New volunteering roles for community engagement

We know that to build the most meaningful connections with people living with and affected by MS, support needs to come from the local community. We’ve recently opened two new volunteer roles to help raise awareness, and to identify and support as many people as possible in their local areas.

Community Engagement Volunteer (Asian MS)

Asian MS is a national support group that offers tailored and culturally sensitive services for Asian people with MS, their carers, friends and family. The group’s aimed at people whose heritage originates from South Asia.

Recently, Asian MS has teamed up with the MS Society’s Regional Development Officers to reach and support more of the local Asian community in the Northwest. They’ve introduced a new role — Community Engagement Volunteer (Asian MS). Community Engagement Volunteers have already formed great connections with the Asian community in Manchester. They raised awareness at the Manchester Mela alongside the local MS Society groups, and shared resources and information. They’ve also taken part in radio interviews and had an article published in Asian Leader magazine to spread the word.

As an Asian MS Community Engagement Volunteer, you’ll be the group's local representative, helping to identify opportunities and ways to reach out to your local Asian MS community to raise awareness and extend the reach of the group. As this is a new role, it’s currently being piloted in two areas – Northwest England and London.

If you’re interested in getting involved in this role, you can find out more and apply by following these links:

Community Engagement Volunteer - NW England (Asian MS)

Community Engagement Volunteer - London (Asian MS)

Regional Cultural Connector

The second new role is Regional Cultural Connector. This role aims to map and identify opportunities to reach out to communities that may not have engaged with the MS Society before. These could be minority, hidden or culturally specific groups. As a Regional Cultural Connector, you’ll find events and festivals that local MS Society groups can get involved with. For example, these could be community festivals, religious events or Pride celebrations. You’ll work with local groups to widen their reach within their communities and ensure no one is isolated from help and support.

This is a nationwide role. If you’re interested in becoming a Regional Cultural Connector, read more and apply here.