Project Outline
Through this placement, GOG is working toward a more sustainable, capable organisation. Their goals include better internal communications so the team can stay connected without everything depending on one person, stronger external outreach with a consistent and professional presence, documented process flows that make it easy for new volunteers to step in without losing institutional knowledge, and practical team support and structures that take pressure off a small, overstretched group managing.
Key Responsibilities / Learning Areas
Students will take on substantive work across one of the following areas, matched to their background and the semester they join.
Strategic Processes & Operations
GOG currently lacks documented workflows, defined volunteer roles, and the organisational infrastructure to carry on when people leave. Students will help design backend systems that can be handed between volunteers without things collapsing. This includes:
• Documenting existing processes and creating clear volunteer duty statements
• Designing onboarding materials and handover templates
• Setting up project planning using Monday.com to track work across the team
• Building an organisational structure that can hold GOG’s operations as it grows
Marketing & Communications
Day-to-day communications currently falls almost entirely on one person, including late-night content creation and ad hoc social media. Students will help build something more sustainable:
• Developing a content calendar and structured social media plan
• Using templates for Mailerlight Software
• Building a media outreach database for press and community contacts
• Creating reusable templates and communication guidelines for the broader volunteer team
Data Infrastructure & Collection
GOG has rich stories of impact but no system to capture or use them. Students will help design simple, scalable processes to change that:
• Designing data collection tools (Google Forms-based to start)
• Building a member and stakeholder database
• Developing an evidence base that supports future funding applications
• Documenting impact stories in a structured, usable format
Grant Writing & Research
All grant work currently sits with one person, which is not sustainable. Students will contribute to both the writing and the research that underpins it:
• Gathering evidence on the mental health benefits of craft and community participation
• Analysing past applications to understand what has and hasn’t worked
• Building a repository of institutional knowledge and grant-ready content
• Supporting the drafting and editing of funding submissions
Learning Statement
This placement offers practical experience working with a live, community-run initiative at a genuine moment of organisational growth. Students will not be doing hypothetical work — their contributions will directly shape how GOG operates.
Depending on their focus area, students can expect:
Exposure to real nonprofit operations — the pressures, trade-offs, and decisions involved in running a small organisation with limited resources, including working directly with a founder or lead coordinator and navigating the gap between what an organisation wants to do and what its resources allow.
Exposure to community engagement practice — how grassroots organisations build relationships, maintain trust, and sustain participation over time.
Opportunity to contribute to lasting organisational change — the systems and tools students build will be used well beyond the placement period.
Opportunity to contribute to an evidence base for creative and social wellbeing programs — helping GOG tell its story in a way that attracts funding and recognition.
Preparation
Before commencing, students should familiarise themselves with GOG's background, mission, and community engagement work to date. They should review GOG's current social media presence, their Impact Statement 24/25 and any publicly available communications to understand their voice and audience, read relevant background on community-run organisations, volunteer management, and small nonprofit sustainability, and come with a working knowledge of at least one relevant tool — such as Monday.com, Mailerlite, Google Forms, or Canva (or a willingness to learn quickly). Students should arrive with questions, not just answers - GOG's challenges are real and will require curiosity as much as expertise.
Deliverables
Depending on their focus area and semester, students will deliver one or similar of the following: a documented set of process flows and volunteer role descriptions ready for use as GOG onboards new team members; a configured project management workspace with templates tailored to GOG's recurring activities; a content calendar and communications guidelines including migrated email marketing setup and a media contacts database; a data collection system and initial stakeholder database with a short guide on how to maintain and use it; or a grant research report or funding submission contribution along with a repository of reusable evidence and supporting materials.
All outputs will be developed collaboratively with the GOG team and reviewed before finalisation. Students should plan for at least one round of feedback and revision as part of the process.