Our incredible volunteers are making a difference to people affected by Pulmonary Fibrosis, whether providing emotional support over the phone, helping with admin support, raising awareness, fundraising and campaigning.
Join our incredible network of volunteers across England Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
I was able to ‘offload’ my questions and queries, however silly, and she would tell me where to get answers and alleviate my worries. Our weekly chats made a real difference to how I managed and coped with my lung condition. It was for that reason that I decided that I would like to be able to do the same for someone else.
As a volunteer for APF I get to talk to many interesting people who are experiencing a difficult time in connection with PF. It’s so rewarding when you help can make a difference to the way they feel.
Current opportunities
There are different ways you can volunteer for Action for Pulmonary Fibrosis such as befriending, admin support or running a support group, it all depends on what skills you have and how much time you have to give.
Telephone befrienders
She listens to me when I cry, I just want to say thank you. The support from my Befriender was amazing.
Why we need you?
Do you enjoy listening to and helping people? Are you looking for a volunteering role where you can do just that, and fits in around your family, studies or other commitments?
By becoming a telephone befriender and donating your time, energy and skills, you can make a real difference to the lives of people affected by Pulmonary Fibrosis.
We are looking for volunteers to be telephone befrienders, providing emotional support over the phone to people affected by Pulmonary Fibrosis. This role will involve supporting people with some of the following:
- Provide emotional support to people with Pulmonary Fibrosis (PF) and their carers
- To signpost people to local and national support, such as support meetings, specialist centres, APF website, other organisations
- To highlight and refer to the APF support line when people need expert advice
- A commitment to keep up to date with PF related information
- Attend volunteer support meetings and other development events identified.
The time required is flexible, but we expect befrienders to commit to a minimum of 1-3 hours per week. You’ll be inducted into the role and receive e-learning training for the role.
Treasurer Trustee
We are looking for a treasurer trustee to join our vibrant and talented board.
At APF, charity trustees play a vital role in making sure the charity is run in the interests of the people it is there to support. They strategically oversee the management of the charity. Read more here: Become a Trustee
Currently we have a vacancy for a treasurer trustee. At APF we are committed to diversity and inclusion across our staff team, volunteers and trustee board and welcome applications from people of all backgrounds, cultures, ages and genders. As we work towards making our board truly representative of the PF community we would particularly like to encourage people from Black, Asian and racialised communities to apply.
We are looking for the following skills:
• Significant budgetary and financial experience (may be a qualified accountant) with demonstrable commercial awareness and knowledge or an experienced charity treasurer who has provided strategic financial leadership to a board of trustees (>£3M+ t/o)
• Knowledge of charity SORP and impending changes
• Proven ability to communicate and explain complex financial information to a non-financial audience
• Demonstrable knowledge and experience of charity fundraising and finance practices, including developing financial policies, risk management and investment strategies
You’ll be working with our Director of Finance to go through papers ahead of board meetings so you feel confident. APF board meetings are a place to ask questions, challenge ourselves to do better and support each other to achieve our best for people affected by pulmonary fibrosis.
We ask trustees to meet up to 5 times a year (sometimes online or if in-person we meet in Peterborough, though we always offer hybrid options) on Saturdays every 3 months. Dates are set a year in advance. We also ask trustees to try and attend an annual staff and trustee away day (again in Peterborough, sometimes with hybrid options).
The role description can be found here: Role Description
The Treasurer Trustee Recruitment Pack can be found here: Recruitment Pack
Out of pocket expenses for travel and training will be covered by APF.
We ask you to register your interest with Louise Wright, CEO. You can contact Louise via louise@actionpf.org
If you decide to apply to become a trustee we will ask for a written or filmed statement outlining relevant life experience and your motivation for joining the board, along with a current CV if you have one.
Deadline for applications is Tuesday 2nd April 2024 at 10am.
Joining a board can take several months, as our trustees are volunteers and we work around board meetings and people’s diaries. Do bear with us.
You can learn more about becoming a trustee here and the eligibility criteria: Becoming a Trustee
Research Review Panel
Research Review Panel
Help us decide which researchers we fund
Context
It is only through research that that we can advance our understanding of disease, find new and better treatments, and improve care for people affected by pulmonary fibrosis (PF). PF research is critically underfunded. Every penny we invest in research has the potential to make a big difference.
We see expertise through lived experience of PF as fundamental to our support for research, and our vision to stop lives being lost to PF. Our Research Review Panel of scientific experts and experts by experience like you, provides independent recommendations to the Board of Trustees on which funding applications to support.
Why we need you!
You bring a unique point of view as a person with lived experience of PF, influenced by your experience as a patient or caregiver, and as someone who accesses health and care services. Your understanding of the issues that patients and families are concerned about, and the issues that you may have dealt with, is different to that of clinicians and scientists.
As a member of our Research Review Panel, you will have the opportunity to hear about cutting-edge, world-class PF research; engage with APF-funded researchers; and directly shape the work of APF, and the direction of future PF research.
About this role
We open applications to fund research projects every 3 years (although we hope this will increase, dependent on fundraising). In addition, we fund researchers to attend academic conferences which are a critical part of how knowledge is shared in the research community, meaning new research ideas can be formed from emerging evidence. This enables us to make the greatest contribution we can to national and global research efforts.
The main volume of work we need your opinions on are applications for conference awards. We will ask you to read these applications and fill in a review form for each one from home. No experience is needed, and full induction will be given. We asses these applications in rounds 4-5 times per year.
Each application is assessed by at least one scientific expert and one expert by experience, like you, but we understand panel members are unlikely to be available for every round. It is difficult for us to predict the volume of applications, but we anticipate each round of reviews to take you approximately 1-3 hours and you will have 1-2 weeks to complete the reviews. There are also likely to be various strategic projects from time to time that it would be useful to have input on from panel members. To meet this need and to keep in touch with our expert by experience members, we hope to have online meetings once or twice a year.
