Volunteering

Edinburgh Nightline is entirely run by student volunteers. We have a range of roles within, and around, supporting our service, from our listening volunteers, to our fundraising and publicity volunteers. All of our volunteers are supported by each other, and we’ve formed a great support network. All we need from our volunteers is enthusiasm and an understanding of our service, which you can find out more about through this page.

Listening Volunteers

Are you able to listen but not judge?

Can you give information but not advice?

Can you spare a few nights every term to support other students?

Edinburgh Nightline is run entirely by student volunteers, responsible for taking calls and e-listenings, for fundraising, and for the general upkeep of the service. Our listening volunteers are an integral part of our organisation and receive an extremely high level of initial and ongoing training, based around training delivered by other organisations such as the Samaritans.

The welfare of our volunteers is something we value greatly. Listening volunteers are provided with support throughout their role, with our dedicated welfare team available from when you first register your interest until your final duty.

Am I the right person for Nightline?

We are always looking for students who are able to listen with empathy without judging or trying to give advice. You must be able and willing to keep any involvement you have in Nightline a secret.

Our training sessions run once per semester and no experience is required – just enthusiasm for our cause. We ask that volunteers can attend specific training days, and are willing to commit to one duty every 2-3 weeks.

Note that volunteering is only available to 18+ students in an Edinburgh College/University.

We have a number of Pre-training Minorities Resources that we encourage prospective volunteers to look at.

If you have any unanswered questions about the application process, email us at [email protected]

Applications to become an Edinburgh Nightline volunteer are currently open until the 21st January!