Learning volunteer roles in london, england

About Victory Afghanistan

Victory Afghanistan is a Chicago-registered nonprofit dedicated to providing education and mentorship to Afghan girls and young women who have been banned from attending school. We currently run six levels of English classes and a Mentorship Programme that includes three career pathways:

1. Online Higher Education – Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees through remote universities.

2. Offline Higher Education – Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees via scholarships and sponsorships abroad.

3. Online Work & Internships – Virtual career and internship opportunities.

About the Role

We’re now looking for a new Online Pathway Manager to oversee and expand the Online Higher Education stream. You’ll step into an existing structure — our previous manager will fully brief you — so you won’t be starting from zero.

Your mission will be to help identify and secure online learning opportunities for our mentees who cannot leave Afghanistan. This could include building relationships with universities in the US or Europe, sourcing scholarships or sponsorships, and exploring donated course placements.

You’ll work closely with three Project Coordinators (who are also students in our academy), guiding and mentoring them as they assist you.

What We’re Looking For

• Strong initiative and leadership – someone who can drive things forward independently.

• Confident communicator with good public relations skills.

• Experience in higher education, partnerships, or international development is ideal.

• Based in the United Kingdom or United States (for time-zone alignment).

• Able to commit around 6 hours per week and attend weekly team meetings.

• Ideally available until September 2026 (the end of the next academic year).

You’ll report directly to the Operations Manager and work with a small, passionate, and global team making a real impact in girls’ lives.

Role title: 

Volunteer Classroom Assistant (Online) – English, Maths, Science  

Where: 

Online (Zoom) / Nova New Opportunities, 2 Thorpe Close, W10 5XL

When: 

Immediately, minimum commitment of 3 months. 

Support 1-2 classes a week (45 minutes per class), Monday - Thursday between 16:30 and 20:30.

About Nova:  

Based in North Kensington since 1983 and serving its poorest wards & those of surrounding London boroughs, Nova works with individuals from marginalised and disadvantaged communities who are looking to develop their potential and achieve a better future for themselves. Nova brings about real and lasting change in people’s lives by addressing every person as an individual and seeking out ways to best support that person to reach their goals. We endeavour to help every person that comes to us who is motivated and committed to improving his or her life.   

Reaching 2,500+ people each year, we believe in improving people’s lives one person at a time, helping committed and motivated individuals to achieve their potential by:  

• Developing knowledge, education and confidence 

• Connecting diverse groups

• Providing opportunities 

Our work, operates on 2 levels:

• Grassroots Community Support – including responsive actions (e.g. Grenfell, COVID-19), education, IAG, family programme and volunteering  

• Wider Reaching Dialogue Events and Influencing – focussing on challenging stigma, prejudice and inequality – working with individuals, organisations, networks and decision makers to move through conversation to action 

Purpose of role: 

Support the Nova Family Programme tutors in facilitating online home school sessions.

Role Description: 

This role will be to act as a teaching assistant to tutors delivering online English, maths and science classes (for young people at Key Stage 2 and 3). With the disruption of Covid-19, many families have been thrown into the unknown world of home schooling – made even more challenging when your own education isn’t up to scratch or English is your second language. We are delivering a free programme of online home school support to those who have been most negatively impacted by being out of school. Now that Schools have reopened, we will be continuing these sessions to ensure that learners do not fall behind as Schools focus on catching up on lost learning. The aim is to support children who may be falling behind with their studies and mitigating as far as possible the widening attainment gap. 

You will: 

• Enjoy working in a team 

• Provide tutorial support 

• Position yourself as a resource for learners 

• Work one-on-one or with breakout groups of learners who need additional help 

• Facilitate the zoom classroom as required 

You need to be: 

• DBS Checked 

• Confident in the use of IT 

• Some experience of supporting learners with Maths/ English 

• Experience of working with young people 

• Committed

• Competent 

• Reliable

• Honest 

• Punctual 

• Patient 

• Fair 

• Open minded 

• Learners may come from various cultural backgrounds and face different learning challenges. You will need to be at ease whether supervising an entire class or working one-on-one with students.

• Comfortable following Nova staff directions and working independently 

Further information: 

• Induction and appropriate training will be provided.

• Teaching or coaching experience would be desirable but not essential. 

Main point of contact/supervisor: 

Matthew Barnett 

IMPORTANT: An enhanced DBS check is required for this role, and so we are unfortunately only able to accept applications from UK-based applicants or British nationals living abroad.

Are you motivated by the opportunity to positively impact the UK’s mental health at the highest level, and be part of an internationally recognised organisation improving therapy standards? You might just be the right person to join the UK Council for Psychotherapy team.

Who is the UK Council for Psychotherapy?

