Animal Rescue Volunteer (Swansea & Pembrokeshire)

We are looking to increase our support team of Wildlife Casualty Volunteers in the following areas:

Mid Wales (Swansea & Pembrokeshire)

You'll be collecting confined birds (up to the size of a gull) and small wild mammals from members of the public and taking them to vets, approved wildlife or RSPCA facilities. In some instances you'll help release rehabilitated wildlife back into the environment from which they were rescued.

The WCV role is similar to a “first responder” type role. You'll receive details of collection tasks via our Volunteering App, Assemble. You'll need to maintain a rota to tell us about your availability to volunteer, and update the 'OnCall' status of your Assemble App when you start your shift. Our National Control Centre will then contact you when they receive calls about wildlife collections in your area.

For this role you'll need access to a vehicle and smartphone. We'll provide you with everything else you'll need including a lone working safety device, carry boxes, PPE and required training.

Our times of greatest need are always weekends, as well as Fridays and Mondays so we are specifically looking for volunteers who are available to help us on some of those days, however if you wanted to do more/different days in addition that would be welcomed.

You would be in charge of choosing your own shifts, to suit when you are available, but we recommend shifts be at least 4-6 hours long, as you need to be able to get to the animal, pick it up, and drop it off at a suitable location. If however, an animal is in a very poor state it will be more appropriate to take it to the closest open veterinary surgery, or for longer transfers it may be possible to meet with other volunteers or Inspectorate colleagues.

Workload is very much dependant on what calls we are receiving from the public, the season, what level of training you have, and where the injured/orphan animal is in conjunction with how far you are prepared to travel - you may find some shifts you are on call but do not receive any collections, whilst during other shifts you may find you are in high demand (you can always say no, or stand down when you have had enough).

We are requesting that people only apply if they are able to commit to at least 4 shifts per month (to make our investment in your training and equipment worthwhile).

For the successful applicants, there may be potential to develop your role further in the future, to cover more species, different types of rescue, and/or helping transfer domestic animals too if you would like to.

Important note: Owing to the current zoonotic disease risks associated with collecting some species of wildlife, in this role you will need a professionally fitted face mask. This is almost impossible with facial hair because masks rely on a good seal against the face so when you breathe air in, it only goes through the filter. If there are any gaps around the mask, dirty air will pass through these gaps into your lungs. Facial hair such as beards and stubble make it impossible to get a good seal. If you have facial hair some of the work associated with this role will be restricted. The face fit test will be carried out annually for anyone in this role.

We are happy to reimburse out of pocket expenses in this role. Your journeys may enter Congestion Charging Zones, ULEZ Zones or be subject to tolls or parking charges. Your WCV handbook will explain how these charges, along with mileage allowance, can be reimbursed.

We celebrate and respect the diversity of our RSPCA team and embrace the individual qualities, skills and experiences that everyone brings.

To keep you safe and support your wellbeing, we’ll ask you to complete all the necessary training for your role and keep this up to date. We have a suite of wellbeing resources available and can make reasonable role adjustments to support you in your volunteering.

If you are interested in volunteering in this role, please click the apply button to complete our online application form.