Left Bank Leeds Volunteer Handbook

VOLUNTEERING HANDBOOK Thank you for joining the team at Left Bank Leeds as a volunteer. We hope you have a positive and worthwhile experience volunteering with us. This is your Volunteering Handbook, it has been designed to help you get the most out of your time volunteering. We will help you develop a range of skills by giving you the opportunity to support on different aspects of our programme of arts and events. We are always interested to understand your motivations for volunteering. Please feel free to let us know if you have any specific areas of interest and we will do what we can to accommodate.

Within this handbook you’ll find: Our story – what we’re all about at Left Bank Leeds and what our journey has included so far.

Roles and opportunities – an overview of the sort of roles we have available for volunteers.

Volunteer agreement – this will detail what we expect from you and what you can expect from us during your time volunteering with Left Bank Leeds.

Contact list – a who’s who of the team so you know who to speak to and how to get in touch with them.

The nitty gritty – all those useful bits of information that you just need to know.

OUR STORY Our amazing building started life as an Anglican church called St Margaret of Antioch. It was built in 1908­ 1909 with money raised from the local community. It was designed by renowned architect Temple Moore, who, over a career spanning five decades built more than forty churches and became one of Victorian England's greatest architects of church buildings. These buildings are now considered to be masterpieces of the late Gothic Revival, a style of architecture he raised to a new level of beauty and refinement. You can find out more by following the Temple Moore Trail.

Before the building was finished however, the community funds ran out and so we are missing a final arch and tower at the front of the building. The rose window that we can see there today was designed by GG Pace and added in 1964. Left Bank Leeds stands together with Leeds City Varieties, Civic Hall, The Grand Theatre as one of Leeds’ Grade II* listed buildings. Grade I listing is of national significance (accounts for 2.5% of listed buildings), Grade II* is of regional significance (accounts for 5.5%) and 92% of listed buildings are Grade II which is of local significance.

For 85 years St Margaret’s was home to a worshipping congregation, until 1995, when the building became too difficult to maintain and was forced to close.

Mike Love, (who sits on our board of Trustees) was first inspired by the building way back in 1978 when it was in regular use as a church. When the building was closed in Mike began to imagine how the building could be brought back into use for the local community (looking past the pigeons who had taken up residency). With the help of a group of local volunteers they set up a charity, bought the building in 2002, raised the funds and started repairing our beautiful space.

The initial plan was to use the building as a church, but gradually a new vision emerged to develop the space as an arts venue for the community, and so, Left Bank Leeds was born. In 2009 we hosted our first public events that included the Expo sound art festival, Heritage Open Days, an advent­themed art exhibition, and a candlelit carol service with the Heritage Singers.

The last few years have seen Left Bank Leeds and its community grow and grow. We now run over 100 events each year, welcomed over 10,000 people through our doors in 2016, are known as the perfect place for an alternative wedding, run our own choir once a week and have hosted the LS6 Beer Festival for the last 7 years!

MISSION We use the word ‘amazing’ a lot when we describe Left Bank Leeds and that’s because it really is! As a multidisciplinary arts venue we host a range of arts events from exhibitions, talks and cinema screenings through to festivals and gigs.

Our mission is to preserve our amazing venue in order to inspire and empower our community through a sustainable programme of arts and events that promotes creativity, connection and wellbeing.

VALUES Our values are the principles that underpin everything we do. They guide the way we work with our clients, partners, within our communities and with each other.

CREATIVITY We love new and playful ideas that are beautifully executed. We aim to support creative people by giving them opportunities and showcasing their work. We also give audiences access to arts and events that celebrate creativity.

CONNECTION We are passionate about using our amazing space to bring individuals from all backgrounds and generations together. Through participating in our programme of arts and events we want to connect people to enhance community cohesion.

WELLBEING We believe true beauty comes from confidence and wellbeing. We strive to create experiences that enhance self­esteem and build confidence.

FRIENDSHIP We want to make our community feel welcome and cared for. We go the extra mile, not because we have to but because it feels right. We proudly celebrate the achievements of colleagues and our community.

POSITIVITY We actively promote a positive, optimistic and fun environment. We use our positive environment to inspire and empower our community.

SUPPORT FAIR­TRADE Ethical Trading is about taking responsibility for the working conditions of the people who make the products they sell. We build close relationships with suppliers with the same values as us.

