Lucy Faithfull Foundation
The Opportunity
The Lucy Faithfull Foundation is seeking volunteers who could help protect children in their community from being sexually abused.
As a Circle of Support and Accountability volunteer, you, along with 4-6 other volunteers, will offer support to a known sex offender to help them reintegrate into the community – usually following completion of a prison sentence. Working alongside police officers, probation staff and treatment experts you will help keep children safe. Research shows that isolation and loneliness are linked to an increased risk of re-offending – so this scheme provides offenders with a support and advice system to help reduce that risk.
It is hard to think of any members of society that are ostracised as much as someone who has abused children. Yet there are people and professionals who are willing to work with convicted offenders to help prevent them from re-offending – which in turn helps keep children safe from harm.
All volunteers on this scheme receive full training and continuing support throughout the programme.
The Organisation
The Lucy Faithfull Foundation is a leading child protection charity working to reduce the risk of children being sexually abused. The foundation believes that child sexual abuse is preventable, not inevitable, and provides a unique set of services which enhance community protection against child sexual abuse. The organisation aims to safeguard children and young people from abuse by collaborating with individuals and agencies to develop a more child sensitive and offender aware culture.
The Foundation works with child protection and public protection professionals, perpetrators of child sexual abuse and their families and manages the national campaign; Stop it Now! The campaign, supported by an alliance of voluntary sector partners, government departments and statutory agencies operates a free phone, confidential Helpline for people to seek information and advice in relation to child sexual abuse.
Skills / Qualifications
You must be over 21 and be prepared to make a commitment to the project for at least 12 months. In the first instance, volunteers would need to commit to 4-6 hours a week although this is likely to diminish over time.
Further details