As a small organisation with limited resources, the forum depends on the help of volunteers. Whether you are a parent of a disabled child or young person, a professional looking to contribute your skills, or a student wishing to gain work experience – we’d love to hear from you!
No contribution is too small and everybody is welcome.
We will train and support you, and reimburse any travel and childcare expenses you incur. We may also occasionally be able to offer some paid freelance work.
Become a member of our core steering group.
Being a core group member involves attending meetings regularly, giving your thoughts and opinions about decisions that need to made. You may also be asked to help out in events and other activities, depending on your availability and skills.
Help out at events.
Helping out at events is a great way of spreading the message of what the forum does. This could involve attending to a stall promoting MPCF to other parent/carers who may not know about the work we do and how we can make a positive difference, or perhaps ushering attendees into an event. It’s about being out there in the community and just being that friendly face.
Deliver training.
If you have a particular expertise in something that could hugely benefit parent-carers in Manchester, there could be an opportunity to deliver training to parents and carers via MPCF. This may be something that we specifically ask members about, or the idea could come from you directly and we’ll discuss how we can make it possible.
Represent parents at strategic groups.
Do you have a passion for representing the voice of families to make services better for children and young people with SEND in Manchester? Representing us in strategic groups and meetings gives you an opportunity to influence change and work in partnership with relevant authorities.
If you feel that you’re not yet ready to join us as a regular volunteer but would nonetheless want to support MPCF, the easiest way of supporting us is by becoming a member. Membership is free and entitles you to join our mailing list.
Another easy way of making a contribution is by telling us about your experiences as a parent of a disabled child – the good, the bad, and the stuff that makes you want to bang your head against a wall!
Email us or come to our events or take part in our consultations and tell us what issues you are facing. We need to know what you think in order to be able to represent your views!