Volunteering

Yorkshire MESMAC supplies condoms and lube to bars, saunas and other venues across Yorkshire. If you’ve ever used one of our condom packs, you’ll know how useful they are! We organise regular condom packing parties so that we can continue to provide this service.

These events happen on a regular basis, usually weekly or fortnightly, and our existing volunteers enjoy being involved and giving something back. So far to date, more than 6 million condoms and lube have been packed and distributed. This is vital to all the projects within Yorkshire MESMAC and to many users across Yorkshire.

If you would like to volunteer for the condom packing parties at Yorkshire MESMAC, please click here. We will get back to you with opportunities and upcoming condom packing parties.

Are you a self-identifying woman or a non-binary femme presenting person? Are you interested in mobilising your community to talk about HIV prevention, specifically PrEP?

Yorkshire MESMAC and Prepster have come together on a project that works with communities at risk of HIV to empower you to take control of your sexual health and pass that message on to your peers.

If you are interested in being a peer mobiliser, and are willing to undergo two full days of training before taking your knowledge back to your community, then you can contact Amelia to find out more.

Amelia (Rotherham, Hull): a.thorp@mesmac.co.uk

We especially welcome involvement from women in communities affected by HIV, trans women, black and other women of colour, speakers of languages other than English, and migrants.

We started providing sexual health services in the city in 2015 to help prevent the spread of STIs and reduce late diagnosis through testing, education and community action. Our main focus is on:

• Gay and bisexual men and men who have sex with men
• Women, families and women dating after divorce or separation
• People of colour and other marginalised races

We also deliver training and workshops for both service users and professionals.

Please click here to see the Community Education Volunteer role description.

We strive to ensure that LGB&T people accessing the commercial Gay scene know where they can also get information about sexual health, counselling services and support groups etc. To do this staff members will visit scene venues and sometimes other events/locations where LGB&T people meet/socialise. We talk to the people out that evening about our services, answer any questions they have about sexual health and give out appropriate resources such as condoms and information leaflets.

Please click here to see the Scene Outreach Volunteer role description.

We carry out community testing under the project name Testing Times. The service is an award winning high profile service within Yorkshire MESMAC and we are looking for keen and confident people who are interested in getting experience in outreach and health care.

The community testing service includes rapid HIV testing, syphilis testing and screening for urethral chlamydia and gonorrhoea away from a clinic setting.

Community Testing Volunteers support the work of the testing carried out by Yorkshire MESMAC workers. This is done in a number of ways, from staffing reception to undertaking outreach in targeted community groups.

Please click here to see the Community Testing Outreach Volunteer role description.

The Counselling E-Outreach project has been established since February 2014. The overall aim of this project is to use social media (e.g. Facebook, Twitter and other 'apps') and other online platforms to offer information and support with regard to the sexual, mental and emotional wellbeing of the communities we work with. This includes individuals living with or affected by HIV, men who have sex with men and the wider LGBTQ community.

We are currently seeking volunteers in the Bradford area.

Please click here to see the Counselling E-outreach Volunteer role description.

Please click here to apply to be an E-outreach volunteer for Yorkshire MESMAC's counselling project.

Once you have filled in the form, our Counselling Co-ordinator will contact you to speak with you about the project and getting started volunteering with us.

Please read the Counselling E-outreach volunteer role description before applying to be a volunteer.

The Sage project aims to reduce social isolation faced by older (50+) LGBT people.

Volunteers of all ages are welcomed and appreciated in the following roles:

• Buddying older LGBT people to support them to engage with the project and build confidence.
• Promotions volunteering to attend meetings and events, support the production and editing of the Sage newsletter, distribute the newsletter and resources to those without internet access, and improve digital engagement for those wishing to develop their internet skills.

Older (50+) volunteers are encouraged to contribute to the direction of the Sage project in both the above and the following roles:

• Joining the Steering Group to shape the direction of the project.
• Becoming a Community Speaker to inform interested organisations about the Sage project from the perspective of a member of the older LGBT community.

For further details about the Sage project, or to sign up to volunteer, plase visit Sage.

Please contact Paddy at p.hands@mesmac.co.uk if interested.

Yorkshire MESMAC are looking for volunteers to help us prepare for Leeds Pride where we will have a stall and a float in the parade.
We are looking for:
• People to help make decorations for the float before pride.
• People to do outreach on the commercial LGBT scene, talk about MESMAC and what we do and encourage people to get tested.
• People to work on the stall on the day of Pride doing outreach, talking to the public about MESMAC, and encouraging people to get tested.
• People who want to participate in our condom packing parties.

Outreach work with the public both before and at Pride may include:
• Providing potential service users with information about our community HIV testing and sexual health screening services
• Talk to people about STI transmission, treatment and prevention
• Giving out information and leaflets
• Answering questions service users and potential service users may have about their sexual health
• Telling people about other Yorkshire MESMAC services or other groups / organisations

This is for anyone interested in a creative and sociable volunteering opportunity and all hours are flexible.
Any time you can dedicate is appreciated, you can do as much or as little volunteering as you wish- every little helps!

Please contact us for details about the next volunteer induction.

All volunteers are covered by insurance. Volunteers will be given a full induction and training. Travel expenses are reimbursed.

We carry out community testing in Leeds city centre under the project name Testing Times. The service is an award winning high profile service within Yorkshire MESMAC and we are looking for keen and confident people who are interested in getting experience in outreach and health care.

Please click here to see the Community Testing Volunteer role description.

If you are interested in applying to be a volunteer, please click here.

Community testing is carried out in Rotherham by Yorkshire MESMAC under the project name Testing Times. The service is an award winning high profile service within Yorkshire MESMAC and we are looking for keen and confident people who are interested in getting experience in outreach and health care.

The community testing service brings rapid HIV testing and screening for urethral chlamydia and gonorrhoea away from a clinic setting.

Please click here to see the Community Testing Volunteer role description.

If you are interested in applying to be a volunteer, please click here.