UK Council for Psychotherapy is the leading organisation for psychotherapists and psychotherapeutic counsellors in the UK. We believe that psychotherapy can help us in profound ways, solving immediate issues and transforming how we think, feel and behave. Alongside offering professional support for our members, we are the leading research, innovation and educational body working to advance psychotherapies for the benefit of all. We regulate the profession and speak up for the importance of psychotherapy.  

What matters to us

UKCP’s mission: We see first-hand the power of psychotherapy to improve lives, so we speak up for the importance of psychotherapy in national and local policymaking and represent the social value of psychotherapy in the UK today.

Our vision: A society that understands the value and impact of high-quality psychotherapy, the importance of making psychotherapeutic services available to those in need and the relevance of psychotherapy in improving lives.

And our all important values: Our values are central to us. We recruit according to them, appraise our people against them, embed them in our working practices with colleagues, ensure that our practice is continually informed by them and measure our impact against them. We encourage you to read the candidate pack to learn more about our values.

So what does life as a trustee at UKCP look like?

Are you looking for a voluntary role that is rewarding and offers you the chance to provide leadership with your HR or communications skills? Then here is a look at some of the key tasks you’ll be involved in as trustee. You will:

• help to embed good governance practices in everything UKCP, the trustees and officers, and staff undertake as well as promoting diversity and inclusion
• provide leadership and direction to the organisation in order to pursue UKCP’s vision, mission and strategic direction
• prepare for and attend Board and other meetings and contribute expert ideas and know-how
• provide your HR or communications expertise to support understanding and decision-making across the Board.

Our commitment to diversity and inclusion

UKCP is committed to doing more to reflect the communities we serve. The Equity, Diversity and Inclusion – Belonging, Intersectionality, Inclusion, Diversity and Equity (EDI-BIIDE) Committee plays a vital role within UKCP governance, driving the strategic management of equity and inclusion initiatives across the organisation.

Who are we looking for?

We are looking for two trustees who share our desire to improve the UK’s mental health and an appreciation of the role of high-level oversight in achieving this. Having communications, PR or professional HR expertise, along with an understanding of the distinction between governance and management, will be key in these trustee roles.

If you have experience in working in an influential role and feel that you have good, independent judgement; can also act with impartiality, fairness and respect confidences; we believe that you may be a great addition to our board.

Don’t think you quite meet all of the specifications? Please don’t count yourself out – we’d still love to hear from you and learn more about you and your interest in joining UK Council for Psychotherapy.

Sounding good? Here’s how you can apply today.

Eastside People is supporting UK Council of Psychotherapy in the recruitment of these roles. Please apply by submitting your CV and a cover letter, both in Word doc format.

Please use the cover letter (max 2 pages) as an opportunity to add to the information you have shared in your CV and ensure that you cover the following: 

• why you are interested in the trustee roles at UKCP
• having read the information pack, what relevant experience and skills you feel you would bring to this role. This might come from paid work, study, community or voluntary work or other experience.

We want you to have every opportunity to demonstrate your skills, ability and potential. If you have a disability or require reasonable adjustments during the application or interview process, please contact us so we can support you appropriately.

The closing date for applications is Monday 24th November. Shortlisting interviews will take place shortly after, and shortlisted candidates will have an interview with UKCP shortly after this. 

We look forward to hearing from you!

Our vision for volunteering

Volunteering is and always will be at the heart of Cats Protection. It is joyful and inclusive. As a charity, working in partnership, together we transform the lives of cats, people and communities.

The difference you will make to cats and people

As a trap, neuter and return (TNR) lead volunteer you will make a vital contribution to maintaining a healthy population of feral and community cats and will help alleviate cat welfare and community problems caused by uncontrolled cat populations. You will lead a team of TNR volunteers in your local area, who in turn will help reduce the number of unwanted cats.

You can expect us to

• Make you feel welcome, included and respected in line with our values and behaviours
• Support you in having a positive and impactful experience at Cats Protection
• Cover agreed out-of-pocket expenses in line with our Expenses Policy
• Provide you with access to learning, development and engagement opportunities

What we need from you

You’ll be:

• Supporting and managing a team of TNR volunteers
• Promoting and encouraging appropriate training for TNR volunteers
• Delegating activities to TNR volunteers
• Supporting TNR volunteers to comply with Cats Protection policies and guidelines
• Engaging with local communities, local businesses, landowners and farmers to promote the neutering of cats in their locality
• Engaging with vets to promote and arrange neutering 
• Liaising with other members of the Cats Protection local team
• Making sure the trapping equipment is working properly

Time expectation

This is a flexible role and the hours will vary depending on the number of cats identified for specific TNR campaigns. Our current TNR lead volunteers spend about 10 hours per week in this role which can be shared by more than one volunteer if needed.

You may be just the volunteer we’ve been looking for!

