Access Line Volunteer Application

Thank you for your interest in volunteering with the Access Line!

Our next onboarding is scheduled for November 15th & 16th, 2025. Any applications submitted after September 29th will be considered for a future onboarding.

If you have any questions or need support to apply, please contact our Health Promotion Coordinator at melissa@actioncanadashr.org.

About the Line

The Access Line is Action Canada’s frontline support service offering confidential peer-based support 7 days a week. We answer calls and texts from people with questions about sexual health, pregnancy options, abortion, and more — offering information, emotional support, and referrals. Our volunteers answer the line evenings and weekends while our staff answer weekdays from 9am-5pm ET.

Our Volunteer Role

Our volunteers answer phone calls and text messages from the public weekday evenings from 5:00 to 9:00 PM ET and weekends from 9:00 AM to 9:00 PM ET.

We're looking for folks with previous experience providing sexual and reproductive health support (including as volunteers). Bilingualism (English and French) is also an asset.

Volunteers are asked to commit to up to 14 hours per month for one year*. This includes three monthly shifts (4 hours each), occasional team meetings, and check-ins. Volunteers indicate which shifts they're available to cover each month so it's okay if your schedule changes regularly.

*Fanshawe students commit to the duration of their placement but are welcome to stay on after.

Our Application Process

Our process includes:

Completing this application form
An interview
A reference check
A vulnerable sector record check

About you

I am a Fanshawe Doula Studies student

Full name

Nickname or preferred name

Let us know if you go by something other than your first name.

Pronouns

e.g. he/him, she/her, they/them, etc. If you don't use pronouns, let us know how you would like to be referred to.

City/town of residence

Province/territory of residence

Email address

Confirm email

Phone number

Is it okay to leave you a voicemail?

Yes

Is it okay to text you?

Yes

Are you 18 years old or older?

Yes

What languages do you speak?

Please provide a list of all the languages you speak.

Do you have access to a confidential space to answer phone calls and texts? This means a quiet, private environment where conversations can’t be overheard.

Yes

Our Values

As a non-profit organization, Action Canada’s work is based strongly on its core values. These include:

We are pro-choice: We believe that all people have the right to make the best choices for them regarding their reproductive health. We firmly support all people’s rights to abortion, and work to improve access to abortion for Canadians.

We are anti-racist and anti-oppressive: We commit as an organization to advancing the rights of all people, and engaging in work internally and externally that forefronts the experiences of Black, Indigenous, and/or racialized people. We take an intersectional approach to our work.

We are pro-2SLGBTQ+: We support the rights of all people to decide freely upon matters related to their sexuality and gender. We know that people of all genders need access to reproductive freedom.

We are pro-sex work: We believe that sex work is work and advance the rights of sex workers to a safe workplace. We do not believe in the criminalization of sex work.

Do you agree with these values?

Yes

Some

Please tell us more.

Your interest & experience

To support you in responding to these questions, Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH) includes pregnancy options and outcomes (abortion, adoption, parenting, pregnancy loss), contraception, Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs), gender, sexuality, sexual pleasure, and more.

There's no expected length for these responses and it's okay if you don't have a lot to say for some.

Tell us a little bit about yourself and why you’re interested in this opportunity

Recognizing that the personal is always political, tell us a bit about how your life experiences impact the ways that you see and navigate the world?

Please describe your current level of knowledge of SRH topics? Are there any areas where you feel especially knowledgeable and others where you feel less so?

Please share any volunteer, paid work, or activist experiences you have related to SRH.

Do you have any previous training or experience providing pregnancy options support?

Sometimes the folks we provide with SRH information, referrals and emotional support are in a state of crisis. Please tell us about any volunteer, paid work, or activist experiences you may have providing support to those in crisis.

Are there any other skills and experiences not already mentioned that you would bring to the team?

Supporting you

We want to create a a positive and rewarding experience for our volunteers. The following questions are to help us understand what you're looking for in a volunteer experience.

Do you have any accessibility needs that you would like to share with us at this time that would support you in this application process or as a volunteer?

What are you hoping to gain and/or learn from volunteering with us?

Do you have any concerns about volunteering with us or doing this type of volunteer work?

What are your expectations of the Action Canada Staff who will be training and supporting you in your role?

Commitment

Completing your placement with the Access Line requires commitment to a weekly 4-hour shift. Are you able to commit to this if selected?

Fanshawe requires placements students to complete 50 hours in the fall semester and 100 hours in the winter. To support them in completing these, students will complete volunteer training, shadow shifts, and have the opportunity to support the team with optional resource-building projects based on their interests in addition to their weekly shifts. They will also be able to take additional shifts.

Yes

I'm not sure

Volunteering with the Access Line requires availability for 14 hours (3 shifts + a meeting) per month for 1 year. Are you able to commit to this if selected?

Yes

I'm not sure

Is there anything that you think could prevent you from fulfilling this commitment?

Your availability

Volunteers are asked to indicate their availability for specific shifts each month to create our schedule so it's okay if these change.

Availability

Questions	Yes	No	Sometimes
Mondays 9AM-1PM ET	Yes	No	Sometimes
Mondays 1-5PM ET	Yes	No	Sometimes
Tuesdays 9AM-1PM ET	Yes	No	Sometimes
Tuesdays 1-5PM ET	Yes	No	Sometimes
Wednesdays 9AM-1PM ET	Yes	No	Sometimes
Wednesdays 1-5PM ET	Yes	No	Sometimes
Thursdays 9AM-1PM ET	Yes	No	Sometimes
Thursdays 1-5PM ET	Yes	No	Sometimes
Fridays 9AM-1PM ET	Yes	No	Sometimes
Fridays 1-5PM ET	Yes	No	Sometimes

Availability

Questions	Yes	No	Sometimes
Mondays 5-9PM ET	Yes	No	Sometimes
Tuesdays 5-9PM ET	Yes	No	Sometimes
Wednesdays 5-9PM ET	Yes	No	Sometimes
Thursdays 5-9PM ET	Yes	No	Sometimes
Fridays 5-9PM ET	Yes	No	Sometimes
Saturdays 9AM-1PM ET	Yes	No	Sometimes
Saturdays 1-5PM ET	Yes	No	Sometimes
Saturdays 5-9PM ET	Yes	No	Sometimes
Sundays 9AM-1PM ET	Yes	No	Sometimes
Sundays 1-5PM ET	Yes	No	Sometimes
Sundays 5-9PM ET	Yes	No	Sometimes

Is there anything you would like us to know regarding your availability?

Yes

Please elaborate

Thank you!

Selected applicants will receive an email invitation to schedule an interview.