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Food Pantry Customer Assistant

VASA - Ayr Pantry @ The Book & Bun
VO88407

Your role as the Food Pantry Customer Assistant is to help customers who come into the Food Pantry, offering information and assistance as they are enquiring, browsing or purchasing food.

Our Food Pantry is the first one in South Ayrshire based in Ayr Town Centre. A Pantry is a membership scheme aimed at helping people make their money go further by reducing their food shopping bills and providing advice and support.

Local Pantries mean people can bring down their food shopping bills, and access good food, whilst freeing up more money for other essentials and enabling tight budgets to stretch a little further. A Pantry offers dignity, choice, community and food quality.

Your role will be to assist new and current members learn about the Pantry and do their shopping. We will give you full training on how it works, equipment used, systems to follow etc. You will always be volunteering as part of a team of volunteers with a staff team leader present.
As there will be a café on the premises, there will be an opportunity to benefit from Barista training.
DUTIES: The role of the Food Pantry Customer Assistant will be as follows:
• Assist customers to the Pantry, engaging in conversation
• Offer information on how the Pantry works
• Offer signposting to other services where necessary
• Operate till with cash / card handling
• Restock and rotate shelves and fridges as required
• Clean and sanitise according to guidance
• To commit to a minimum of 3.5hrs per week

Experience required

No formal qualifications required.
The following personal qualities are required:
• Good communication skills
• A friendly approachable nature
• Honest and Trustworthy
• Have a passion for improving the lives of people
• Confidentiality
• Well-presented appearance with good personal hygiene
• A basic level of literacy

Travel details

Travel expenses to and from home to VASA offices will be paid at .45p per mile or cost of a bus fare. Also, any volunteering for more than 4 hours will include expenses for lunch/refreshments.

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Training details

No formal qualifications are required for this role.
All training will be given prior to starting your volunteering. This will include:
• VASA Induction Training
• Food Hygiene Certification (if required).
• Moving and Handling Training
• Pantry Systems Training
• Till and Cash Handling
• Potentially Barista (Coffee Machine) Training
Post COVID update:
All volunteers were previously required to have a full day (or 2 half days) induction/training prior to starting their role. This will now consist of a variety of calls to the co-ordinator, Zoom workshops, visits to VASA offices etc. depending on what the guidelines at that time allow.