We are committed to building a diverse, compassionate and inclusive organisation where everyone can be themselves and do their best. We are courageous and compassionate in our purpose of helping people see the world through cats’ eyes. Together, we can make a difference. Together, we are all for cats. Join the UK’s leading cat welfare charity and help make a better life for cats, because life is better with cats.

Overview

No Panic is a national charity, supporting people with a variety of anxiety issues, providing self-help advice over our helpline and additional support services.

We are building a team of volunteers to produce and distribute introduction material about No Panic to service users, members, students and volunteers.

We are looking for a volunteer to co-ordinate this team.

Activities

Activities will include reviewing the introduction material; assigning editing tasks to team members;  monitoring progress; reviewing content and overseeing distribution.

The Co-ordinator might also do the editing, if no volunteers are available.

We anticipate this volunteering will take up about 3-4 hours per week and ask our volunteers to commit to at least a year.

Desired Skills

Successful applicants will be committed and motivated.

They will be confident, and have leadership skills.

They will be able to produce and edit documents of varying lengths to a high standard and be able to write and communicate with clarity.

A reference will be required.

Support

The Introductions Team Co-ordinator will be supported by a Trustee.

About DMAFB

From One Act of Kindness to a Global Movement

A stranger's simple act of helping someone find a home sparked a journey that would become DMAFB. Founded on the principle of "I help you, you help me. Everybody happy" - we're building a digital wellbeing platform that transforms micro-acts of kindness into tools for connection, cultural exchange, and mental wellbeing improvement.

Our Mission: Prevent burnout, improve workplace morale, and make kindness a natural part of daily work life through science-driven, human-first interventions.

What we're building

We're developing an MVP platform that combines:

• Predictive analytics for early detection of workplace wellbeing issues
• Real-time monitoring and personalised intervention recommendations
• Time-series tracking of individual and team wellness metrics
• Pattern recognition to identify hidden risks before they become crises
• A lightweight, intuitive interface that seamlessly integrates into daily workflows

This isn't just another wellness platform - it's a proactive system that shifts organisations from reactive surveys to meaningful, data-driven support.

What we need

We're seeking a volunteer Full Stack Developer with experience in:

Backend/Data Infrastructure

• Building RESTful APIs and microservices architecture
• Working with time-series databases and handling complex data pipelines
• Implementing machine learning model integration (experience with model serving/deployment)
• Database design for high-dimensional, structured datasets
• Authentication & security best practices for sensitive HR/wellness data

Frontend development

• Creating responsive, accessible dashboards with data visualisation
• Building real-time scoring interfaces that display risk metrics
• Experience with progressive web apps or mobile-first design
• Implementing notification systems for alerts and interventions
• UI/UX sensibility for healthcare/wellness applications

Bonus skills (not mandatory)

• Experience with Python ML frameworks (scikit-learn, TensorFlow, PyTorch)
• Knowledge of GDPR/data privacy compliance for employee data
• Background in healthcare tech, HR tech, or mental health platforms
• DevOps experience (Docker, CI/CD, cloud deployment)

What you'll contribute to

• Core platform architecture for our MVP launch
• Integration points for predictive models and analytics
• User-facing features that make wellbeing interventions effortless
• A scalable foundation that can grow with our community

What you'll gain

✨ Purpose-driven work - Help prevent burnout and improve lives globally
�� Ground-floor opportunity - Shape the technical foundation of a growing movement
�� Collaborative team - Work alongside ML specialists and wellness experts
�� Portfolio value - Real-world experience building AI-integrated healthcare tech
�� Potential equity - As we grow, early contributors will be considered for equity opportunities

Family Lives was formed over forty years ago by volunteers with the aim of ensuring that all parents had somewhere to turn before they reach crisis point.

We know that the right support at the right time makes all the difference.

Family Lives provides targeted early intervention and crisis support to families who are struggling.

Purpose of the role:

To be part of a flexible team providing empathic, caring and informed support to families, carers and others who use our services.

Our volunteers take calls from parents and carers on a wide range of subjects, whether that might be issues around separation and divorce, isolation, depression, bullying and abuse, dealing with behavioural problems, etc. You can find out more about our services on our website. We are a national service with home-based call takers county wide and a call centre in Old Hatfield Hertfordshire.

Once trained volunteers sign up for a weekly 4-hour shift comprising 3 hours ‘online’ followed by a debrief session with your supervisor which can last around half to one hour.

We recruit volunteers with a range of backgrounds and experiences though we ask that volunteers have experience of parenting or working with children and young people, are good listeners and have a willingness to learn. Being remote it will be very important that you have a PC/laptop, plug in headset with microphone, good Wi-Fi and a private place to work from home. You need to be a UK resident.

Our volunteers often tell us how rewarding their time with us is.

