Peer Research Volunteers wanted

vInspired is an independent charity dedicated to helping young people volunteer in ways that matter to them. Its exciting project vCashpointreaches out to young people who want to make a positive difference on an issue that affects their community. It does this through distributing funding to help young people between the ages of 14 and 25 to turn their ideas for social action projects into a reality.

vInspired has asked the Institute for Volunteering Research, the Third Sector Research Centre at the University of Birmingham and Volunteer Development Scotland to help them find out what impact vCashpoint has on local communities in England and Scotland, and on the young people involved. To help us do that we are now looking for four young volunteers.

About you

You don’t need to have any formal research experience or qualifications. Far more important is is your passion for how young people can make a difference in their local communities.

We are looking for four people who

 

• are aged between 18 and 25 and based in London or the West Midlands;
• may have been involved in some type of social action before, preferably with other young people;
• are interested in learning more about the impacts of social action; and
• like to do things independently as well as being able to get on well with others.

 

How the project will benefit you

While this is a voluntary opportunity, you will of course receive your travel and any other expenses.  Much more excitingly, you will gain invaluable skills and experience in planning and carrying out a UK-wide collaborative research project. You will also receive training and mentoring from experts - researchers who will support you in the work.

You will take part in free research training sessions, led by the project partners in London, Birmingham and Stirling. You will then visit two local youth-led projects which have been funded by vCashpoint, to conduct interviews and focus groups to explore the impact of the projects.

You will help us with the analysis and write-up of the evaluation findings as appropriate, depending on your skills and interests. More generally, you’ll have the chance to develop some invaluable skills and experience in communication and project management.

Finally, and most importantly of all, we think the project will be an opportunity to have lots of fun!

The practicalities

Measuring what the vCashpoint award holders have achieved will take time. Because of this we will need you to be able to commit to the role from August 2012 to September 2013.  In total we envisage you being invvolved with us for 10-13 days over that period.

In return, you will witness the impacts of youth-led social action reveal themselves over time and fully benefit from all the training, support and mentoring that we can offer you.

If you’re interested we’d love to hear from you.  For further information or to apply please contact Andy Curtis via This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or 020 7520 8946.

Please return your completed application form to Andy Curtis by 11.59pm on Sunday 19 August 2012.

Interviews are provisionally scheduled for 30 August.