VOLUNTEER ROLES

GUIDANCE NOTES THE CAMP WAY

Are volunteers presented as ‘helpers’ coming to provide a service?

Overseas travel presents unique risks for staff, volunteers and local communities. A code of conduct can help set expectations and give guidance to appropriate and expected behaviour. Expedition Code of Conduct in place detailing standards of behaviour that protect staff, volunteers, students, local children and other community members from harm.

Are volunteers presented as ‘helpers’ coming to provide a service?

Camps’ work in communities and environmental hot-spots relies upon a lively partnership between all stakeholders. Our young travellers are among those stakeholders and their understanding of how to play their role is vital to the successful function of the whole. All volunteers are presented as ‘learners’ coming to offer solidarity in the spirit of mutual exchange, and as equals to the project partners.

CI Responsible Traveller Training ensures that each young person travelling with us understands their role within the context of project objectives, environmental impact and cultural sensitivity. A Code of Conduct summarises that and acts as a convenient touch point for the continuity from training to application on expedition.

Volunteer Roles

GUIDANCE NOTES THE CAMP WAY

Does the Responsible Traveller Training and Code of Conduct include consideration of interacting with children and other community members?

Is there a reporting process in place for volunteers to report on any issues experienced during their volunteer placement?

It’s important that every volunteer is made aware of acceptable and unacceptable standards of behaviour when interacting with children and local community members.

A reporting process ensures that all clients have a clear mechanism for reporting any issues experienced during their volunteer experience. This may include risk of exposure to harm or witnessing or suspecting harm to local children and other vulnerable community members. CI has a comprehensive reporting process in place that is clearly communicated and accessible to clients.

The reporting process includes examples of reportable incidents, advice on roles and

Is there a process in place to ensure all participants have received the Responsible Traveller Training and signed the Code of Conduct and Child Safeguarding Policy?

The majority of volunteers are not qualified in infrastructure design. Experts need to be involved in design and quality assurance. Even engineers and architects from other countries may not be fully versed on conditions in the country where the project takes place. All students and guardians are asked to go through our Responsible Traveller Training and sign the Code of Conduct and Child Safeguarding Policy as a conclusion of that. The philosophy here is one of shared responsibility in each stakeholder equipping themselves for their role.

Mechanisms are in place to ensure the Code of Conduct is distributed, signed and collected prior to departure.51

The Responsible Traveller Training and Code of Conduct work alongside CI’s Safeguarding Policy and Reporting Processes.

responsibilities of specific individuals, and guidance on how and when to report.

GUIDANCE NOTES THE CAMP WAY

Does the project provide an induction for volunteers that includes how to be culturally respectful?

It is fundamental for volunteers to be culturally respectful if they are to ensure that they don’t cause harm. CI’s local teams will know what cultural guidelines are important to follow. The CI Responsible Traveller Programme provides an extensive induction for volunteers, which includes introduction to cultural norms and standards. On-expedition activities reinforce that learning.

Do volunteers currently have the skills needed for the volunteer role, or will adequate training be provided?

Is there a clear and documented process in place for volunteers to build on the work of previous volunteer groups?

Requiring volunteers to do roles that they would not be qualified to do at home can put both the clients and local people at risk and reinforce feelings of inequality. Volunteers only undertake roles that they would be allowed to do in their home country, and adequate training is provided by local project teams.

In placements that see streams of short-term volunteers, there is a big risk of each volunteer repeating the same work and the same mistakes of the last one, which over time causes harm to local communities. There is a clear handover process between volunteers and volunteer groups to try to ensure that each volunteer builds on the work of the last.