Support a rights-based assessment of institutional care, family strengthening and ethical HIF involvement.
Location
Remote with local partners
Arrangement
Remote
Commitment
3–5 hours per week
Duration
Six-month systems review
Level
Professional / advanced student
Contribution track
Create evidence
01
Role mandate
Support a rights-based assessment of institutional care, family strengthening and ethical HIF involvement.
Why this role exists now
Well-intentioned orphanage support can reinforce harmful systems. HIF needs local, child-rights and family-care expertise before deciding whether or how to engage.
02
Outcomes you would own
01
A locally reviewed systems map and evidence brief.
02
A clear red-line framework for volunteering, donations and storytelling.
03
Options prioritising family strengthening and local capability.
04
A board-ready recommendation with safeguarding requirements.
Core responsibilities
Review evidence on institutional care, family separation and reform.
Map relevant local services, authorities and child-rights actors.
Analyse HIF’s past and proposed activities for unintended harm.
Develop ethical engagement, referral and communications principles.
Recommend a bounded role for HIF or advise against involvement.
03
Your first 90 days
Days 1–30
Listen, learn and locate the work
Complete HIF induction, role boundaries and required checks.
Review the Child wellbeing brief, evidence, partners and unresolved decisions.
Agree a 90-day workplan, communication rhythm and escalation map.
Days 31–60
Build the first useful thing
Complete the first evidence synthesis, method or analysis.
Invite review early from the people who will use or be affected by the work.
Record changes, risks and decisions instead of hiding uncertainty.
Days 61–90
Deliver, learn and hand over
Complete the agreed first milestone or document why it should change.
Review progress against success measures with your supervisor.
Publish a next-quarter plan and keep files ready for another volunteer.
04
What you need
Essential criteria
Child protection, social work, international development, law or systems-research experience.
Strong safeguarding and rights-based judgement.
Ability to challenge emotionally compelling but harmful practices.
Desirable, not required
Alternative-care reform or Southeast Asian experience.
Policy, qualitative research or lived-experience engagement skills.
05
How good work will be judged
Success measures
Recommendations align with child rights and local reform pathways.
HIF does not use access to children as a volunteer benefit.
Potential harms and organisational limits are explicit.
Decision rights & escalation
Set day-to-day priorities within the approved role brief and agreed hours.
Recommend changes to scope, timing or method and document the rationale.
Pause your own activity and escalate when safety, consent, quality or capacity is unclear.
Escalate budget commitments, external promises, partner agreements and material changes to Safeguarding Adviser / Research Director.
Clinical, safeguarding, privacy and public-claim decisions remain with the named qualified approver.
Role boundaries
This is an unpaid volunteer role. It does not create an employment relationship or expectation of future paid work.
Do not represent HIF publicly, sign agreements or commit money unless authority is explicitly documented.
Use only approved systems for personal, partner or program information.
The agreed weekly commitment is a ceiling to manage, not a minimum to exceed silently.
This role does not provide clinical advice, diagnosis, treatment or unsupervised patient contact.
No travel is assumed. Any future travel would require a separate brief, risk review and written approval.
06
Support, learning and wellbeing
Restricted safeguarding and external child-rights advice.
Country-partner and lived-experience review.
No direct contact with children in this research role.
Scope and safety
Volunteers must not work outside their competence. Clinical, safeguarding and community-facing work requires role-specific supervision and escalation pathways.
Checks before you begin
Identity and right-to-volunteer confirmation.
One or two role-relevant references for leadership or higher-trust appointments.
Confidentiality, conflict-of-interest, privacy and code-of-conduct declarations.
07
How selection works
Evidence to include
A short statement explaining why this role and HIF’s health-equity mission fit your experience.
One specific example showing how you handled work relevant to research.
Your realistic availability against the published commitment of 3–5 hours per week.
Any required qualifications, registrations, portfolio links or work samples.
Conflicts, access needs or support adjustments you want the selection panel to consider.
Selection stages
Eligibility and completeness review
Assessment against the published essential criteria
Structured interview or practical conversation, if required
Relevant reference, credential and safeguarding checks
Outcome, induction and role-specific onboarding
Final selection decisions are made by people. AI is not used to automatically reject applicants.