Home visiting befriending volunteer volunteer volunteer roles

We are looking for a patient and chatty volunteer to visit a lovely lady in Woodley, Reading. She loves soft, cuddly toys and rainmakers, and is known to enjoy a nursey rhyme or two! She is non-verbal, but understands everything you say to her, so a friendly and understanding approach is key. She would love to have you stop by for a cup of tea and a chit chat, and perhaps over time venture out for walks and shopping in the local community.

We offer a lifelong befriending service for adults with learning disabilities. Matching the skills and interests of passionate visitors with the specific hobbies and interests of the people we visit. Visitors visit six times a year to create a 1-2-1 connection, offer companionship, encourage people to do the things they enjoy and check-in on their wellbeing. In many cases, the visitor is the only person in someone’s life who isn’t paid to be there for them.

This is a Stop and Stay visit role, meaning that the person you’ll be visiting might have some verbal communication skills or they use sounds and/or facial/body expressions to communicate with you. The person you visit might choose to take part in simple activities or watch you doing the activities. Your volunteer manager will be happy to help you with ideas and suggestions for things you can do. Visits will vary in length but tend to be around half an hour to an hour long.

In this role you will spend quality time with the person you visit and could do a range of different activities like:

• Sitting and having a chat
• Checking in on their well- being
• A craft activity at home
• Reading a book/magazine together

As a Mencap volunteer visitor you will be:

• Friendly and approachable
• Accepting of others who might be different to yourself
• Reliable and patient
• Passionate about supporting people with a with a learning disability.

As a Mencap visitor you will:

• Have the opportunity to help make a difference to the life of the person you visit
• Receive a personalised volunteer induction and training
• Have agreed out of pocket expenses reimbursed
• Meet new people
• Get on-going support, and feel appreciated and valued

About Mencap Mencap is the leading learning disability charity in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. We work with people with a learning disability and their families to challenge prejudice and change laws, and we directly support thousands of people to live their lives as they choose. We have an ambitious vision for the UK to be the best place in the world for people with a learning disability to live happy and healthy lives.

Volunteering with us is YOUR opportunity to help us achieve this, whilst having the chance to develop your skills, meet new people and join a passionate and dedicated team.

Are you someone who loves getting creative, catching a show, or simply enjoying a good chat over coffee and cake? Maybe you enjoy painting, crafting, or exploring local galleries, or perhaps you love trying new cafés, going for walks, or just sharing stories and laughs. As a volunteer visitor, you can turn your passions into friendship, spending quality time with someone who’ll appreciate your company, your hobbies, and your enthusiasm.

Watch a video about this volunteer role here

We offer a lifelong befriending service for adults with learning disabilities. Matching the skills and interests of passionate visitors with the specific hobbies and interests of the people we visit. Visitors visit six times a year to create a 1-2-1 connection, offer companionship, encourage people to do the things they enjoy and check-in on their wellbeing. In many cases, the visitor is the only person in someone’s life who isn’t paid to be there for them.

This is an Out and about visit role which means your visits are likely to be longer, very active and the person you visit will often take an active part in planning your outings and activities in the community. Your volunteer manager will be happy to help you with ideas and suggestions for things you can do. Visits will vary in length but tends to be around a couple of hours, sometimes shorter or longer, depending on what you plan to do.

In this role you will spend quality time with the person you visit and could do a range of different activities like:

• Sitting and having a chat
• Checking in on their well- being
• Going out to a local café/pub for a meal/drink
• Take part on community activities like visiting a place of interest, go shopping etc.
• Enjoying a walk
• A craft activity at home

As a Mencap volunteer visitor you will be:

• Friendly and approachable
• Accepting of others who might be different to yourself
• Reliable and patient
• Passionate about supporting people with a with a learning disability.

As a Mencap visitor you will:

• Have the opportunity to help make a difference to the life of the person you visit
• Receive a personalised volunteer induction and training
• Have agreed out of pocket expenses reimbursed
• Meet new people
• Get on-going support, and feel appreciated and valued

**About Mencap ** Mencap is the leading learning disability charity in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. We work with people with a learning disability and their families to challenge prejudice and change laws, and we directly support thousands of people to live their lives as they choose. We have an ambitious vision for the UK to be the best place in the world for people with a learning disability to live happy and healthy lives.

Volunteering with us is YOUR opportunity to help us achieve this, whilst having the chance to develop your skills, meet new people and join a passionate and dedicated team.

If you have questions about volunteering with Mencap, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with us

We are looking for a friendly, patient befriending volunteer to visit a lovely gentleman in New Southgate. He is keen to find an attentive listener who will show an interest in hearing his imaginative stories and will giggle at his jokes. He would love for someone to accompany him to McDonalds for a treat, to join him in a bit of music trivia, or sometimes for just a cup of tea and a chit chat.

We offer a lifelong befriending service for adults with learning disabilities. Matching the skills and interests of passionate visitors with the specific hobbies and interests of the people we visit. Visitors visit six times a year to create a 1-2-1 connection, offer companionship, encourage people to do the things they enjoy and check-in on their wellbeing. In many cases, the visitor is the only person in someone’s life who isn’t paid to be there for them.

This is an Out and about visit role which means your visits are likely to be longer, very active and the person you visit will often take an active part in planning your outings and activities in the community. Your volunteer manager will be happy to help you with ideas and suggestions for things you can do. Visits will vary in length but tends to be around a couple of hours, sometimes shorter or longer, depending on what you plan to do.

In this role you will spend quality time with the person you visit and could do a range of different activities like:

- Sitting and having a chat

- Checking in on their well- being

- Going out to a local café/pub for a meal/drink

- Take part on community activities like visiting a place of interest, go shopping etc.

