Established in 1978, Edinburgh Rape Crisis Centre (ERCC) provides support, information and advocacy for survivors of all genders, aged 12 and over in Edinburgh, East Lothian and Midlothian who have experienced recent and/or historic sexual violence, including rape, sexual assault, childhood sexual abuse and commercial sexual exploitation.
We are recruiting for 5 Volunteer / Trainee Counsellors to join our team.
What is the role: Volunteer / Trainee Counsellor / 2nd Counselling Placement Opportunity.
Who is the role for: Edinburgh Rape Crisis Centre (ERCC)
When does the volunteering take place: We are particularly looking for Volunteer / Trainee Counsellors who are available for at least 4.5 hours per week, plus monthly organisational supervision, with a commitment of 1 year, upon completion of mandatory training.
Where does the volunteering take place: Our Volunteer / Trainee Counsellor vacancies are with ERCC’s Edinburgh service, located at 17 Claremont Crescent, Edinburgh, EH7 4HX.
What does the role involve: ERCC’s counselling service is under huge demand, so we’re looking for Volunteer / Trainee Counsellors to enable us to support more survivors of sexual violence.
As part of our commitment to making the professional world a more accessible and inclusive place, ERCC especially welcomes applications from women from underrepresented groups such as black and minority ethnic women. If you have already completed 40 hours of counselling practice in another setting, feel passionate about supporting survivors of sexual violence, we’d love you to apply for this role.
We ask you to see 3 survivors per week and make a commitment of at least 12 months to the service, upon completion of the initial training programme. We will provide you with an initial training (approx. 1 day per week over 7 weeks), induction and on-going support and supervision in working with survivors of sexual violence and trauma.
Experience required: to apply, you must be successfully progressing towards a second placement of a recognised counselling diploma programme leading to a professionally recognised qualification in counselling. This means, 40 hours of counselling practice should be successfully completed in another setting, before 1 February 2027.
Initial training of Volunteer / Trainee Counsellors will be mandatory and takes place on Tuesdays, starting 3 November 2026.
Counselling practice will commence after training and induction – February 2027 approximately.
We are looking for people who are empathetic, emotionally robust, open-minded, and good team players.
Additional information:
Only women need apply for the volunteer counsellor roles.
Please note: ERCC operates under a Schedule 9, Part 1 exemption of the Equality Act 2010, which means that all our roles require volunteers to fall within the legal definition of a woman.
Due to the nature of this role, references and a PVG check are required and there is an application process involving an interview.
How to apply:
Download a recruitment pack and application form here:
For further information, please email vol@ercc.scot
The closing date for the current round of applications is 8 September 2026.
Interviews will be held on 22 and 23 September 2026.
This project is funded by the UK Government through the UK Local Growth Fund.
Sector
- Mental Health Services
- Counselling & Psychotherapy