HELP SUPPORT THEVETERAN COMMUNITY

OVERVIEWOF PACK

Purpose of Pack

This Introductory Information Pack is designed to provide you with information if you are interested in volunteering to support an Ex-Service Organisation (ESO) or local veterans’ service centre. Volunteers provide pensions and welfare services to members of the veteran and defence communities and their families.

The Pack is intended to provide you with an initial understanding of:

1. The benefits of helping as a volunteer to assist veterans2. The types of roles volunteers perform3. The training and support provided to volunteers4. Information about work and time commitments for volunteers

If you do volunteer, the information in this pack will be supplemented by ongoing training, additional reading information, and mentoring.

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WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF BEING A VOLUNTEER?

The ESO community relies on the help of volunteers to assist our veterans access services and entitlements. Volunteers have a positive and meaningful impact not only on the lives of ex-servicemen and women, but also their families and dependants. The direct assistance volunteers provide veterans helps build and maintain a strong community which honours their sacrifice and service.

According to a survey conducted by Volunteering Australia1, the two most frequently mentioned values volunteers mentioned were:

“The difference I make to the community”

and

“The sense of purpose it gives me.”

The benefits of volunteering within the ex-service community include:

being part of the ESO and wider veteran community; helping and making a positive contribution to others; learning and developing new skills, expanding or refreshing existing skills

and gaining experience that can be useful elsewhere in life; providing a sense of achievement; meeting a diverse range of people; building self-confidence; the satisfaction of “mates helping mates”; and providing a structured opportunity to assist in return for past services

received.

1 National Survey of Volunteering Issues (Volunteering Australia, 2011, p9)

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WHAT ROLES CAN I PERFORM AS A VOLUNTEER?

Volunteer advocates provide a variety of assistance and advice to veterans. Examples of assistance volunteers offer veterans:

Provide advice to veterans and their families on support and services available;

help veterans determine which legislation relates to their service; assist with lodgement of claims and case appraisals; and advise veterans and their families on government and non-government

welfare services available to them.

The following broad outline of volunteer roles are available through ESOs:

pensions officer - providing information relating to repatriation and compensation benefits as well as details of how primary-level claims and applications are determined;

welfare officer - providing information on and assisting with access to health, housing and other community services and benefits; and

advocate - preparing cases for review before the Veterans’ Review Board (VRB) and Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT).

This list shows just some of the diverse range of activities that volunteers provide to the veteran community.

WHAT TRAINING AND SUPPORT WILL I RECEIVE?

The ESO manages the training and support of its volunteers, ensuring a high level of service is provided to the individuals in the ex-service community it assists.

Training

To make sure the information and services provided to veterans is consistent, accurate and delivered in the best way possible, all volunteers have access to appropriate training through the Training and Information Program (TIP). The training is tailored to the role being undertaken and to the level of experience of the volunteer.

Volunteers will also be supported by the ESO throughout their journey with on-the-job training.

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Mentoring

To support each volunteer, the ESO provides a mentor. The mentor will guide and teach the volunteer while they are developing their skills as a pensions and/or welfare officer.

Through this relationship, the volunteer will:

gain from the mentor’s expertise; learn specific skills and knowledge to support veterans and the wider

community; receive recognition of, and feedback about their performance, in particular

in key areas such as communication and technical ability; gain knowledge about the organisation’s culture and unspoken rules that

can be critical for success; have someone to share frustrations as well as successes with who has

had similar experiences; and understand the limits the training level imposes on their ability to provide

assistance to clients and its relationship to professional indemnity insurance cover.

What is the difference between TIP and the [ESO/Centre]?

While TIP and the ESO both support and train volunteers, they play quite different roles in the development of those volunteers.

TIP uses structured learning and support tools to give volunteers the required skills and knowledge to support veterans.

The role of the ESO is to provide mentoring and on-the-job training to the volunteer to ensure that they can best use the skills and knowledge to help clients who approach the ESO for assistance.

TIP is also run and staffed by volunteers. Once you have developed as a pensions or welfare officer you may find that you would like to further benefit the veteran community by volunteering with TIP.

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HOW LONG WILL IT TAKE FOR ME TO BE AN EFFECTIVE

VOLUNTEER IN THE VETERAN COMMUNITY?

The amount of time needed to become an effective volunteer at an ESO will depend on the needs of the local veteran community and the level of support currently provided by the ESO.

Once proficient, an effective pension officer would be expected to:

understand the repatriation system; assist veterans and their dependants in their dealings with DVA and other

agencies; and represent the veteran’s interests to the best of his or her ability.

It is important to note however, that all volunteers can add value immediately.

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HOW MUCH TIME

WILL I NEED TO VOLUNTEER? The number of hours a volunteer commits each week will need to be agreed between the volunteer and their ESO supervisor.

There is no ‘typical’ case and therefore no ‘typical’ time to complete a claim form, prepare for a review or advise a veteran on possible entitlements.

However, through the mentoring provided by the ESO, training with TIP and working with fellow volunteers on cases, over time a volunteer will be able to make a reasonable assessment of what commitment particular cases might involve.

WILL I BE COVERED BY INSURANCE?

Any volunteer or paid practitioner who provides pension, advocacy and welfare services to members of the veteran and defence communities and their families must have insurance. While not the exclusive source of this protection, the Veterans’ Indemnity and Training Association (VITA) is an example of the protection available. VITA fees for volunteers are covered by the ESO that endorses you.

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VITA was established for the purpose of providing professional indemnity insurance for suitably qualified, trained and authorised members of ex-service organisations (ESOs) who give advice in good faith to the ex-service community on matters relating to DVA pension and compensation entitlements and welfare support.

VITA also provides an accident insurance policy to cover those people who conduct TIP training, providing their parent ESO is a member of VITA.

More detailed information on VITA can be found at, Veterans’ Indemnity and Training Association (PDF 142 KB) - http://awsp76:81/sites/default/files/files/consultation%20and%20grants/tip/vita_brochure.pdf

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