Working for a Charity

At Community Action Dacorum we post all of our current vacancies on www.WorkingHerts.org.uk. If you would like to join our team, follow this link to apply.

Whether you’ve just graduated from university, you have an established career in another sector, or are returning to work after a period out, this course gives you an overview of the voluntary sector and a better understanding of the roles available. It also helps you work out what might suit your needs and skills and how to find your ideal charity job.

I’m Naomi and I work in the Training and Development team. 

I have always wanted to be part of the voluntary sector, being able to brighten someone’s day with little acts of kindness. Also being able to build relationships with others in the communities so they aren’t alone.  

At Community Action Dacorum they value bringing people together and making them feel loved, especially during these hard times. There are so many new things I am learning while here at Community Action Dacorum, that I wasn’t aware of, which makes this opportunity so fulfilling.  

I am so grateful to be working with a charity that is so selfless and caring towards different communities around Dacorum. Nothing is better than helping others, so if you want to do it go for it. 

Hi, I’m Alex and I work in Connect Dacorum.

It was actually whilst I was researching Community Action Dacorum prior to getting a job offer that made me really want to join this sector. Community Action Dacorum’s commitment to working with small business and charities is incredible, and particularly through this past year the importance of making sure they survive and thrive has never been clearer.

Having the opportunity to work with a charity that helps to promote this is amazing. Also, the ways in which they help to create and foster a real sense of community and connect likeminded people together was something that I wasn’t previously aware of nor was it something that I had previously been immersed in. So, having the opportunity to see the vital work that they do as well as introducing myself to the Dacorum community was an opportunity I wasn’t going to miss! 

My Experience

Four months into my six-month placement and I believe I am really solidifying and cultivating new skills every day.  Whilst July has been a comparatively quiet month in comparison to others, it by no means that I have not learnt or taken anything away from the month. Part of Connect Dacorum’s aim has meant that there is always a new event or project in the pipeline.  So, whilst last month saw us focus on National Volunteering week, our first face-to-face networking event since the pandemic began, and Employability Days in schools, July has seen the foundations being built for events in August. 

Roughly once a week my manager and I have had catchups to discuss the work she has set me, how I’m getting on etc. I spend most of my days in meetings and getting on with my work. Whilst it might not sound particularly glamourous, a wonderful thing about this placement and what my manager has done is to make sure the tasks and events that occur are completely different. Whilst the core ideas of Connect Dacorum are present in everything that we do, CSR presents itself in a variety of different ways, and my manager has made sure that I have been able to cover and learn about as many different ones as possible. 

A rather unique aspect to my role has seen that I work for two different departments. I work at the Volunteer Centre one day a week and despite not being a full-time member I full feel like a part of the team. This is all credit to the kind, lovely and welcoming people that work at CAD. At the Volunteer Centre I’ve had more hands-on experience with the community, whereas at Connect Dacorum there has been a focus on the business. As a result, my tasks in the Volunteer Centre have been hugely different to those in Connect Dacorum and have mean that I’ve have the opportunity to hone and develop different skills. Like at Connect Dacorum, the volunteer centre has really pushed me in the variety of roles on offer and have stretched my skills in ways I would not have deemed possible. 

At the Volunteer Centre, my communication skills have come on leaps and bounds with regard to customer and member support. One of my tasks at the beginning of my placement here was to phone all of our members and discus with them how they have managed the past year of lockdown, and how they were preparing for re-entry. Being able to work with our members in a helpful and sensitive manner is a skill. And I am now confident that I can constructively interact with them and manage their needs.

Working from home has also provided its own unique challenges. Particularly at the beginning of my placement, meeting new people in other departments and fully understanding the variety of roles that CAD did was unheard-of. However, since COVID restrictions changed and with the help of my Buddy I have come to have a greater appreciation and understanding of all the different departments, the things they do and how they all fit together under the banner of CAD. 

As this was my first office/proper job my expectations of the role and what a job would be like were very much dictated by what I saw on TV and in film, and so to start in the middle of a pandemic with no real-life experience was daunting. However, the people of CAD have truly been very welcoming. Indeed, the photocopier is in our office as so just getting the chance to chat as people come to pick up their printing and see a smiling, friendly face has made the prospect about going back into the office more enjoyable. The nature of being in an office means that you develop your communication skills, and ways of communicating differently to different people, so I’m sure that there are numerous skills that I have subconsciously developed and will stand me in good stead for the future. 

I cannot speak for all kickstart placements, but I have very much felt that CAD have strongly focused on what I can get out of them, rather what they can get out of me. The kickstart scheme is designed for young people to learn new skills and get experience. The roles are all new, specifically created roles for young people, as thus I feel like CAD have made the effort to ensure that I cover as many different skills in different ways as possible. 

In short, it has been a fulfilling role and a welcome introduction into the world of work.