A shared commitment to support all communities to be dynamic and welcoming places for volunteering.
In the UK Age UK help millions of people every year, providing support, companionship and advice. They campaign with and for older people to champion their rights, needs and wishes. Age UK would not be able to function properly without the dedication of the more than 75,000 volunteers who get involved and help all older people to make the most of later life.
Visit ageuk.org.uk
Barnados help hundreds of thousands of children, young people, parents and carers via 800+ services across the UK. Volunteers help the UK’s most disadvantaged children & young people.
Visit barnardos.org.uk
Volunteers help British Heart Foundation to save and improve the lives of families and loved ones. Whether a few hours or a couple of days a week, all British Heart Foundation roles keep you safe as you volunteer so you can help continue to fund life saving research.
Visit bhf.org.uk
Volunteering is an integral part of not only The British Red Cross, but the entire Red Cross/Red Crescent Movement. Voluntary service is one of seven Fundamental Principles that underpin the Movement. There is no better expression of human kindness than to freely give time in support of others.
Visit redcross.org.uk
The Trust was launched in 2012, taking over the guardianship of British Waterways’ canals, rivers, reservoirs and docks in England and Wales - and heralding the next chapter in the renaissance of the waterways.
We work hard to maintain their legacy, and, together with volunteers and communities across England and Wales, they are transforming them into spaces where anyone can come to feel happier and healthier. A back garden for almost nine million people across the UK, today waterways provide opportunities for boating, angling, cycling, walking, paddling or simply surrounding spending time in nature.
Visit canalrivertrust.org.uk
Cats Protection’s 9,600 volunteers are at the centre of the UK wide movement of people championing the welfare of cats. They bring professionalism, expertise, passion, community links (to name just a few!) and create societal impact as well as positively changing the lives of around 375 cats every day! Their love of cats is at the centre of their gift of time and Cats Protection wouldn’t be the UK’s leading feline welfare charity without them.
Visit cats.org.uk
Citizens Advice volunteers make a positive difference to others - whether through directly providing advice; via admin and back-office roles; campaigning and fundraising or in the Witness Service, enabling people to give their best evidence in court. Volunteers bring fresh perspectives, energy, dedication and skills. Their donations of time and effort are something to celebrate and value.
Visit citizensadvice.org.uk
By volunteering with a local CPRE, you’ll be helping enhance the countryside where you live and meeting people with similar interests. CPRE volunteers support in many different ways including the leadership of local CPRE groups, fundraising, providing specialist advice, managing social media channels, maintaining websites, picking litter and much more.
Visit cpre.org.uk
Cruse help people through one of the most painful times in life – with bereavement support, information and campaigning. They offer support through their website, national helpline, live chat, group, zoom, telephone or one-to-one in person support to make sure everyone grieving gets the help they need in a way that works for them. Cruse have a specially trained dedicated team of 4,000 bereavement volunteers.
Visit cruse.org.uk
Girlguiding is the leading charity for girls and young women in the UK, with nearly 370,000 members. Powered by over 80,000 volunteers, they are active in every part of the UK offering girls and young women a space where they can be themselves, have fun, build brilliant friendships and gain valuable life skills. Volunteering with Girlguiding is about empowering girls and giving them new experiences. It's about being a role model and helping girls realise their full potential.
Visit girlguiding.org.uk
Guide Dogs could not provide the life changing services they do without the remarkable dedication of 14,000 volunteers. From raising puppies to being a sighted guide, and from generating funds to supporting and directly delivering services, volunteering is crucial to the work Guide Dogs do.
Visit guidedogs.org.uk
The Jewish Volunteering Network (JVN) has a unique role in connecting volunteers to charities across the Jewish community and wider charity sector, where people find a whole range of year-round volunteering opportunities for long-term, short-term, or one-off volunteering. JVN also provides valued volunteering support and advice to many partner charities, offering training, conferences and management fora throughout the year.
Visit jvn.org.uk
National Childbirth Trust volunteers boost the wellbeing of parents through warm, friendly non-judgmental support. By offering clear guidance, support, and community, volunteers build strong, more inclusive parent networks that help create a society where no parent is isolated.
Visit nct.org.uk
The energy and expertise of volunteers are vital to the NSPCC’s efforts to be there for every child. Today, through services like Childline and Speak Out Stay Safe in almost every primary school. Tomorrow by raising the funds to help keep child protection front of mind.
Visit nspcc.org.uk
In every aspect of Papworth Trust’s work supporting thousands of disabled people, volunteers play a crucial part. Core services around housing, work and social care are all supported by people who give their time up for free, and with huge dedication and commitment, to help the Trust fulfil its overarching vision – for disabled people to be seen for who they are.
