Meet the Team - Georgina
In this blog post we introduce Georgina, our Volunteer, Quality and Training Officer. Georgina has been with Citizens Advice since December 2019.
What does a typical day look like for you?
My role tends to differ so I never know what to expect! I work across both the Leigh and Wigan offices, so I get the chance to see a lot of members of the team.
My role is mostly working with the volunteers, and this starts from recruiting volunteers, to processing applications and interviews, and then inducting volunteers. I spend a lot of time with our volunteers when they first start to help them start their journey here. I do the same induction process with student placements.
I assist with training, so I create the materials and assist with the presentation. I also attend volunteer recruitment events to recruit volunteers from the local community and work with our comms team to advertise on social media.
We check each of our cases to make sure that each of them is providing the correct details. I monitor our quality scores and our feedback from clients to see how we are performing overall.
What do you enjoy the most about working for Citizens Advice?
I meet so many people from different backgrounds and seeing their progression from new unsure volunteers to confident advisers, is the best part of my role. Our volunteers gain so many skills from their roles which helps them into paid employment, either internally or externally. I like knowing that volunteering with us is a stepping stone to paid work.
What do you like to do outside of work?
I dance! I’m in a show called Come Alive Soon so I’m rehearsing for that now. I teach commercial and Acro dance for kids aged 6-16, so my evenings and weekends are very busy! In my free time I like theatre and concerts. I think my favourite show recently has been Burlesque, but my favourite iconic show is Hairspray, and then my favourite concert has been Pink.
Who do you think are the best qualities in a volunteer?
We don’t discriminate when it comes to volunteers and their backgrounds, so as long as you’re over the age of 16 and you can follow the aims and principles you’ll fit in here. We have everyone from students to people who have retired so there isn’t a “typical volunteer”.
If you want to be client facing, it's useful to have good customer service skills, and all our volunteers need to know how to use a computer, so an understanding of IT is important, but those skills can be taught. Two things that can’t be taught is a willingness to learn, and the commitment to the role.