- Enjoying a walk

- A craft activity at home

As a Mencap volunteer visitor you will be:

- Friendly and approachable

- Accepting of others who might be different to yourself

- Reliable and patient

- Passionate about supporting people with a with a learning disability.

As a Mencap visitor you will:

- Have the opportunity to help make a difference to the life of the person you visit

- Receive a personalised volunteer induction and training

- Have agreed out of pocket expenses reimbursed

- Meet new people

- Get on-going support, and feel appreciated and valued

About Mencap

Mencap is the leading learning disability charity in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. We work with people with a learning disability and their families to challenge prejudice and change laws, and we directly support thousands of people to live their lives as they choose. We have an ambitious vision for the UK to be the best place in the world for people with a learning disability to live happy and healthy lives.

Volunteering with us is YOUR opportunity to help us achieve this, whilst having the chance to develop your skills, meet new people and join a passionate and dedicated team.

If you have questions about volunteering with Mencap, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.

This is an opportunity for a female befriender to visit a lovely, chatty lady in New Barnet. She’s a lover of all things crafty, including making jewellery and painting, but her absolute favourite are jigsaw puzzles. She would love a visitor to do these things with her, as well as going for walks to the local coffee shop for a slice of cake or spending some time in the garden on a sunny day.

We offer a lifelong befriending service for adults with learning disabilities. Matching the skills and interests of passionate visitors with the specific hobbies and interests of the people we visit. Visitors visit six times a year to create a 1-2-1 connection, offer companionship, encourage people to do the things they enjoy and check-in on their wellbeing. In many cases, the visitor is the only person in someone’s life who isn’t paid to be there for them.

This is a Stop and stay, let’s get busy visitor role which means the person you will be visiting can communicate actively with you and take part in choosing or planning activities.  As you get to know each our you may choose to ‘go out’ either with or without support from the staff that supports the person you visit.  Your volunteer manager will be happy to help you with ideas and suggestions for things you can do. Visits will vary in length but tends to be around an hour or longer, depending on what you do.

In this role you will spend quality time with the person you visit and could do a range of different activities like:

• Sitting and having a chat

• Checking in on their well- being

• Going out to a local café/pub for a meal/drink

• Enjoying a walk

• A craft activity at home

• Reading a book/magazine together                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   

As a Mencap volunteer visitor you will be:

- Friendly and approachable

- Accepting of others who might be different to yourself

- Reliable and patient

- Passionate about supporting people with a with a learning disability.

As a Mencap visitor you will:

- Have the opportunity to help make a difference to the life of the person you visit

- Receive a personalised volunteer induction and training

- Have agreed out of pocket expenses reimbursed

- Meet new people

- Get on-going support, and feel appreciated and valued

About Mencap

Mencap is the leading learning disability charity in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. We work with people with a learning disability and their families to challenge prejudice and change laws, and we directly support thousands of people to live their lives as they choose. We have an ambitious vision for the UK to be the best place in the world for people with a learning disability to live happy and healthy lives.

Volunteering with us is YOUR opportunity to help us achieve this, whilst having the chance to develop your skills, meet new people and join a passionate and dedicated team.

If you have questions about volunteering with Mencap, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.

Are you a legal expert who could use your strengths, skills or experience to make a positive difference to Age UK Hertfordshire – a successful charity with the simple, yet vital, mission: “To support older people by delivering services that help make later life fulfilling and enjoyable experience”?

Age UK Hertfordshire (AUKH) is a large charity that every year reaches thousands of older people and their carers, and has a high level of recognition across the County’s statutory authorities, voluntary sector and the public.  Our services – some developed and delivered in productive partnerships – include “active ageing” day clubs, help in the home, dementia support, befriending and in-touch telephone support, nutrition and dietetics service, hospital and community “navigation”, information and advice.

To build and grow from our current strong position, we need to expand our Trustee Board - to complement the skills of our present Trustees and broaden our Board’s diversity.

We welcome applications from all age groups and backgrounds, and we are particularly looking for legal skills.

In addition, the following areas of expertise are also welcome:

• fundraising and income generation;
• financial management;
• communications and social media;
• building local stakeholder relationships; 

Board and/or senior experience would be a valuable bonus.

Time commitment is one day per month during working hours.

This is a volunteer role, offering the opportunity to contribute actively to the lives of older people in our communities, and gain leadership and Board experience with a collaborative team of committed Trustees.

Please take a look at Age UK Hertfordshire's website for further information. 

Closing date for applications:Friday 20 February 2026.

 The selection process will be in two stages involving interviews with existing Trustees, plus a meeting with the Chair of Trustees and CEO for candidates on the final shortlist.

The provisional dates for first interviews are week commencing 2 March 2026

Many older people in our communities face significant challenges - from loneliness, isolation, and frailty to financial hardship and managing lifechanging conditions like Dementia. The work we do is vital in ensuring they have access to the support and care they deserve.

Our team is deeply passionate about this mission. Many of us have personal experience supporting older relatives through similar challenges, and these lived experiences fuel our commitment to delivering high-quality, compassionate services.

Following our successful merger in August 2023, our organisation is now moving forward with greater ambition and a renewed focus on expanding our reach. As a Trustee, you will play a crucial role in shaping that future - helping us to serve more people, strengthen our services, and advocate for the needs of older people across Maidstone, Sevenoaks, and Tonbridge. 

We are looking for people from a financial background to help with oversight of our budgeting, planning, forecasting, investments, governance, reporting and financial decision-making. This is a great opportunity to work closely with organisational leaders to ensure every penny makes a difference.