You'll be part of a compassionate community and feel a real sense of pride for what you do. You'll meet new people, gain valuable experience, and develop your skillset. We're passionate about helping people to reach their full potential, so we'll offer you full training suitable for the role, supervision from a named member of staff, including help setting personal development goals, and opportunities to increase skills and input into practice via regular Practice Development Groups.

Our training programme is excellent and will give you the opportunity to develop the skills needed to offer empathic support and guidance to callers whatever their circumstances; all shifts are overseen by a regular shift supervisor who provides ongoing remote support.

We ask our volunteers to make a commitment of 1 year (with time off for holidays), obviously we understand that circumstances sometimes make that an impossibility but can be helpful to know at the outset that is the general expectation.

We have remote call taker training sessions that run over five sessions and is done remotely connecting you via a Microsoft Teams link. Our next training is starting in September 2025.

Module One = Tues 16th Sept

Module Two = Wed 24th Sept

Module Three = Weds 1st Oct

Module Four = Weds 8th Oct

Module Five = Wed 15th Oct

10am to 2pm

You would need to be able to attend all five sessions and be available on four occasions to listen into calls, this can be organised remotely. If you are unable to attend the training however are interested, please do apply as we run training throughout the year.

Trustee role description  

About IMIX 

Immigration is one of the key debates within UK politics and the media. IMIX is working to ensure that debate includes the voices of migrants and those who support them.

Our vision is for a society that welcomes people who move to the UK and understands the different journeys—through migration or displacement—that bring them here. A society that recognises how overlapping injustices shape those journeys, and where everyone can belong, be treated fairly, and live well together. 

Our mission is to use our media and communications expertise to ensure the voices and stories of migrants and refugees help shape how migration is understood and discussed in the UK. 

We do this by working with people who have lived experience of the immigration system, the organisations that support them, and the journalists who shape public opinion—always recognising the inequalities and barriers that affect whose voices are heard. 

We have a new strategy to 2030, which sets out the role that we play in the migration sector, and our ambitions for the years ahead. These are to:

1. ensure that more people with lived experience of migration have the skills and confidence to communicate effectively in the media. 

1. ensure that more organisations working to support migrants and refugees develop their media communication skills and capacity to tell the human story of migration.

1. work with journalists and media teams to significantly increase the level of positive migrant and refugee stories reported in the UK media, designed to increase empathy and understanding of the issues experienced by migrants and refugees. 

To strengthen our governance for this new strategic period, we’re recruiting four new Trustees.

Here’s what our current Trustees say about being part of IMIX: 

“It has been a privilege to support IMiX as part of the board. I have enjoyed seeing the organisation progress. A small but hugely passionate and effective team doing work that is more important than ever. IMiX has proved itself invaluable to the sector and whoever joins the board next will have important work to do to continue to strengthen IMiX at this crucial time for the debate on immigrants and refugees. This role offers the opportunity to help spread a reasoned narrative on a hot topic political issue that badly needs balance.”  Shazia Ejaz 

“It’s truly been a privilege to serve on the Board and to be part of such an inspiring organisation. I’ve learned so much from this experience.” Zain Hafeez 

“To an increasingly challenging public conversation about migration, IMiX brings calm expertise and evidence, positive messages and life-changing stories that change people's minds. It's a really important role to play, and the Board of Trustees make this possible by steering the strategy of the organisation and ensuring the staff and volunteers can deliver their work in a safe and supportive environment.  Our Trustees are a strong and committed group of people and it's a pleasure and privilege to work with them.”  Geraldine Blake (Chair) 

The Duties of a Trustee 

Trustees have overall control of a charity and are responsible for making sure it’s doing what it was set up to do, keeping the organisation on track and running effectively.

The IMIX Board meets four times a year to discuss with the Chief Executive and the team a wide range of issues. Our shared duties are to:

Strategy  

• Support the implementation of IMIX’s vision, mission, values and strategy.

• Approve activities that deliver the strategic goals, along with operational policies, and monitor and evaluate their implementation.

• Ensure that key risks are being identified, monitored and controlled effectively. 

Finance and Resources 

• Ensure the strategy is resourced by overseeing IMIX’s financial plans and budgets.

• Support and participate in fundraising and income generation activities

• Review and approve IMIX’s annual financial statements. 

IMIX Team  

• Provide support and challenge to IMIX’s Chief Executive

• Ensure that structures are in place that safeguard the well-being of IMIX’s team including volunteers and ambassadors.

• Ensure the effective and efficient administration of the organisation. 

External 

• Act as a champion of IMIX, promoting IMIX’s aims and reputation by applying your skills, expertise, knowledge and contacts whilst also ensuring that IMIX plays an appropriate role in the wider migration sector.

• Act as an ambassador for IMIX, attending events and relevant meetings.

• Bring intelligence to the Board on changes in IMIX’s operating environment.

General 

• Contribute to regular reviews of IMIX’s own governance.