ROLES AND OPPORTUNITIES Volunteers have been at the heart of Left Bank Leeds ever since its beginnings and so we want to make sure you have lots of ways to get involved. Below there’s a list of the sorts of things people can get involved with to give you some ideas:             

knitting and crafting gardening DIY: building DIY: painting distributing flyers bar service stewarding and setting up for events photography and video graphic design running workshops performing at events heritage research and presentations planning and organising events

       

updating web and social media filing photo archive market research finance and funding commercial development marketing and PR governance building development

If you want to find out more about any of these roles just ask! Some roles have a neat and tidy guide to go with them and some of them we’ll just have to work out together.

VOLUNTEER AGREEMENT Below is a list of ten points that are important for you to commit to, and we too commit to these. These are not designed to scare you off so if you have any questions about anything within this list please do come and ask.

1.Reliability People can depend on you to show up on time, complete tasks to the best of your ability within agreed timeframes.

2. Honesty and trustworthiness You tell the truth and are upfront.

3. Respecting Left Bank Leeds and the individuals within it Behaving in a manner that is consistent with our values and treating everyone with respect.

4. Respecting professional boundaries Showing awareness of peoples personal space, both physically and emotionally. Engaging with others only when it is appropriate to do so, and in an appropriate manner.

5. Being proactive Using initiative to solve problems and overcome obstacles when possible.

6. Being positive Bringing a positive energy to Left Bank Leeds and contributing to the environment.

7. Supporting others Do what you can to support the team of staff, volunteers and visitors to Left Bank Leeds.

8. Staying focused If for any reason you find yourself unable to fulfil a volunteering commitment you made please let us know as soon as possible. We will do what we can to support you, reschedule your volunteering or arrange suitable cover.

9. Listening carefully Giving people a chance to explain their ideas properly, being open to new ideas and respecting different opinions.

10. Open to learning Acknowledging that we are always developing learning and growing, and being open to this.

Left Bank Leeds is run by the Antioch Trust Ltd, charity no 114673 Correspondence address: c/o The Cardigan Centre, 145 Cardigan Road, Leeds LS6 1LJ

THE TEAM When you’re volunteering with Left Bank Leeds you’re part of our team. You may not deal with everyone in the organisation directly but it’s always useful to know who we all are.

Below you will find some info about each LBL team member including; their role, contact details and when you might find them.

Courtney Spencer, Director, court@leftbankleeds.org.uk Court is one of our directors, she oversees the strategic direction, marketing, fundraising, programming and volunteering side of things. She studied art and design at uni before doing in MA in business. She’s partial to a good art exhibition and oversees programming arts, community, wellbeing and worship events. Court works full­time hours condensed into four days and is often based at Left Bank Leeds for at least two days a week AND, if you’re lucky, you might get to meet Oscar – the official Left Bank Leeds dog!

Liz Ainge, Director, liz@leftbankleeds.org.uk Liz is our director who oversees the more commercial side of things; she manages operations, finances, HR, and events such as our monthly cinema programme, the LS6 Beer Festival and Cider Festival. She oversees programming events related to food, drinks, music and cinema. She’s also pretty tech savvy so in additional to her wide­ranging duties also helps the team with IT (what a woman!). Liz studied Visual Communications and has worked at various arts venues, at different festivals and as a freelance designer. She works full­time hours condensed into four days so you’ll probably spot her around!

Jo Pickles, Marketing Manager, jo@leftbankleeds.org.uk If it’s got a Left Bank Leeds logo on it then it’s almost certainly had something to do with Jo! She designs and implements our marketing strategy and is responsible for all our lovely promotional material. Jo works 3 days a week and mostly from home so you might not meet her. But if you’re interested in finding out more about the joys of marketing or how to make the best flyer, Jo is your woman.

Linda Horsburgh, Volunteer Manager, linda@leftbankleeds.org.uk Linda is a very useful person for you to know as she manages all things volunteer related! She overseas the delivery of a two year project exploring and sharing the heritage of our building via a range of events including artist commissions, architecture lecture series, knitting groups, afternoon teas and volunteer socials. Linda works three days a week and tries to be at Left Bank Leeds as much as possible. If you don’t get to meet her, something has gone very wrong somewhere…

Esme Lunken, Events Manager, esme@leftbankleeds.org.uk Esme is manages the strategic direction of our weddings, private events and pretty much everything to do with food and drink. Esme works 3 days per week and is often around at events. If you volunteer on either the LS6 Beer Festival or the Cider Festival you’ll be sure to meet her.

Sarah Walker, Weddings and Events Manager, sarah@leftbankleeds.org.uk Sarah works closely with Esme and manages our weddings and external bookings. Sarah works 3 days per week and can often be found in and around the building showing it off to happy couples. She loves to get involved with all things Left Bank so you might just find her volunteering alongside you at the next cinema screening or family arts workshop.

