers have experience of parenting or working with children and young people, are good listeners and have a willingness to learn. Being remote it will be very important that you have a PC/laptop, plug in headset with microphone, good Wi-Fi and a private place to work from home. You need to be a UK resident.

Our training programme is excellent and will give you the opportunity to develop the skills needed to offer empathic support and guidance to callers whatever their circumstances; all shifts are overseen by a regular shift supervisor who provides ongoing remote support. We ask our volunteers to make a commitment of 1 year (with time off for holidays), obviously we understand that circumstances sometimes make that an impossibility but can be helpful to know at the outset that is the general expectation.

We have call taker training sessions that run over five sessions and is done remotely connecting you via a Microsoft Teams link. You would need to be able to attend all five sessions and be available on four occasions to listen into calls, this can be organised remotely.

We have remote voluntary call taker training groups taking place on:

Remote Call Taker Training Dates:

November training dates:

Module 1 – Monday 4th November
Module 2 – Wednesday 6th November
Module 3 – Monday 11th November
Module 4 – Wednesday 13th November
Module 5 – Monday 18th November

10am to 2pm



Please note that all roles offered are subject to a satisfactory DBS being obtained, you will receive details of documentation required prior to your training and this must all be in no later than the second session of your training.

Opportunity Type: Long-term Commitment

District: Bedford, Broxbourne, Central Bedfordshire, Dacorum, East Herts, Epping Forest, Harlow, Hertsmere, Luton, Milton Keynes, North Herts, St Albans, Stevenage, Three Rivers, Uttlesford, Watford, Welwyn/Hatfield

Start Date: 24/04/2024
End Date: 24/12/2028

Location: From home

Time of day: Weekday Mornings, Weekday Afternoons, Weekday Evenings

Practical Considerations: We have remote voluntary call taker training groups taking place on:

Remote Call Taker Training Dates:

September training dates:
Module 1 – Monday 23rd September
Module 2 – Wednesday 25th September
Module 3 – Monday 30th September
Module 4 – Wednesday 2nd October
Module 5 – Monday 7th October

10am to 2pm

September Saturday training dates:

Module 1 – Saturday 28th September
Module 2 – Saturday 5th October
Module 3 – Saturday 12th October
Module 4 – Saturday 19th October
Module 5 – Saturday 26th October

10am to 2pm



Please note that all roles offered are subject to a satisfactory DBS being obtained, you will receive details of documentation required prior to your training and this must all be in no later than the second session of your training.

Requirements: Will require a criminal record check (DBS)

Suitable for: 18 – 25 year olds, Aged 26 and over, University students, Older People

Suitable for volunteers interested in: Children, Families & Family Support

Does this opportunity provide wheelchair access?: No

Full Description:
Family Lives operate a free confidential helpline for anyone experiencing difficulties in their family or relationship.

Our volunteers take calls from parents and carers on a wide range of subjects, whether that might be issues around separation and divorce, isolation, depression, bullying and abuse, dealing with behavioural problems, etc. You can find out more about our services on our website.

We are a national service with home-based call takers county wide and a call centre in Old Hatfield Hertfordshire. Once trained volunteers sign up for a weekly 4-hour shift comprising 3 hours ‘online’ followed by a debrief session with your supervisor which can lasts around half to one hour.

We recruit volunteers with a range of backgrounds and experiences though we ask that volunteers have experience of parenting or working with children and young people, are good listeners and have a willingness to learn. Being remote it will be very important that you have a PC/laptop, plug in headset with microphone, good Wi-Fi and a private place to work from home. You need to be a UK resident.

Our training programme is excellent and will give you the opportunity to develop the skills needed to offer empathic support and guidance to callers whatever their circumstances; all shifts are overseen by a regular shift supervisor who provides ongoing remote support. We ask our volunteers to make a commitment of 1 year (with time off for holidays), obviously we understand that circumstances sometimes make that an impossibility but can be helpful to know at the outset that is the general expectation.

We have call taker training sessions that run over five sessions and is done remotely connecting you via a Microsoft Teams link. You would need to be able to attend all five sessions and be available on four occasions to listen into calls, this can be organised remotely.

We have remote voluntary call taker training groups taking place on:

Remote Call Taker Training Dates:

June Saturday training dates:

Module 1 – Saturday 8th June

Module 2 - Saturday 15th June

Module 3 – Saturday 22nd June

Module 4 – Saturday 29th June

Module 5 – Saturday 6th July

10am to 2pm

Please note that all roles offered are subject to a satisfactory DBS being obtained, you will receive details of documentation required prior to your training and this must all be in no later than the second session of your training.