Volunteer with Victim/Witness Services

Volunteers for the V/WSU assist in the following ways: 

• Provide acute, trauma-informed crisis support to victims/witnesses of crime, trauma or tragedy within the City of Lethbridge
• Deliver practical, informational and emotional support throughout the experience of navigating the criminal justice system
• Offer access to provincial programs and resource referrals to specialized services and community programming
• Offer specialized court preparation and accompaniment

In order to volunteer for V/WSU, applicants must: 

• Be a minimum of 18 years of age
  
  
• Be a Canadian Citizen or a Canadian Permanent Resident
  
  
• Have no record of criminal convictions for which a pardon has not been granted, or any outstanding criminal or internal investigations prior to volunteering with the LPS
  • Candidates who have lived outside of Canada for six (6) months or more over the past ten (10) years will need to demonstrate this by providing a Police Certificate from each country in which they have resided
    
    
• Provide at least three (3) reference checks
  
  
• Have a valid Class 5 Driver's License (graduated licenses cannot be accepted)
  
  
• Be able to commit to the full training program, including job shadowing 
  
  
• Be available for two on-call shifts per month, ensuring 24/7 coverage for citizens in Lethbridge

Please note that it would be deemed a conflict of interest to volunteer with V/WSU if you are actively working as a police officer, a probation officer, a parole officer or a lawyer. 

Complete the application and required paperwork found on the BambooHR Career Portal annually in September/October. 

The hiring process for this unique and valuable team follows this general timeline:

• September: Applications will be accepted on BambooHR Career Portal
• October: Interviews will be held
• November: Job shadow shifts scheduled
• December: Offers of acceptance issued
• January: Mandatory Recruit Training will be held 

Mandatory basic training includes a provincial online program, as well as in-person sessions consisting of three (3) evenings and two (2) Saturdays. Some of the topics addressed are: 

• General police procedures
• Suicide awareness
• Domestic violence
• Sexual assault
• Bereavement
• The criminal justice system
• Trauma-informed care
• Practical scenario training
• And additional courses, as required