How to start volunteering?
Discussion
This year I will be entering semi-retirement mode.
I would like to start helping in my local community.
I think I have some good skills technical, diy, personal etc.
where do I start?
I'm currently DBS checked and I can easily get that renewed.
About 8 years ago I helped as a "Dinner Lady" (yes don't laugh) at my sons primary school and really enjoyed that.
I would like to start helping in my local community.
I think I have some good skills technical, diy, personal etc.
where do I start?
I'm currently DBS checked and I can easily get that renewed.
About 8 years ago I helped as a "Dinner Lady" (yes don't laugh) at my sons primary school and really enjoyed that.
Greenmantle said:
This year I will be entering semi-retirement mode.
I would like to start helping in my local community.
I think I have some good skills technical, diy, personal etc.
where do I start?
I'm currently DBS checked and I can easily get that renewed.
About 8 years ago I helped as a "Dinner Lady" (yes don't laugh) at my sons primary school and really enjoyed that.
https://www.scouts.org.uk/volunteer/I would like to start helping in my local community.
I think I have some good skills technical, diy, personal etc.
where do I start?
I'm currently DBS checked and I can easily get that renewed.
About 8 years ago I helped as a "Dinner Lady" (yes don't laugh) at my sons primary school and really enjoyed that.
You would love this. Scouting is reliant on Volunteers.
Its something I went through as a child, and now my son goes myself and my partner help out, and its actually brilliant. Hard work, but fun, inspiring, we have some brilliant trips out, the adults get to have a bit of fun too. Highly reccomended.
Find your local Scout hut and go speak to them!
There’s quite often a volunteer hub in many towns. Even my small town of about 8k population has one. Worth a check to see if you have one. This is ours.
https://www.pershorevolunteers.org.uk/
https://www.pershorevolunteers.org.uk/
my local council has a volunteering site with vacancies, if you're not sure where to start then I imagine your own will have similar.
https://barnsleycvs.org.uk/volunteer-opportunities
You could also consider being a magistrate
https://barnsleycvs.org.uk/volunteer-opportunities
You could also consider being a magistrate
I went for what I assumed was an interview as a volunteer, at the local museum.
It commenced with "when can you start, and went on to explain what i needed to do". We're still looking for new Watchkeepers as folk keep falling ill etc.
I also work on stalls at local events, fairs, Highland Games etc. for SCAA. Scotland Charity Air Ambulance.
Wife volunteers for another local museum/castle, mostly sorting the archives, etc.
Local, as in the money goes locally, not a national one, charity shop is always on the look out for help.
Didn't know "Scouts" was still a thing, I had a bad experience with them as a naive new recruit moving up from the cubs in the mid 1960s. He was a few years older than me and is probably on a list now. I left shortly after.
It commenced with "when can you start, and went on to explain what i needed to do". We're still looking for new Watchkeepers as folk keep falling ill etc.
I also work on stalls at local events, fairs, Highland Games etc. for SCAA. Scotland Charity Air Ambulance.
Wife volunteers for another local museum/castle, mostly sorting the archives, etc.
Local, as in the money goes locally, not a national one, charity shop is always on the look out for help.
Didn't know "Scouts" was still a thing, I had a bad experience with them as a naive new recruit moving up from the cubs in the mid 1960s. He was a few years older than me and is probably on a list now. I left shortly after.
Given your technical/DIY comments, see if there's a local Repair Cafe or Men in Sheds kind of organisation around your area.
See what local groups and societies there are near you, my mother went along to a couple of talks by her local historical society, and ended up getting involved with their project to digitise a load of the local history and set up a website for it all. As a former computer programmer she ended up doing a lot of the uploading and linking photos, and then evolved in to teaching a lot of the "old folk" as she calls them, how to do some basic IT stuff...she's just turned 80 and they're all younger than her
There are also a few public organisations that rely a lot on volunteer staff. A friend of my mothers helps out a the local Crown Court, supporting witnesses when they're in court, i.e. making sure they know what to do and where to be. She also helps out at a local museum and ended up helping clean and remount their medal collection.
