Opportunity | Details

Care Leavers Wanted

Organisation: Richmond Furniture Scheme

Type: Work & Jobs, Discounts & Retail, Apprenticeships, Support & Mentoring

Sector: Engineering/ Manufacturing, Retail, Housing

Region(s): Greater London

Ref:

RFS0000001

Richmond Furniture Scheme | Work Experience & Furniture Discount

Summary: Richmond Furniture Scheme gives care leavers voluntary work experience as a Warehouse Assistant and a 25% furniture discount in select London boroughs

Further Details:

Making Homes – Richmond Furniture Scheme (RFS) is a friendly furniture reuse charity selling donated furniture and refurbished appliances – assisting people in need of furniture, operating from a base in Twickenham.

We have an exciting opportunity for a care leaver to apply for a voluntary work experience role of Warehouse Assistant, to work alongside our Warehouse Manager. This will give the successful applicant the chance to develop valuable transferrable skills, explore their interests, gain in self-confidence and help them to stand out from the rest when applying for jobs.

As well we will support care leavers by helping to reduce the cost of setting up home with a 25% discount on all furniture, offer free starter kits and household essentials to grant customers and give guidance on grants available.

Offer – Voluntary Work Experience – Unpaid

The warehouse and storage areas are central to RFS operations. The first thing that customers see must be well presented, safe, and accessible at all times. The Scheme is a busy operation – last year we collected 125 tonnes of donated furniture and shipped out 117 tonnes to customers. The role requires the ability to work calmly under pressure, good organisational skills and teamwork with volunteers and staff.

Volunteer Warehouse Assistant – Job Description

Hours: Full time 8am to 4pm, Monday to Friday for one month.

Travel Expenses: Support with reasonable travel expenses

Report to: Warehouse Manager

Duties include:

• Assisting the Warehouse Manager with all warehouse operations – logging donations, serving customers, labelling sold and reserved stock, lifting and shifting furniture around site and on and off the van,

• Helping to optimise stock, optimise display and manage sold items,

• Managing item repairs, refurbishment and coordinating with the teams,

• Assisting with regular site health and safety checks and follow ups,

• Ensuring work areas are clean, tidy and well maintained,

• Working closely with the office and van team to optimise operations,

• Occasional work on the van to support collection and delivery operations,

Responsibilities:

• Work co-operatively with all staff, volunteers and our partners in the community,

• Adhere to the organisation’s policies and procedures,

• To promote the aims of the charity within the community,

• To refrain from any activities which may reflect badly on the reputation of the charity to the wider public and our partners in the community.

Person specification:

• Aged 18+

• Excellent customer service skills

• Able to handle heavy items safely and in accordance with manual handling best practice

• Able to demonstrate IT literacy

• An eye for detail and process

• Ability to understand policies and communicate them clearly at a range of levels, both in person and in writing

• English (written and spoken)

It would be helpful, but not essential, if you are an excellent communicator and have some previous experience in a retail or warehouse operational role. Additionally, any prior experience working in a charity environment would be beneficial but not required.

Behaviours:

• Professional image always,

• Creates open and supportive team environment,

• Demonstrates the Scheme’s core values; be kind, be bold and be creative,

• Is proactive with the ability to react positively to unexpected events.

How to apply: Send your CV and a cover letter to hr@rfsonline.co.uk

Making A Home – Offers

When you’re ready to start setting up your own home why not have a look at the furniture we have on offer? As a small furniture recycling charity we have a vast array of high quality reuse furniture and refurbished appliances available (there’s something to suit everyone!) at very low prices, and it’s constantly being added to. Using your Setting Up Home allowancehere will help your budget to stretch even further. We can also help with:

1. Offering all care leavers a 25% discount when buying furniture, either online or in person from our warehouse, ensuring real value for money.

If you’re shopping online – email recent (last 12 months) proof of entitlement, like a benefits letter or proof you are a care leaver (I’ll ask the team what we can add here), to admin@rfsonline.co.uk or phone us on 020 8755 4665 if you need help.

We will then email you a discount code. When you shop online, put the code into the ‘Apply Coupon‘ box before checking out.

If you’re shopping in person – bring along your proof of entitlement to show us.

2. When using your Setting Up Home allowance here as a grant customer you will also be entitled to some free household essentials. This could include a toaster, kettle, iron, bedding pack, kitchen starter pack, a microwave, a TV, wall paint – it all depends on what we have in stock at the time.

3. If you are yet to receive an allowance to purchase furniture we can signpost you to other local organisations who can also provide grants to spend here. Grants to buy furniture from us are available from a variety of organisations including Richmond Borough Council, Wandsworth Council’s adult social care team, some housing associations and local charities. To find out more visit https://www.rfsonline.co.uk/grants/ If it’s a bit overwhelming give us a call on 020 8755 4665 (leave a message if you call outside business hours and we’ll call you back) or drop us an email admin@rfsonline.co.uk .

When you have finalised your list of chosen items we can deliver them, or you can collect from our warehouse.

Delivery Details

Delivery – Richmond Furniture Scheme (rfsonline.co.uk)

If you apply for Volunteer Work Experience, please also notify the Care Leaver Covenant at Connects@mycovenant.org.

Next Steps

This offer is available to care leavers aged 16-25 across the London Boroughs of Richmond, Wandsworth, Kingston, Hounslow and Hammersmith and Fulham. Please note that care leavers living outside of these boroughs are also welcome to purchase items from us but they are outside our delivery zone.

For more information or if you have any questions, please visit Richmond Furniture Scheme, come into store and see us, or give us a call – 020 8755 4665 or email – admin@rfsonline.co.uk