Volunteering
Volunteering is at the heart of the work we do at SWAN and we would love you to be a part of our SWAN team.
There are loads of ways you can volunteer with SWAN:
- Running a local meet-up group
- Answering emails from people who need information or advice
- Building our information resources
- Helping produce our newsletter
- Or something else that suits your skills and interests…
All of our SWAN volunteers identify as autistic and are trained and supported by our autistic Volunteer Coordinator.
We’ll work with you to identify or develop a role that suits your skills, preferences and the time you have available.
If you’re interested in any of our current roles, have any other ideas or just want to find out a bit more, email our volunteer coordinator: mandy.williams@swanscotland.org
Benefits of volunteering with SWAN:
Gain confidence
Volunteering can help you gain confidence by giving you the chance to try something new and build a real sense of achievement.
Make a difference
Volunteering can have a real and valuable positive effect on people, communities and society in general. SWAN volunteers tell us they love making a difference to autistic women and non-binary people’s lives.
Meet new people
Volunteering can help you meet different kinds of people and make new friends. Volunteering at SWAN is a great way to meet other autistic women and non-binary people in a context that takes away the social pressures!
Be part of a community
Volunteering can help you feel part of something outside your friends and family and finding a community of other autistic women and non-binary people can be life-changing.
Learn new skills
Volunteering can help you learn new skills, gain experience and sometimes even qualifications. We’ll support you to do this in any way we can.
Take on a challenge
Through volunteering you can challenge yourself to try something different, achieve personal goals, practice using your skills and discover hidden talents.
Have fun!
Most volunteers have a great time, regardless of why they do it, and SWAN volunteers have lots of autistic joy!
Here’s what some of our current volunteers have to say:
SWAN has given me the opportunity to meet other autistic women and make friends on the same wavelength as me Mandy was very reassuring and made me feel that volunteering was much more than just offering a few hours of my time but that my time would directly help SWAN achieve its goals – I felt valued throughout. My orientation was great, I felt able to ask questions when I needed more information and I left the session feeling informed and excited to get started I’ve learned a huge amount and ended up doing things I never thought possible, all while being supported by a community of volunteers and the leadership team.