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New Year, New Impact: How Joining the Specialist Volunteer Network Can Help You Give Back

Are you a business professional looking to make a meaningful impact in your community? Join Inspiring Scotland’s Specialist Volunteer Network (SVN) and use your skills for social good! 

If you’re looking for a New Year’s resolution with real purpose, join the network and: 

• Gain skills and knowledge through working with a new sector 

• Expand your perspective on Scottish charities, their staff and communities 

• Grow your network, from your doorstep to the furthest corners of Scotland 
• Improve your wellbeing – bolster your sense of purpose, achievement and happiness by giving back to your community 

Why Choose SVN 

Ditch the daily weigh, this resolution could be off the scale for Scottish charities! 

The charity sector tries to spend as much of their budget as possible on running programmes that benefit their users. Specialist Volunteers can support this mission by delivering a more diverse range of skills, experience and knowledge that the charity might not otherwise have access to, or in many cases could afford. 

Flexibility and commitment 

With SVN, you have complete control over your volunteering schedule and capacity. There is no weekly commitment. Pick up requests when they suit you and deliver impact on your own time. 

However, with the essential work Scottish charities deliver, alongside stretched budgets and resources, we only ask that you manage your time well and stick to your commitments. 

Talking of “managing”, the SVN Team make this all very easy for you! 

Areas of Expertise Needed 

For a new New Year’s Resolution, the SVN is for you! 

Our Specialist Volunteers in the areas below put their hands up multiple times last year, and we’d love to bring in some more experts to help spread the load. 

• Evaluation, impact measurement and cost / benefit analysis 

• Marketing and communication 

• Fundraising 

• Tax and VAT 

• CRM advice and development 

• Mentoring and coaching 

• Business planning and income generation 

• HR 

Not seeing yourself in the list? Get in touch and let us know how you’d like to help, we need experts to support all manner of requests. Here’s our How-To Guide to get you started! 

Additional Opportunities 

Cold water therapy? Why not dive into the deep end with charity trusteeship. 

The SVN Team have a network of hundreds of Scottish charities which work closely with Inspiring Scotland and as such we know them well. Often, they turn to us when they are looking for new trustees to serve on their Boards or sub-committees, or for trustee training. 

If this is an area you’d like to “dip your toe” into, just get in touch or check out the opportunities on our webpage. 

Highlighted Need 

Ditching the sweeties? Here’s something to get your teeth into! 

Our Delivering Equally Safe funded partner, West Lothian Women’s Aid (WLWA) are looking to relocate and CEO, Ilena Brown, is seeking a Specialist Volunteer’s support.
 
Their current space is far too small, with no space for children, no sufficient foodbank or emergency provision storage, no kitchen, no confidential space for counselling or immediate crisis support, and just one toilet between the 11 staff plus visitors.
 
They need more space, a larger therapeutic room, separate meeting rooms and on a public transport route with parking. Are you the property or project management expert who could transform WLWA’s 2025? 

Join Us

Inspiring Scotland has supported the SVN for over 10 years and it’s part of our philanthropic roots. As such, we are a well-established, professionally run network and we pride ourselves on getting volunteer matches right first time.

Ready to make a difference? Join the SVN today and start transforming lives with your expertise! Get in touch to speak with Elaine and Tommy from the SVN Team to find out more and start your volunteering journey today.