Quality in Befriending Award
Show the value of your service with the Quality in Befriending Award
The Quality in Befriending Award is the only award in the UK specifically tailored for befriending services. It is valued by referrers, befrienders, commissioners, and funders.
Why complete the Quality Award?
Organisations who have successfully completed the Quality Award enjoy a range of benefits, including…
Increased confidence in the organisation from potential referrers, befriendees and befrienders, as well as funders, commissioners and other stakeholders.
The chance to review and reflect upon all aspects of your befriending service.
An audit of the organisation’s policies and suggestions on how the quality of the befriending service can be improved.
A certificate and the use of the Quality Award logo, as well as inclusion in our public directory of Quality Award holders.
What do we get with the Award?
When you achieve the Quality Award, you will receive:
- A Quality Award certificate
- A digital download of the Quality Award logo to use on your materials.
- An assessment report and tracker highlighting examples of outstanding practice and suggested areas for development.
- An updated entry in Befriending Networks’ Quality Database and the Quality Award logo displayed on their Befriending Directory listing.
The Quality Award logos
Your organisation can work towards the standard Quality in Befriending Award or get the gold standard of Excellence
What our Award Holders say…
We recommend the Award as it has given us confidence in the quality and processes of our befriending service, a morale booster for staff and volunteers, and confidence when promoting the service to partners and funders. Befriending Networks were brilliant from start to finish.
– Community Together CIC
Having a nationally recognised accreditation is essential to further development and obtaining future funding and partners. It has been useful in our organisation’s efforts to obtain support and care contracts where this sort of service is highly regarded and beneficial to overall care and support.
– SeAscape
Who can apply for the Quality Award?
Your service can apply for the Quality Award if it:
- Is a member of Befriending Networks. You will need to remain a member during your award period. Not a member? Find out more about joining.
- Has completed at least one full cycle of befriending work before registering to undertake the Quality Award. For example, has completed a full matching journey, referrals and assessments, volunteer recruitment, training and matching of volunteer befrienders, providing support to both parties, reviewing matches and considering how to manage endings.
- Operates a volunteer befriending service in the UK or Ireland
Any services which don’t meet these requirements but would still like to work on developing the quality of their delivery should contact our team to discuss how we can support you with a bespoke offer. Please contact us at info@befriending.co.uk.
Ready to get started?
Register your interest to start your Quality in Befriending journey.
Are you a local Age UK or Age Cymru partner?
Age UK or Age Cymru local partners with current CQS certification can take advantage of our Quality Award passport scheme, offering a lighter assessment and a reduced fee.
How much does the Award cost?
The fees your organisation will pay to complete the Quality in Befriending Award varies according to size.
Category: Small
Annual Income: < £100k
Full Award
£500
Reaccreditation
£250
Age UK Local Partner
£300
Category: Medium 1
Annual Income: £101K > £350K
Full Award
£750
Reaccreditation
£375
Age UK Local Partner
£550
Category: Medium 2
Annual Income: £351K > £750K
Full Award
£850
Reaccreditation
£425
Age UK Local Partner
£650
Category: Large
Annual Income: £751K+
Full Award
£950
Reaccreditation
£475
Age UK Local Partner
£750
For more details on pricing, including what happens if the structure of your organisation changes, visit our FAQs.
How much does Excellence cost?
Excellence is free if you do it as a part of your initial Award process. If you decide to go for Excellence as a part of your Reaccreditation in years 3 or 6, there is a fee of £75. If you decide to go for Excellence outside of your Award/Reaccreditation assessment, there will be a fee of £200.
Find out more
What’s Involved?
Find out more about the Quality Award process and criteria
Reaccreditation
Extend your accreditation with our simplified process
Apply
Start your journey to getting your Quality Award
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
How long does the award last?
Once accredited, your service will hold the Quality Award for three years. You will be invited to apply for Reaccreditation in years 3 and 6, which is a less time intensive process than the full Award. After nine years, you will be required to complete the full accreditation process again to retain your Quality Award.
How much do we pay if our organisation has two or more services to be assessed for the Quality in Befriending Award?
If the services have entirely shared policies, procedures and processes, they can be assessed under the same fee. If there is variation between the services in policy, procedures and/or processes, please call us to discuss. We will not be able to assess them as one, but how separately they are assessed, and therefore the fees applicable, will vary depending on the structure of your organisation. If your organisation wishes to apply for the Quality Award for multiple services and requires more information, please contact us at info@befriending.co.uk to discuss.
What happens if the governance of our befriending service changes after we receive our award?
Please notify us as soon as you become aware of this possibility. As we are assessing the organisation as well as the service, your award holder status will be affected if the service is moved to a different host organisation or becomes an independent organisation. It may be that your award is nullified, but this will depend on several factors, including how much time is left on your current award, the intentions of the original organisation, the degree of change in service design, staffing, volunteers and service users. We will need to discuss all of this with you. It is likely we would request a level of reaccreditation, which will incur a fee.
What happens if two member services, both award holders, merge?
Please call us to discuss your Award status at the earliest opportunity. The outcome will depend on several factors which we will need to discuss with you. It is likely we would request a level of Reaccreditation, which will incur a fee.
Can we apply for the Quality in Mentoring Award?
The Quality in Mentoring Award has been discontinued. We will not be assessing or awarding any new Quality in Mentoring Awards. If you currently hold the Quality in Mentoring Award, you will continue to be an Award holder until your Award expiry date and you will be able to be Reaccredited in years 3 and 6 if you chose.