Child & Family Support Volunteers at CHI Crumlin and Temple St

CHILD & FAMILY SUPPORT VOLUNTEER SERVICE

CHI at Crumlin & CHI at Temple Street Only

For some families, having a child in hospital is a particularly difficult.

Times may arise where a family may not be able to be with their child, or where a parent may need support to get the rest they need.

In CHI at Crumlin and CHI at Temple St Hospitals, we strive to be there when families can’t. We arrange for volunteers to make a play-based visit to that child, allowing for their family members to take a break or attend to other priorities. Our Child & Family Support Volunteers can be scheduled on request from a family or via their nurse. This service is provided in addition to the Play Volunteers that are seen on the wards every day.

Child & Family Support Volunteer, Helen with Aoife

Aoife with Child & Family Support Volunteer Helen

Need Volunteer Support?

Keep an eye out for our volunteers in Red T-shirts throughout your child's hospital stay. However, if you need extra support for children in CHI at Crumlin or CHI at Temple St, we can help arrange additional play visits. Please complete the following request form. We will do our best to fulfill your request.

Complete the request form here.

Interested in Volunteering?

If you are interested in becoming a Child and Family Support Volunteer, please note previous experience of working with children or families is required for this role. It is a flexible role based on the requests made by a family and you're availability.

Check out volunteer recruitment dates here.

Feedback From Families

“My son, Arlo, spent the first year of his life in CHI Crumlin. Children in Hospital provided me with amazing support during this incredibly difficult time. With a toddler at home, it was hard to be with Arlo as much as I wanted to be. CIH arranged carers to sit with Arlo for stretches of time when I couldn’t be there. Arlo had a network of dedicated carers who got to know him and came and sat with him. They played games, read books, sang songs to him and rocked him to sleep for naps. These carers went above and beyond and Arlo loved their visits and was delighted to see them coming into his room. As a parent, particularly in postpartum, it was a huge comfort to me that Arlo was entertained, cuddled and loved, even when I couldn’t be there. It allowed me guilt free hours away from the hospital. It was particularly helpful when we were making arrangements to bring Arlo home and I had training to complete and renovations to oversee. I will be forever grateful for the kindness and compassion to CIH and their volunteers.”