Visit papworthtrust.org.uk
The Ramblers is a charity dedicated to removing barriers so everyone can enjoy walking in green spaces and to preserving and improving hundreds of thousands of miles of well-loved paths, tracks and trails across England, Scotland, and Wales. They are committed to campaigning to keep the countryside open to all and to fighting for the things that matter most to walkers.
Visit ramblers.org.uk
RNIB's fantastic volunteers enable RNIB to be a catalyst for change – inspiring people with sight loss to transform their own personal experience, their community, and society. They campaign and raise the profile of the barriers faced, support people to access technology, facilitate peer connections and generously share skills and time.
Visit rnib.org.uk
Volunteers are at the heart of the RNLI. Thousands of amazing volunteers generously give their time, talent and kindness and RNLI couldn’t do what we do without their vital support. They are all lifesavers.
Visit rnli.org
Rotary is one of the world’s leading membership and humanitarian service organisations, with 1.4 million members globally. Members of Rotary volunteer their time to make a difference in their local communities and around the world through projects which support education, fight disease, promote peace, provide clean water and much more.
Visit rotarygbi.org
Royal Voluntary Service mobilises volunteers in every corner of Britain to support people in need and the NHS. Our volunteers work in a wide variety of roles and activities; from offering companionship to people who are socially isolated, to providing practical help to those recovering from illness, to working on hospital wards or helping at a vaccination site.
RSPB work in the UK and around the world. They carry out conservation work that you can see from space, built from the ground up. They protect habitats, save species, and help to end the nature and climate emergency. They do this through five main work areas: science, species, places, people and policy.
Visit RSPB
RSPCA volunteers are at the heart of the organisation. They're vital in helping RSPCA to ensure animals have a good life by rescuing and caring for those in need, by advocating on behalf of all animals and by inspiring everyone to treat them with compassion and respect.
Visit rspca.org.uk
Sea Cadets help equip teenagers with all the things they need to cope with and enjoy the big and changing world they're going into. Their volunteers are happy to roll up their sleeves, get involved, and make a positive difference to teenagers who are often struggling in today’s world and their communities.
Visit sea-cadets.org
Volunteers are at the heart of Sense’s programmes on loneliness. Not because they’re cheaper or any similar myth–they connect people with common interests who aren’t paid professionals and want to form a genuine connection. As well as being sincere, relationships are equal. Volunteers, like disabled people, have the same nerves on the first meeting and the same elation as their connection grows deeper.
Visit sense.org.uk
St. John Ambulance is England’s leading first aid and health response charity. Volunteers know that first aid saves lives. They deliver compassion and care as emergency ambulance crews, at marathons and music festivals, in hospitals, vaccinating the nation against Covid-19, and through a diverse range of inspiring youth programmes.
Visit sja.org.uk
Volunteers are the lifeblood of the Stroke Association. They help increase the reach and value of their work in supporting people affected by stroke. They also bring passion and a richer diversity of backgrounds and skills. In turn, it’s really important to Stroke Association that volunteers have a positive experience.
Visit stroke.org.uk
Since 1959, The Conservation Volunteers (TCV) has brought people together to create, improve and care for green spaces, with volunteering at the heart of their work. Social, physical volunteering in nature delivers health and wellbeing, learning and skills, and community cohesion benefits while tackling the climate and ecological crisis.
Visit tcv.org.uk
Scouts is the largest youth movement in the UK and relies on 140,000 amazing volunteers who ensure their 410,000+ youth members have fun, adventure and learn skills for life. And with 90,000 young people on their waiting list they need to recruit even more volunteers from diverse backgrounds.
Visit scouts.org.uk
There are over 28,000 volunteers across the Trussell Trust network. Without these amazing volunteers, food banks in the Trussell Trust network simply wouldn’t exist – and the hundreds of thousands of people in crisis they help each year wouldn’t receive the support they need. Their vision is for a future without the need for food banks, because everyone has enough money to buy their own food.
Visit trusselltrust.org
Volunteering Matters bring people together to overcome society’s most complex issues through the power of volunteering. They believe that communities have the power, knowledge and energy to improve themselves from within. Volunteering Matters are most effective when they work with people, alongside communities, to understand their needs and bring about meaningful change.
YHA are a leading social enterprise and a 90-year-old movement. A charity on a mission to enrich the lives of all, but especially young people, and improve physical health, mental wellbeing and life skills through the experiences they create.
Visit yha.org.uk
Contact Jez Hughes CBE, Convenor, on 07957 334 675 or email jez.hughes@bettercommunities.co.uk