• Attend Board meetings, coming prepared to contribute to discussions. 

Being a trustee means making decisions that will impact on the services and support that IMIX delivers and making a difference to the debate on migration.

What we’re looking for 

We are looking for people to join our Board who have either or both of the following:

Lived experience of migration or asylum  

More than half of our Board of Trustees have lived experience of migration, ranging from arriving as a refugee, growing up in the UK without settled status, moving to the UK from Europe, or being British but born outside of the UK.

It is important to us that people with lived experience are leading the governance of the organisation, as well as being involved across our projects, through Advisory Groups and Ambassador programmes. We recognise that diverse perspectives strengthen governance and decision-making, and we seek to continue broadening the range of backgrounds and experiences represented on our board.

Professional skills  

We’re particularly looking for experience in one or more of the following areas: 

• Media and Journalism 

• Digital

• Fundraising and/or income generation  

• Legal and financial oversight for charities

• Public sector/local authority experience, in particular regional links beyond London

Personal attributes 

All our Trustees need to have:

• A commitment to IMIX and its values

• The ability to analyse information and understand the implications and opportunities 

• Sound, independent judgement, and a willingness to speak your mind 

• A willingness and ability to devote the necessary time and effort 

• An understanding of the legal duties, responsibilities and liabilities of trusteeship 

• An ability to work collectively and effectively on a Board

What’s the commitment?  

The Trustee term is three years, with an option to renew for a second term.

We have quarterly board meetings which take place online, with at one in person away day each year in London.  We also have two sub-committees, one on People and HR, and the other on Finances and Funding, which meet in the month before a Board meeting.

How will we support you?  

We’ll provide a full induction to the work of IMIX, and opportunities for you to understand what we do and how.

The Chair and Chief Executive will support you to settle in, and there is an annual one-to-one with the Chair for you to reflect on your learning and your experience of being on the Board.

We can also provide training and opportunities for you to develop your governance skills and particularly welcome people who may be new to governance roles. 

What difference will you make? 

IMIX is at the heart of the UK’s migration debate.  By 2030, we want to see a shift—not just in media coverage, but in the national conversation. Migration will no longer be framed as a problem to be managed, but as part of who we are as a society. Public understanding will be more empathetic, informed and connected to lived experience. People who move will be seen as neighbours, colleagues, carers and community members—not strangers. 

We believe this future is possible. It will be built through shared values, solidarity across communities, and powerful storytelling that reflects the full complexity of people’s lives. At its heart will be the principle that migration is not a threat but a vital part of a healthy, connected society.

At a time when the rise of the far right is fuelling hostility and fear around migration, our work has never been more urgent. IMIX stands with partners across the migration sector to counter divisive narratives and strengthen solidarity. As a Trustee, you will help us ensure that truth, empathy and shared humanity remain at the centre of the national conversation. 

IMIX will continue to play its role—supporting the sector, amplifying migrant voices, and changing the story. As a Trustee of IMIX, you will help us to deliver this future.

About Us:

The Orpheus Centre is a specialist further education college and charity working to support young disabled adults, who are passionate about the arts, to achieve their potential and lead independent lives.

Set up by musician and songwriter Sir Richard Stilgoe, Orpheus offers learning, supported housing and personal care on the same site in Godstone, Surrey.

Volunteer Role:

As an Action Team Volunteer, you will play a vital role in assisting with our fundraising activities throughout the year, from fun runs, festivals and supermarket collections to special events. By sharing your skills and time, you’ll meet new people as part of a friendly team that makes a difference in the community and have a rewarding experience helping spread awareness of Orpheus and the importance of the funds our supporters raise.

Who are we looking for?

We are looking for volunteers who are friendly, have buckets of enthusiasm, have good communications skills and able to work as part of a team. If you are reliable and flexible, then we would love to hear from you. If you would like to get involved with the work we do at Orpheus but want to volunteer in a flexible way, then this is the role for you. 

What will you be doing?

· Cheering, marshalling, collecting money or providing practical support in other ways at our events, such as setting up stalls, selling merchandise and raffle tickets to car park attendants

· Other ad hoc activities that arise on the day

Why volunteer:

Through volunteering with us you will gain a greater sense of purpose and help our learners reach their potential.

If you are someone who is reliable, an excellent communicator, have a friendly and enthusiastic personality and committed to helping, as well as being kind and caring, then this could be the role for you.

You will have a mentor who will help and guide you when you first start volunteering at Orpheus.

Training:

Role relevant training, including Equality, Diversity and Inclusion and Safeguarding will be given prior to start date. There is also the opportunity to attend our Learning Support training.

On-going support will be available throughout your time at Orpheus.

Benefits/What you’ll get:

· Experience of volunteering in an education setting.

· Working within a team as well as independently.