In this role, you will be expected to…
- Attend an induction session in May 2024 lasting approx. 90 minutes (online).
- Attend and constructively participate in online meetings (1hr, up to two times a year).
- Review paperwork for funding applications, progress reports, and in support of the review process (approx. 1-3 hours, approx. 4 times a year).
- Agree to abide by the panel’s Terms of Reference and declare any conflicts of interest (if relevant).
- Let staff know if you need further information or if things change for you.
We value the unique insight that people affected by PF share with us and appreciate that commitments may be impacted by your health or the person you care for. We would always encourage you to prioritise your physical and mental wellbeing and are grateful if you can let the relevant staff member know if things change for you. This allows us to ensure that we can continue to have the views of people affected by PF shape our work.
Interested?
Please get in touch with a sentence or two about why the role interests you and send it to involvement@actionpf.org by Monday 22nd April.
Office Volunteers - Peterborough
Why do we need you?
At APF we understand how important good administration is. You will be helping to ensure the smooth running of our work so that we make the best use of donations received, more PF patients and carers have good support, and we can fund more research into treatments and a cure. This role will involve working with the current Charity Administrators to assist them in offering administrative support to the whole team.
Your gift of time can be planned to suit you and the needs of the Charity. This role can be flexible and work around your existing commitments. You don’t need to give a lot of time to make a big difference.
Location: You would assist us at our national office in Peterborough
Volunteers need to be over 18 and commit 2-5 hours a week to volunteering.
For an initial conversation about the role please call us for an informal chat: 01733 839642 or contact recruitment@actionpf.org
Support Group leaders – nationwide
The support I get at my group is fantastic. It makes me feel that I’m not alone and that it will be ok.
Why we need you?
We work closely with support groups all over the country and our aim is to increase the number of groups to 100 over the next couple of years so that no patients will live more than an hour from a support group.
Would you like to start a Pulmonary Support Group in your local area?
We offer grants, publicity, training and other support to help new groups to become established.
The best groups usually:
- involve patients and carers in co-running the group in their area
- have the support of their consultant and/or specialist nurse
- offer a range of relevant topics and speakers to help cope with PF
- make plenty of time for members to chat and support one another
- meet in a venue that’s accessible for all
APF Trustee With Lived Experience of Pulmonary Fibrosis
Do you have pulmonary fibrosis? If so, we are looking for new trustees to join our vibrant and talented board.
Too few people understand the devastating impact of pulmonary fibrosis, with access to treatments and support too late or too hard to access.
We urgently want to change this.
APF is governed by a board of charity trustees. Having trustees living with pulmonary fibrosis ensures the highest levels of decision making are informed by lived experience.
At APF, charity trustees play a vital role in making sure the charity is run in the interests of the people it is there to support. They strategically oversee the management of the charity. Read more here
Currently we have a vacancy for someone living with PF. We are committed to diversity and inclusion across our staff team, volunteers and trustee board and welcome applications from people of all backgrounds, cultures, ages and genders. As we work towards making our Board truly representative of the PF community, we would particularly like to encourage people from Black, Asian and racialised communities to apply.
You don’t need previous experience at board level. You’ll be assigned a buddy (a fellow trustee) to go through papers ahead of board meetings so you feel confident. APF board meetings are a place to ask questions, challenge ourselves to do better and support each other to achieve our best for people affected by pulmonary fibrosis.
We ask trustees to meet up to 5 times a year (sometimes online or if in-person we meet in Peterborough, though we always offer hybrid options) on Saturdays every 3 months. Dates are set a year in advance. We also ask trustees to try and attend an annual staff and trustee away day (again in Peterborough, sometimes wit hybrid options).
Whilst a standard term as a trustee is 3 or 6 years, we recognise it may feel hard to commit to these terms if you have pulmonary fibrosis. And so, we’ve introduced 6 monthly check-ins with the Chair, with a flexible approach to length of term served, prioritising health needs at all times.
The role description can be found here
Out of pocket expenses for travel and training will be covered by APF.
We ask you to register your interest with Louise Wright, CEO. You can contact Louise via louise@actionpf.org
If you decide to apply to become a trustee we will ask for a written or filmed statement outlining relevant life experience and your motivation for joining the board, along with a current CV if you have one.
There is no deadline for applications. We ask you register your interest and we’ll be in touch within a week to discuss initial steps.
Joining a board can take several months, as our trustees are volunteers and we workaround board meetings and people’s diaries. Do bear with us.
You can learn more about becoming a trustee here and eligibility criteria.
Fundraising Admin support in our Peterborough office
Why we need you?
In 2021 we launched the APF Store, a dedicated online shop where our supporters can buy branded Action for Pulmonary Fibrosis merchandise that raise awareness and supports our work. We need amazing volunteers to help us pick, pack and provide excellent customer service to all our customers.
Depending on the needs of the online store and your interests, you may be involved in the following:
- Selecting, preparing, and sending out APF Store items in line with the APF’s guidelines
- Supporting to dispatch out seasonal services materials
- Providing excellent customer service
- Answering emails and telephone calls regarding orders
- Sending out merchandise to fundraisers
- Stocktaking
- Photographing stock and uploading images
- Ordering in new merchandise
- Research into new merchandise that can be added to the stores collection
Volunteers need to be over 18 and commit 2-4 hours a week to volunteering.
Local fundraising
Why we need you?
Do you have a fundraising idea? Whether big or small we can help to make it happen. From baking a cake to swimming a lake you can get involved! People fundraise for lots of different reasons but whatever your reason your money will go towards research and supporting people affected by Pulmonary Fibrosis. Visit our fundraising page to find out more