Volunteer With Us
Thank you for your interest in volunteering!
Volunteers are a valued and important part of The Zone and play a huge role in supporting the work we do with young people. We provide extensive training, ongoing support and opportunities to develop your skills and experience, while helping us deliver safe, welcoming and high-quality services.
If you’re passionate about working with young people and have the time, skills, experience and commitment to share, we’d love to hear from you. You could be the perfect fit for our volunteer team!
Our dedicated Youth Support Volunteers provide a friendly, safe and confidential space where young people can talk about what’s going on for them. Volunteers offer information and support around sexual health, mental health, housing, as well as helping young people access other services through signposting and referrals to projects within The Zone and other organisations.
Become a Youth Support Volunteer
Our volunteer programme runs throughout the year, with new training intakes usually taking place in spring and autumn.
How to apply
If you’re interested in becoming a Youth Support Volunteer, please complete our onlineapplication form. The application form gives us a chance to find out a little more about you, your experience and why you’d like to volunteer with The Zone.
Once you’ve submitted your application, we’ll keep you updated about the next steps and let you know when the next training course is taking place.
Questions about volunteering?
If you have any questions about volunteering, training or the application process, please contact us and we’ll be happy to help.
Autumn 2026 Volunteer Course
The closing date for applications for our Autumn course is Friday 14th August 2026.
Once applications have closed, we’ll review all applications and be in touch during the week of 24th August 2026 with an update and further information about the next steps.
Thank you to everyone who has taken the time to apply. We look forward to hearing from you!
“I love volunteering at The Zone; it’s so rewarding. You never know what to expect, every day is different and every young person has different needs - it’s very satisfying to be able to help people. It’s made me more aware of lots of the issues facing young people these days, and I’ve made some new friends in the other volunteers.”
What is a Youth Support Volunteer?
A Youth Support Volunteer is someone who has completed our training and provides practical, emotional and information-based support to young people accessing The Zone. This involves listening without judgement, signposting to appropriate services, and supporting young people to explore their options in a safe, supportive and respectful way.
Volunteers may support young people with a range of topics, including mental health and emotional wellbeing, sexual health, healthy relationships and consent. This might involve offering reassurance, helping young people talk through worries or concerns, sharing reliable information, and supporting them to access appropriate services for further help. Volunteers do not provide counselling or medical advice but play an important role in helping young people feel heard, informed and supported.
All support is provided within clear professional boundaries, safeguarding policies and The Zone’s values, with volunteers working closely alongside trained staff and receiving ongoing supervision and guidance.
Supporting young people can be incredibly rewarding, but it can also be challenging and emotionally demanding at times. Volunteers may hear about difficult or sensitive situations and, in some cases, the support available may be limited or a young person may choose not to accept the help offered. This is a normal part of youth work and something we prepare and support our volunteers for through training, supervision and ongoing guidance.
Due to the emotional demands of the role, this position is not be suitable for someone who is currently emotionally vulnerable or who feels that volunteering will help them address personal challenges.
Because of the nature of the work, Youth Support Volunteers must also be aged 18 or over. This ensures volunteers can engage appropriately with sensitive topics, take part fully in training and safeguarding processes, and work safely and confidently within a professional youth work environment.
Our priority is to ensure that both young people and volunteers feel safe, supported and able to engage positively.
We offer all our volunteers:
Comprehensive training
Out of pocket expenses
Practical experience of face to face support
The opportunity to be part of a diverse agency
A rewarding role supporting young people
In return we ask that you:
Attend selection day and training
Commit to volunteering with us for 3 hours a week, choosing from set shifts which cover our front of house drop in times.
Uphold The Zone’s ethos and values
Are enthusiastic about empowering young people to live safe, healthy and positive lives!