See what local groups and societies there are near you, my mother went along to a couple of talks by her local historical society, and ended up getting involved with their project to digitise a load of the local history and set up a website for it all. As a former computer programmer she ended up doing a lot of the uploading and linking photos, and then evolved in to teaching a lot of the "old folk" as she calls them, how to do some basic IT stuff...she's just turned 80 and they're all younger than her
There are also a few public organisations that rely a lot on volunteer staff. A friend of my mothers helps out a the local Crown Court, supporting witnesses when they're in court, i.e. making sure they know what to do and where to be. She also helps out at a local museum and ended up helping clean and remount their medal collection.
Skyedriver said:
Didn't know "Scouts" was still a thing, I had a bad experience with them as a naive new recruit moving up from the cubs in the mid 1960s. He was a few years older than me and is probably on a list now. I left shortly after.
Scouts, and the Scouting movement, is still very much going (and thriving). It is genuinely one of the very best things young people can be involved with and very much removed from peoples connotations of Scouting and Dib--dib-dib of the past. From a personal interest perspective, I did a few years volunteering with the warbird community; red letter day (and similar) rides in aircraft ranging from Tiger Moths to Spitfires. Volunteers do everything from cleaning aircraft to strapping in and safety briefing clients through to engine starts and marshalling. Of course it helps if you have an aviation background, but attitude, enthusiasm and good old common sense count for more. It’s a lot of fun but can be long days and exhausting work. Perks can include free rides when repositioning aircraft and helping out with shows etc. Maybe there is something similar near you?
Various disability sports effectively run on good will and volunteers.
As do a lot of groups for helping SEN children and families.
It can be very fulfilling if it's your kind of thing.
On a completely different note don't most of the old trains get run by various volunteer charities? An old employee used to be involved with the North Norfolk Railway.
As do a lot of groups for helping SEN children and families.
It can be very fulfilling if it's your kind of thing.
On a completely different note don't most of the old trains get run by various volunteer charities? An old employee used to be involved with the North Norfolk Railway.
Edited by ntiz on Monday 2nd February 13:40
What volunteering do you want to do? Work in a charity shop, men in sheds set up, go into schools giving career type talks/ getting primary kids read(is that a time anymore?), drive a canal boat (Peter Le Marchant trust) work on a heritage railway, room guard at a national trust site.
I volunteer for the local police force, on one of their scrutiny panels. Had to be interviewed and once chosen, pass a security screening and attend a few training sessions. Now, every couple of months, we have a zoom meeting to discuss a recent group of arrests, followed a fortnight later by a meeting at police headquarters where we study body worn video and the written logs of the arrests and then produce reports on whether the guidelines have been followed. Positive and negative feedback is given and reported to the officers concerned. It is really interesting, always eye-opening and very rewarding. My group looks at use of force and there are other groups looking at things like custody, care of police dogs/horses and stop & search to name just a few.
There's a couple of organisations that publish opportunities.
https://www.ncvo.org.uk/get-involved/volunteering/...
No reason why you shouldn't volunteer for more than one organisation, find something that suits you and fits with your life.
I have regularly volunteed with a forestry trust for the last 8yrs it works for me. Some other organisations I've dropped because the 'fit' wasn't so good.
Good luck.
https://www.ncvo.org.uk/get-involved/volunteering/...
No reason why you shouldn't volunteer for more than one organisation, find something that suits you and fits with your life.
I have regularly volunteed with a forestry trust for the last 8yrs it works for me. Some other organisations I've dropped because the 'fit' wasn't so good.
Good luck.
Thanks for all your suggestions.
Don't want to do anything heavy and serious.
The SEN suggestion looks perfect.
I'm going to do a bit more research for something local, independent that I can get involved in.
There is a local riding school for the disabled but I'm not good with animals in general.
Don't want to do anything heavy and serious.
The SEN suggestion looks perfect.
I'm going to do a bit more research for something local, independent that I can get involved in.
There is a local riding school for the disabled but I'm not good with animals in general.
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