· The opportunity to meet new people and having fun.

· Develop confidence, empathy, listening and communication skills through working with our students.

· Gain experience in the charity sector.

· Opportunities to volunteer at other fundraising or on-site events at Orpheus.

· Free on-site parking and expenses claimed back.

· Discounted lunches.

· Volunteer social events, like our Volunteer Tea Party.

Safeguarding:

Orpheus is committed to safeguarding and promotes the welfare of all service users. We are committed to the promotion of equal opportunities.

This post is classed as having a high degree of contact with vulnerable adults and is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974.  It is therefore subject to an Enhanced disclosure through the Disclosure Barring Service (DBS).

Equality & Diversity:

· To enforce the zero tolerance policy of all forms of victimisation, discrimination and harassment in the workplace.

· To be tolerant of differences and use respectful language.

· Ensure professional standards and boundaries are clear.

· To treat everyone respectfully.

Application Process:

Once your application has been received it will be reviewed, you may then be invited in for an informal interview.

Your references will be checked and you will need to complete the online DBS application before bringing the relevant documents in to be checked.

You will then need to attend all of our training. This can all take 3-4 weeks to be completed before you start volunteering with us.

We look forward to hearing from you.

Shop Volunteering Opportunities

Islington

Our shops are at the heart of local communities raising vital funds for our fight against homelessness and bad housing - and they’re powered by our volunteers!

Suggested Involvement: It’s up to you! We have volunteers who support for one hour a week and others who volunteer more. Many people volunteer for a morning or an afternoon each week, but we’ll have a chat about your availability after you’ve applied.

Availability: The shop is open Monday - Saturday 10:00-18:00 and Sunday 11:00-17:00. We are particularly looking for volunteers who can support us on Tuesday mornings

Location: 159 Upper Street, Islington, N1 1US

Supervised by: Community Shop Manager/Assistant Manager

Why volunteer with Shelter? 

Home is a human right. It's our foundation and it's where we thrive. Yet, every day millions of people are being devastated by the housing emergency.

We exist to defend the right to a safe home. Because home is everything.

We’re passionate about what we do, and love giving second-hand clothing a chance of going to a good home. Our shop teams ensure fighting the housing emergency never felt so fun. 

What can I do?

After you’ve filled in an application, we will invite you for an informal chat to find the right role for you. Some roles involve a basic criminal record check being completed during recruitment. Having a criminal record does not mean that you cannot volunteer with us, but it may impact the ways you can get involved.

• Volunteering in the shop

Our retail volunteers are in the middle of it all, and there’s plenty to get involved with. You might be sorting stock, engaging with customers, ringing items through the till, creating fantastic window displays or keeping our shop floor looking organised.

- You will not undergo a criminal record check for this role  

• Volunteering in the community

Our Van Driver’s mates are out and about supporting drivers with delivering and collecting stock throughout the local area. They play a key part in getting donations to and from shops. This role does require the ability to lift heavy items. 

• Volunteering in a leadership role

Our volunteer supervisors help with overseeing the running of our shop and creating a fantastic environment for our customers. You may be involved with coordinating and supporting other volunteers, operating computer systems, and being a key point of contact for the shop.

Skills and Experiences Required:

We welcome applications from people with a wide range of skills and experiences. You don’t need to have volunteered or worked in a shop before as full training will be provided. What’s important to us is that you are a team player, open to learning and willing to follow Shelter’s policies and can be an excellent ambassador for Shelter. We particularly welcome applications from people with lived experience of bad housing or homelessness.

Induction, Learning and Development:

To enable you to take part in this opportunity Shelter will:

• Welcome you with a Volunteer Handbook
• Provide training, induction, and ongoing support from your Shop Manager to help you feel confident in your role
• Refund any out-of-pocket expenses in line with Shelter’s volunteer expenses policy

Benefits of volunteering with Shelter…

• Supporting Shelter in our fight against bad housing and homelessness
• Gain valuable experience in a retail environment
• Getting involved in your local community and being part of a great team
• Build your confidence and develop transferable skills

We aim to respond to all applications within 14 days

If you would like to find out more about the volunteering opportunity before applying, why not pop into the shop, or contact us.

Are you looking for a way to give back to your community? We are seeking organised, compassionate individuals to be the welcoming heart of our Hub. If you have a friendly smile, are well orgabnised and are looking for a reception based role, this could be for you.

BACKGROUND:

• The Cardinal Hume Centre works to prevent and tackle youth and family homelessness, we: 
• Provide a home to 39 young people
• Offer support to local children and families at risk
• Help families keep or find a stable home and manage their money
• Mentor people to find work or training
• Help people secure their legal right to remain in the UK and access homes, work and benefits.

