Is it illegal to hide that you were fired from a voluntary position?

[sunshineandstarsgirl]

I was volunteering in the office of a charity for the past 6 months. Today they told me although I am committed and dedicated, I am not confident enough to do this particular role.
I am gonna start applying for receptionist /admin jobs. If I get asked in the job interview why I stopped volunteering, should I be honest? My friend told me if I am honest, I won't find another job.

I read online that in the UK you can go to prison if you lie on your CV. Feeling scared.

Me getting fired from the volunteering came as a shock to me as I did get positive feedback from the same person in the past.

They said I can volunteer in other areas of the charity, just not in the office.
No they didn't offer me any training.
I am looking for office-based roles and this volunteer role at the charity was the first office based role that I did. If I do get a job in an office, the new employer would want the most recent experience as reference. Unless I volunteer elsewhere.
This really knocked my confidence.
Prior to this, I failed a teaching assistant course which I didn't enjoy. And now this.

Sorry to hear about your experience OP, it must feel like a bit of a kick in the teeth after volunteering your time for 6 months.

How do you feel you were performing in the role prior to this conversation with your manager? Do you feel that office-based work is a good fit for you, or do you think you may actually be better suited to a different role? There’s absolutely no snarkiness or disrespect behind my questions btw, I just know that we all have talents in different areas and wondered if this is a good opportunity to reflect on your own strengths to consider if they have a valid point? We’re all different and I know plenty of talented people that wouldn’t thrive in an office environment (my adored DH being one of them). In a similar vein, I wouldn’t be great at customer service/retail, as it would be too overwhelming for me.

Would it be worth exploring other types of roles/exploring personality types to see if you can find your perfect fit? I know a lot of people knock it, but I find the 16 personalities quite helpful in understanding my own and others’ motivations and strengths.

I would explore other roles in the organisation while you apply elsewhere. That way you have a more varied experience to draw upon. What specifically was a challenge , could you get training outside of your volunteering? It is poor that nothing was offered to support you but it depends on what the role required and time pressures. Was it the first time someone unpaid did admin ?

This really knocked my confidence.
Prior to this, I failed a teaching assistant course which I didn't enjoy. And now this.

It can take a while to find the right kind of job that fits us well. All offices aren’t the same even if the organisation does the same kind of work. Not fitting this one doesn’t mean you won’t fit elsewhere. Volunteering in an office can be tricky because it can be hard to know what you need to do without potentially stepping on someone else’s toes and instructions or role descriptions can be quite vague.

Try not to think it’s a reflection of your ability - look at what was going well and the positive feedback you were given and build on that.

Such a useful post from PixiePirate and reposting so those of us with eyesight problems can easily read as well

Today 06:42

"Sorry to hear about your experience OP, it must feel like a bit of a kick in the teeth after volunteering your time for 6 months.

How do you feel you were performing in the role prior to this conversation with your manager? Do you feel that office-based work is a good fit for you, or do you think you may actually be better suited to a different role? There’s absolutely no snarkiness or disrespect behind my questions btw, I just know that we all have talents in different areas and wondered if this is a good opportunity to reflect on your own strengths to consider if they have a valid point? We’re all different and I know plenty of talented people that wouldn’t thrive in an office environment (my adored DH being one of them). In a similar vein, I wouldn’t be great at customer service/retail, as it would be too overwhelming for me.

Would it be worth exploring other types of roles/exploring personality types to see if you can find your perfect fit? I know a lot of people knock it, but I find the 16 personalities quite helpful in understanding my own and others’ motivations and strengths." Edited

You don't put the reason for departure on a CV so there is no lie there.
If they ask then rehearse a line that says you left after a discussion about mutual fit. You can't be sacked or fired given you were not employed

Ask the office you have just finished with for an open testimonial now - it is the same as a reference, but they give it to you to pass on to potential employers, and you get to see it. I doubt they will say much apart from dates you volunteered there, but they may include a few nice pleasantries. It is unlikely that they will say anything negative about you. Most references will only include the dates you worked there and your job title anyway, these days.

You don't put a reason on your cv unless you need to; if you do, you say something bland like you left to pursue opportunities to further your skill set.

Absolutely nobody is going to know you were "fired" from a voluntary position, unless you've put it on your social media etc.

Even though you weren’t suitable for the role, if you ask them, there were still enough positives to give you a reference.

You weren’t fired by the way.
You stopped volunteering there so you could move to something different.

Its your own time and there is no contract.