Work Experience and Volunteering

There are over 350 roles in Healthcare alone,
so when considering all roles in Social Care as well,
you will be sure to find the best role for you.

What is work experience?

Work experience is a fantastic way of gaining insight into a career especially what a day in the life is like for that job. During work experience, you will spend time in the workplace to learn about a job role and the health and care sector. It can be a valuable way for you to develop confidence and experience caring for people. With over 350 career options available in health and care it can seem a daunting experience to choose which job is right for you and work experience can help you with those decisions.

What is volunteering?

Volunteers are crucial to the NHS’s vision for the future of health and social care. There are more than 300 types of role in the NHS alone, providing challenging and rewarding opportunities for people of all ages and backgrounds. Some can be a one-off, like a hospital garden makeovers or fundraising. Others can last for months or even years, like running a hospital radio show, helping with administration in a hospice or taking part in advisory groups.

Many NHS organisations and charities need help from volunteers. This is a great way to support the NHS and get involved in your community.

What is the difference between work experience and volunteering?

Unlike work experience, which tends to fulfil specific learning/observation requirements of the individual, volunteering is most often used to benefit others. Work experience is often a shadowing opportunity with a set learning or exposure objective. Whereas volunteering tends to be more long term with the focus on giving something back. Both work experience and volunteering will develop your skills and strengths. With volunteering you will have flexibility to select your preferred times/shifts and role.

Work experience and volunteering in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough

Arthur Rank Hospice Charity

To find out more about the volunteering opportunities click here.

Cambridgeshire Community Services

As a Trust, we recognise that volunteers make a unique and valuable contribution. They make a difference to the people who use our services, our communities and our staff. Volunteers enable us to deliver high-quality care that goes above and beyond the core services delivered. Volunteers do not replace existing paid workers’ roles but complement and support the work that staff do across the Trust.

We welcome volunteers from all walks of life, who represent the diversity of our communities and bring with them a wide range of skills and experience.

The nature of volunteering makes it different from traditional employment. Our volunteering approach is based on flexibility; we know that a more informal and personal approach is essential to encourage volunteers from all areas of the community to give their time to our organisation.

Click here to find out more.

Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Foundation Trust

Volunteers are recruited from the communities we serve including people who are retired, students, employed and unemployed. Volunteering presents many opportunities for people to use and enhance their skills or share their knowledge, develop a sense of purpose or increase their self-confidence, and it offers opportunities to learn and gain experience in many areas of CPFT.

CPFT understand that volunteers play a vital role in supporting CPFT services, staff and patients. Through giving their time, volunteers make a huge difference to the care of our patients across our Trust, and significantly contribute to the efforts of Head to Toe Charity.

Click here to find out more

Cambridge University Hospitals

Volunteering:

CUH have a highly valued team of volunteers who give some of their time to make a difference for patients every week. Click here to find out more.

Young Persons Programme

Work experience

Royal Papworth Hospital

Volunteering

There are a number of ways in which you can help as a volunteer at Royal Papworth Hospital, in roles such as:

Patient advice and liaison service (PALS) admin support volunteer,
Patient research ambassador
Pharmacy
Proof reader
Representative at patient and carer groups
Tin collection co-ordinator
Ward visitor volunteer

Click here to find out more.

Work Experience

For work experience please contact the Cambridge University Hospitals (CUH), Work Experience Team. You can contact them by email: cuh.workexperience.addenbrookes@nhs.net and find out more on the CUH Work Experience website page, click here.

East of England Ambulance Service

There are various roles in which you could apply to volunteer in. They include:

Community first responders – they are volunteers who are trained by us to attend certain types of emergency calls in the area where they live or work. Their aim is to reach a potential life threatening emergency in the first vital minutes before the ambulance crew arrives.
Volunteer car drivers – are volunteers who live and work in the local community and they give up their time to assist our Patient Transport Service, by transporting patients to and from hospital appointments, treatment centres and other health facilities. They play an essential role providing patient care and for the patients they help, volunteer car drivers are the face of the service.
Community Engagement Group (CEG) – are an independent group of volunteers from around the region who help us identify ways of improving services and support us with a range of activities. They are our critical friends.

For more information click here.

Did you know?

Volunteering work
can be used in
supporting statements
for job applications.

Find the Right Opportunity for you

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