Last year we helped over 1200 people including nearly 600 families and 230 children and young people.  Our aim is to tackle homelessness, poor housing and poverty at a young age and break its cycle into later life.  We want to see the value in each individual and nurture potential, helping young people and families to thrive.

The Centre prides itself on its welcome and person-centred approach. It recognises each individual is different, often with complex needs and so our response must be multi-layered. We therefore have six principal services: residential services for homeless young people; family support; housing and welfare rights advice; employment support; learning; and immigration advice and advocacy. 

OUR PEOPLE - We believe each person matters: 

Our clients guide everything we do. We’re here to help children, families and young people experiencing or at risk of homelessness, or clients who have urgent needs that can be met at the Centre and not elsewhere. 

We seek to develop trusting relationships with our clients. We rely on them to help us improve and develop our services, so we include them wherever possible in our work. 

Our staff and volunteers: 
Our staff and volunteers are diverse in their backgrounds, and their skills and experience. Many have lived experience of the challenges our clients face. We are proud of our warm welcome and our team’s commitment to support people facing disadvantage to escape the cycle of poverty and homelessness. 

The HUB on Medway Street is the main entrance for clients who wish to access the services on offer.  Staff in the Hub can provide level 1 advice on housing and welfare rights and for more complex cases, can refer clients to one of our other services, such as housing, welfare rights, immigration, employment and learning, and family services. 

Summary of Role.

You will be supporting a team that is helping people from the local community, who are vulnerable and facing disadvantage, including; homeless young people, people living in insecure accommodation or at risk of losing their housing, low-income families with young children, unemployed people, refugees and migrants. (further details below)

Your presence supports the smooth running of the Centre and increases the team’s capacity to see and help more people.

This role is in the heart of the organisation where you will meet people of all backgrounds and learn how a community organisation responds to local need.

What will you be doing?

• Answering the intercom and buzzing clients in when they arrive
• Welcoming clients to the Centre, signing them in and out of the building calling the staff member to tell them that their client has arrived
• Registering new clients and booking an appointment with the Assessment team
• Assisting with the collection and distribution of client mail
• Administrative support to services, such as, photocopying or scanning documents for service teams and emailing them to relevant staff member
• Printing off and posting out letters to clients
• Possibility of assisting with benefit claims/forms

Other tasks that can be undertaken during quieter periods:

• Assisting clients and staff with phone calls if volunteer speaks a needed language

What are we looking for?

• You will be a confident and patient person with a professional and friendly manner and able to remain calm under pressure
• Some experience of customer service or dealing with a diverse range of people desirable
• Good listening skills
• An ability to communicate well and with confidence when handling enquiries
• Some IT skills useful
• A non-judgemental attitude towards people’s problems in their lives

What is the time commitment?

We are seeking someone for one day a week on a Thursday or Friday from 9.30am to 3pm, with an hour lunch break at 1pm. We are looking for a commitment of 6 months, which sounds like a long time, but there’s lots to learn and volunteers find this goes very quickly! 

How will you be supported?

You will be supported by the Advice and Assessment team  

You will be offered regular supervision and a staff member will be present in the Hub whilst you are on duty

You will be reimbursed for reasonable and agreed ‘out of pocket’ expenses such as travel and contribution to lunch up to £6.

Recruitment Procedure

Apply> Informal interview> Reference and DBS checks> Trial period

Indo Naturals
Indo Naturals develops plastic-free and synthetic-free natural products for everyday living, demonstrating a commitment to ethical production and consumption. The startup addresses the dual challenges of increasing synthetic consumption, which harms the planet and people, and rising global inequality.

The solution is to partner with artisans and social production units in rural India to craft products using abundant renewable natural materials. Operating on a WFTO certified fair trade system, Indo Naturals ensures production partners are empowered through fair wages, ethical conditions, and capacity building.

The startup’s model aims to create a synergy between natural wellness, social impact, and environmental responsibility, showing that an alternative to the current "broken system" is possible. By sharing the story and impact behind each product, Indo Naturals seeks to strengthen communities—both producers and consumers—with the larger vision of a new economic system where people and planet are prioritised.

Marketing Manager

Do you have a talent for social media, graphic design, content creation, e-commerce, and ads? Do you want to show your skills to the world and help us create impact? Do you also think it’s time for a new way of producing, trading, and consuming where people and planet come first?

We’re on a mission to change how we produce goods and consume, making it easy to live mindfully and naturally while respecting the natural world and contributing to equality and strengthening people.

Our brand Indo Naturals, delivers natural everyday products free from plastic and synthetics. They are made ethically in rural India using mainly local raw materials.

In the position you will work independently with weekly meetings, creating content for social media, newsletter, and website blog, showcasing our products, spreading awareness,
The tasks largely revolve around Social Media planning, creating, and scheduling. It's a part-time, flexible, and remote position where independent thinking and strategic planning are important. The volunteer is encouraged to take charge of their own role and come up with new ideas and recommendations to continuously improve our marketing.

