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Volunteers
We love to have volunteers at Forever Angels Baby Home - and with so many children, extra pairs of hands are always welcome...
and always needed!
Volunteers at Forever Angels have come from all walks of life and from all over the world. We do not have any specific requirements
- but obviously a love of children is essential!
We especially welcome volunteers who have skills which they can share with our Local Tanzanian Staff during training
sessions. If you have experience in Childcare, Teaching, Nursing,
Physiotherapy, Play Therapy, Psychology, Massage, etc - we would love to have you
with us.
At certain times of the year,
we also need Volunteers with 'Handy Man' experience such as a Plumbers, Electricians,
Carpenters, Farmers or Gardeners.
We of course happy to have Volunteers who simply love children and who are willing to have a go at anything which may arise
in the day-to-day running of Forever Angels.
We do have Volunteer accommodation available, but due to a high demand, we are not usually able to accommodate Volunteers
who wish to come for less than one month. Most volunteers come for about 2 months because the visa needed to volunteer in
Tanzania is a 'Business Visa' and it is valid for two months. However, we are also very keen to have long term volunteers
who wish to come for 6 months or more.
If you require any further information about volunteering at the Forever Angels Baby Home, please read our comprehensive
Information Pack - Step 1: Interested in Volunteering?.
If, once you have read this, you are still interested in volunteering with us, please download and complete the
Volunteer Application Form and email it to Amy Hathaway at:
volunteer@foreverangels.org
How to Apply
- Read all of the Information for Volunteers
- Complete and email an Application Form
- If accepted you need to start planning - Visas, Insurance, Flights, Vaccinations, Fundraising etc.
Top 10 Questions that Volunteers Ask
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How much money do I need?
Most Volunteers tend to live off about
£50 to
£100 a week - that enables them to go out
to dinner a couple of times a week and buy food at the local market. If you wish to buy lots of souvenirs
or travel then obviously you will need more money.
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What kind of Visa do I need?
There are a number of options for Visa's and work permits in Tanzania dependant on how long you intend to visit, whether
you intened to travel outside of the country, etc. Your best course of action is to purchase
a standard Tourist Visa at the airport when you arrive ($50) and then look through the different options when
you get here before visiting the Immigration office in Mwanza. There are more specific and up-to-date details in the
VISA's and Work Permits publication, but the most important thing is to make sure you
bring all of the relevent documents with you when you are packing.
If you are coming for more than 6 months, then the process is more complicated and time consuming (approximately
two months) and should be completed before you travel, however it is cheaper at $150 for up to 2 years. Please
contact us via email as soon as possible if you are thinking of volunteering for longer than 6 months.
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What will my hours of work be?
We ask Volunteers to come to the Baby Home as often as possible but we generally schedule them on 'shift'
for 5 half days a week. A half day could be from 6.30am to 1.30pm (a morning shift) or from 1pm to 7pm
(an afternoon shift). Often volunteers come to the Baby Home on their days off to organise outings or
activities for the children.
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What clothes / items do I need to bring?
You need to bring clothes that you do not mind getting dirty for your time in the Baby Home - because,
inevitably, you will! Volunteers recommend bringing a few nice outfits for eating out in the evenings.
There is a comprehensive list of 'What to Bring' in the Volunteer Guidelines - but some favourites are
music, photos from home, books and magazines, your favourite food/chocolate, a torch, mosquito repellent
and sun cream.
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What injections do I need to have?
You should contact your Doctor to ask what the current recommended vaccinations are as these do change
over time. However, we advise Volunteers to follow these general guidelines:
| Disease |
Recommendation |
When to see a Doctor |
| Typhoid |
Vaccination recommended |
10 days before travel |
| Hepatitis A |
Vaccination recommended |
2 weeks before travel |
| Diphtheria |
Vaccination recommended |
3 months before travel |
| Tuberculosis |
Vaccination sometimes recommended |
3 months before travel |
| Hepatitis B |
Vaccination sometimes recommended |
2 months before travel |
| Rabies |
Vaccination sometimes recommended |
1 month before travel |
| Meningococcal Meningitis |
Vaccination sometimes recommended |
2-3 weeks before travel |
| Cholera |
Vaccination sometimes recommended |
2 weeks before travel |
| Yellow Fever |
Certificate of vaccination require if arriving from
an infected area and vaccination recommended for all travellers
visiting endemic areas |
2 weeks before travel |
| Japanese B Encephalitis |
Not required |
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| Tick-borne Encephalitis |
Not required |
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Malaria prophylaxis is recommended but can be bought cheaply in Mwanza.
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What shall I bring for the children?
Please look at our 'Wish List' for any immediate requirements of the Baby Home - but we are always in
need of balloons, bubbles, face paints, body paints, sweets, nappy liners, nappy sacks, cotton wool
and Anti-bacterial Hand Sanitizer.
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Is it a safe place to live?
Tanzania is a very safe and peaceful country. Mwanza is a very safe city and our volunteers have never
experienced any major problems. You do need to remember that you are a 'Westerner' in one of the poorest
countries in the world though - so do not 'flash' mobiles, cameras or wads of money around. Pick pocketing
is common in the market area of town, so take only small amounts of cash with you and keep your wits about
you. I have never known problems anywhere else - people are generally helpful and happy to have you here.
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I have a stop over in Nairobi / Dar-es-Salaam - can you advise hotels?
In Dar es Salaam we advise the Transit Motel if you have a short layover. It is about $30 and is very close
the airport. It is clean and safe. If you have a longer stopover, there are many nice hotels in the centre
of Dar for example the Holiday Inn, the Southern Sun or White Sands. These are more in the price range of
$150 - $250 dollars a night. Remember it costs about $25 each way to get from the airport to the centre of
town in a Taxi.
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Where can I travel?
Mwanza is a wonderful place to stay if you are wanting to do some travelling. We are very close to the
Serengeti National Park, a short flight from Zanzibar and borders Uganda, Kenya, Mozambique, Malawi, Zambia,
Congo, Burundi, and Rwanda.
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Will you pick me up from the airport?
Yes, we will pick you up from the airport. If you know your flight is delayed into Mwanza - please try to
phone us to let us know (as the airport does not have this information and it is not the most exciting
airport to hang around waiting for people to arrive!)
The Volunteers Pay
£400 a month for their stay at Forever Angels. This money pays for the House rent, Cleaner, Groundsman, Utility Bills, Maintenance of the Volunteer House, and lunch at the Baby Home each day if you choose to eat it. If we have one or two volunteers - we actually lose money. We need three volunteers to cover all these expenses. If we have more than three volunteers, the surplus money goes as a direct donation to the Baby Home and supports our running costs - food, medical expenses, staff salaries, nappies etc. Our DAILY running costs are now at
£400... so if you look at it like that... a Volunteer's Monthly payment covers one day at Forever Angels!
Other Important Downloads / Information for Volunteers:
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