Steve Corbridge, Operations and Facilities Manager, Left Bank Leeds is run by the Antioch Trust Ltd, charity no 114673 Correspondence address: c/o The Cardigan Centre, 145 Cardigan Road, Leeds LS6 1LJ

Steve is the longest serving member of the team! He’s in charge of making sure the amazing building that we call home stays in tip­top condition. He’s also our policies man – if you want to know about health and safety, equality and diversity or a risk assessment or two, have a chat with Steve. Steve works flexible hours and can usually be found working around the building most week days.

Leigh Greenwood, Wellbeing and Worship Manager, leigh@leftbankleeds.org.uk Hopefully by now you’ve realised that Left Bank Leeds was in fact a church before we started filling it with lots of arty things. Leigh is a trainee Baptist minister and works with us one day a week to keep us connected with our wellbeing and worship based heritage. Leigh works from home and pops into Left Bank for meetings and events. Up until recently she looked after volunteering so you’ll probably still come into contact with her.

Left Bank Leeds is run by the Antioch Trust Ltd, charity no 114673 Correspondence address: c/o The Cardigan Centre, 145 Cardigan Road, Leeds LS6 1LJ

THE NITTY GRITTY This section is all those bits and pieces that it’s useful to know about before you get started on your volunteering journey with us.

Expenses We will reimburse reasonable expenses to you whilst you are volunteering with Left Bank Leeds.

These include travel, meals and supplies.

Travel We can cover the cost of your travel to and from Left Bank Leeds for each day that you volunteer with us up to the value of £5 per person.

If you come by public transport it’s easy to just keep your ticket or receipt* and we’ll take a copy and give you back the money you spent.

If you come in your own vehicle we can reimburse the mileage: Cars and vans – 45p per mile Motorcycles – 24p per mile Bicycles – 20p per mile To claim this you’ll just need to give us the postcode that you travelled from.

If you are volunteering at an event and are with us past 10pm we can organise a taxi for you to get home safely (within Leeds). This will be booked via our account so you do not need to pay, nor keep a receipt. *We cannot reimburse travel on public transport without proof of payment – so please keep those tickets!

If your volunteering role requires you to travel we will cover the travel costs. Please speak to Linda to clarify.

Meals Whilst volunteering please feel free to help yourself to hot drinks and cordial. If your volunteering shift is over five hours long we will provide food. Other drinks and snacks are available at a discounted price when volunteering.

Supplies Sometimes you may be required to buy additional supplies for an event/opportunity. If this is the case we will reimburse you the full amount spent so long as you keep the receipt. Please check with your manager before buying any supplies as we may already have what you need.

Drugs and alcohol It is your responsibility to ensure you are fit to carry out your responsibilities safely. If the Duty Manager on shift feels as though you are not in a fit state you will be asked to leave. The Duty Manager’s say on this matter will be final. If you are volunteering as part of the set­up/take­down of an event then alcohol is not allowed due to health and safety. We have a zero tolerance attitude to illegal drugs. If any volunteers are found to be under the influence of illegal drugs whilst volunteering they will be asked to leave.

Festival events (LS6 Beer Festival, Cider Festival) If volunteering at these events you will receive a free drink token to use during your break and free entry to a session at the festival. We will arrange a training evening for all volunteers before these events take place.

Training We will make sure you have had the right training for the volunteer role that you are taking on and run bi monthly volunteer training sessions that cover all the basics. We strongly encourage everyone Left Bank Leeds is run by the Antioch Trust Ltd, charity no 114673 Correspondence address: c/o The Cardigan Centre, 145 Cardigan Road, Leeds LS6 1LJ

volunteering with us to attend one of these sessions. If at any time you feel unsure about your responsibilities or how to do something, please ask the relevant member of Left Bank Leeds staff.

Grievances We hope that you’ll have a great time volunteering with Left Bank Leeds but if for any reason you have an issue you would like to raise please feel free to contact Linda, our Volunteer Manager or Courtney, our Director who will do their best to resolve the issue. Should they not be able to resolve the problem it will be escalated to Nicola Hambridge, one of our trustees.

Thanks again for supporting the development of Left Bank Leeds, we look forward to working with you.

Left Bank Leeds is run by the Antioch Trust Ltd, charity no 114673 Correspondence address: c/o The Cardigan Centre, 145 Cardigan Road, Leeds LS6 1LJ