***

• Start: November
• Work times: partly flexible
• Work location: flexible (remote working/digital)
• Duration: 6+ months
• Workload: 12+ hours / week
• Meetings: about 1 / week (1 hour)

Skills:

• Driven on Social Media content creation
• Strategic thinker (works towards goals and can set up strategies to reach them)
• Detail-oriented (in the form of text writing and visual content)
• Text editor (like to look through texts and improve it)
• Experience with design on Canva
• Team player (active listening, active communicator, accepting that others edit your text and content)
• Ability to work independently
• Experience using Meta

Tasks - SOME:

• Actively use our marketing strategy and branding kit
• Strategic content creation
• Text editing and storytelling
• Simple photo editing and graphic designing (Canva)
• Posting on SoMe (Meta)
• Blog writing, planning, and posting
• Small webpage updates
• Possibly: photo content creation
• Actively use our marketing strategy and branding kit
• Text editing and storytelling
• Simple photo editing and graphic designing (Canva)
• Updating our profiles on different website marketing platforms
• Photo editing and graphic designing (Canva)
• Manage Ads (Google Merchant Center, Google Ads, Google tags, FB Ads)

What you get:

• A highly independent and flexible role that welcomes creativity and initiative
• Learn about product impact
• A steep learning curve - working in a start-up will give you both the freedom and responsibility to be innovative, yet follow a strategy and planning tool
• A reference letter for your CV

Application process:

• Share the link to your updated LinkedIn profile
• Answer a few questions
• Interviews on a running basis

Minimum Hours per Week:

10+ hours per week

Duration:

6+ months

Our vision for volunteering

Volunteering is and always will be at the heart of Cats Protection. It is joyful and inclusive. As a charity, working in partnership, together we transform the lives of cats, people and communities.

The difference you will make to cats and people

At Cats Protection we find thousands of perfect matches between people and cats every year. Our cat match volunteers provide the support, information and guidance needed to match the right person to the right cat.

You can expect us to

• Make you feel welcome, included and respected in line with our values and behaviours
• Support you in having a positive and impactful experience at Cats Protection
• Cover agreed out-of-pocket expenses in line with our Expenses Policy
• Provide you with access to learning, development and engagement opportunities

What we need from you

You’ll be:

• Being part of a team that identifies suitable homes for cats in care
• Providing potential adopters with basic cat care information
• Completing homing questionnaires with potential adopters ‘virtually’, as well as face to face, which may involve visiting the homes of potential adopters
• Carrying out follow up communications if required
• Using online map searches to match cats and kittens to new homes

Time expectation

Our cat match volunteers usually spend 2 to 3 hours a week in this role which is flexible and can be shared by more than one volunteer if needed.

You may be just the volunteer we’ve been looking for!

We are committed to building a diverse, compassionate and inclusive organisation where everyone can be themselves and do their best. We are courageous and compassionate in our purpose of helping people see the world through cats’ eyes. Together, we can make a difference. Together, we are all for cats. Join the UK’s leading cat welfare charity and help make a better life for cats, because life is better with cats.

Fundraising events helper

Our vision for volunteering

Volunteering is and always will be at the heart of Cats Protection. It is joyful and inclusive. As a charity, working in partnership, together we transform the lives of cats, people and communities.

The difference you will make to cats and people

As a charity we can continue to help cats and kittens in need thanks to the donations we receive at fundraising events from generous members of the public. Our fundraising event helpers have the exciting and varied role of helping at local fundraising events - such as cakes sales, barn dances, quiz nights – and everything in between

You can expect us to

• make you feel welcome, included and respected in line with our values and behaviours
• support you in having a positive and impactful experience at Cats Protection
• cover agreed out-of-pocket expenses in line with our Expenses Policy
• provide you with access to learning, development and engagement opportunities

What we need from you

You’ll be:

· help set up and/or man stalls at events

· help on collection days like supermarket collections events or street collections

· help at fundraising events such as quiz nights, cake sales and dances

· promoting a professional image of Cats Protection at events

Time expectation

This role is really flexible! You could choose to volunteer at one event for a couple of hours or attend multiple fundraising events.

We’ll keep you up to date with upcoming local events where volunteers are needed. You’ll then be able to choose which events you’d like to volunteer at and how many hours you’d like to give. However much time you can give, your contribution will help raise much needed funds to continue the work of Cats Protection.

You may be just the volunteer we’ve been looking for!

We are committed to building a diverse, compassionate and inclusive organisation where everyone can be themselves and do their best. We are courageous and compassionate in our purpose of helping people see the world through cats’ eyes. Together, we can make a difference. Together, we are all for cats. Join the UK’s leading cat welfare charity and help make a better life for cats, because life is better with cats.