Hi, I'm Craig. I'm a volunteer with the Community Visitor Program at the Office of the Public Advocate. I've also been elected a board member of the Community Visitor Program, and I've been volunteering for 12 years and counting.

What does being a Board Member involve?

As a board member, one of my roles is to represent all the Community Visitors and make sure that their training is provided adequately as well to properly serve as Community Visitors. We work regularly together so that we can identify issues that we see may be systemic so that they can be raised, ultimately, to the Parliament of Victoria.

Community Visitors visit in pairs and we go to houses where people with disability live, and we make sure that their rights are protected, that they're getting good nutritional food, that the homes are well kept, and that they're treated with respect.

How do you find time to volunteer?

As a Community Visitor, you typically have a portfolio of about 10 or 12 houses that you visit regularly, and we would like to visit them at least three or four times a year. The beauty about this position is that it has a lot of flexibility, so you work with your visiting partner and you can make arrangements with your visiting partner as to how regularly you go, which houses you go to, so you can go on holidays. I go on a lot of business trips, but I can still manage that with my visiting partner who's very accommodating.

Each visit takes about two hours so, generally, it's about two or three hours every week or fortnight. In my case, my commitment level is higher because I've been elected to the board and, as a board member, I attend regular meetings across the three streams of Community Visitors and also with the Public Advocate, and sometimes in Public Liaison meetings with the state government.

What are the benefits of volunteering?

One of the wonderful things is that, over a period of time, Community Visitors develop relationships with the people living in the group homes. It's fantastic when you can track their progress or you see their development and see how they get on in the house. Some Community Visitors are very passionate about a house because they've built that relationship and they want to keep that.

What training is provided to do your volunteer role?

With the Community Visitor Program, there's a lot of training, and that's a key part of it. Supported living is a key part that we all learn. In Australia, we believe in the deinstitutionalisation of people with disability and we believe in people living fulfilling life and being part of the community. Part of the training that's provided to you by the Office of the Public Advocate is to understand what that means. What are the things that you should look for when you visit a house, and what is the best practice in the world for people with disability living in a group home?

What skills do you need to volunteer?

I think the key aspect is empathy to be able to see the issues from the people with disability in the group homes, but the other thing is communication skills. The ultimate product of our work is to advocate for the rights of the people with disability so you need to be able to stand up for the people. If you see that there are issues that you want to raise, then you should be confident in raising them and making sure that those issues are resolved.

I think jump into it and definitely give it a go, because there's nothing better than to be able to contribute back to the community that you live in.