December: 4 volunteering roles that can really help this Christmas!

Megan Clark is the Volunteering Assistant at the Guild and is studying for a PhD in Egyptology.

Here, Megan shares four volunteering opportunities that you can get involved with in Merseyside. The winter holidays are a time to reflect on the good that we have in our lives, as well as those who may not be as fortunate as us.

If you would like to make a difference this winter we have one-off roles to regular volunteering, with something for everyone to get involved with over the Christmas break!

You’ll find lots more opportunities via the Guild’s Volunteer pages.

1. The Whitechapel Centre: Donations Volunteer

Winter is the hardest time of year to be homeless, and any help can really make a difference. The Whitechapel Centre provides the only hot meal that a homeless user will get each day, with time for them to enjoy a warm invite in a comfortable setting. They also provide donated clothing and bedding which can really make the difference to the life of someone facing homelessness.

The Whitechapel Centre is already carrying out amazing work in the Liverpool City Region, working with organisations across the city to receive food, clothing, bedding, and funds to continue supporting the homeless community.

A donations volunteer helps out to directly assist in the processing and sorting of this clothing and bedding in their centre to then be distributed directly to service users and to other support centres across Liverpool. A volunteer for this role is ideally good at communicating, practical, non-judgemental, non-discriminatory, and comes to the role with a positive attitude!

You can find out more about becoming a Donations Volunteer via the Guild’s website.

The Whitechapel have many other roles which you can apply for including: Centre Support Volunteer, Kitchen Support Volunteer, Night Hub Volunteer, Switchboard Operator, and Shop Volunteer.

2. FoodCycle: FoodCycle Cooking Volunteer

Poverty, and food poverty in particular, are a huge problem in the UK with 500,000 of the population relying on food parcels. Even more shockingly, over 2 million people in the UK have been deemed as undernourished and lacking the vital nutrition they need to live, learn and thrive.

FoodCycle work to serve community meals across the country by supporting people who are hungry and lonely through their lunches and dinners every single day in towns and cities across the country.  Many of FoodCycle’s users struggle to afford the basics to eat and many will eat alone without company or conversation, creating a cycle of physical and mental illness that can be hard to escape, especially for those in poverty.

FoodCycle run cooking sessions every Wednesday that you can get involved with. Whether you’re a seasoned chef or a cooking novice, everyone is welcome to volunteer.  As a volunteer you would be involved in planning the menu for the evening, cooking the meal, serving guests and helping to clean up afterwards.  FoodCycle also encourage all of their volunteers to take a break and have something to eat with guests, which further helps to foster a community spirit.

You can find out more about becoming a FoodCycle Cooking Volunteer via the Guild’s website.

3. Sanctuary Care: Volunteer Befriender

Sanctuary Care provide a range of services for older people including residential care, dementia care, nursing care and palliative care. They work with an ethos of ‘keeping kindness at the heart of their care’, believing that residents should be given every opportunity to lead happy, contented lives.

Arundel Park Residential and Nursing Home is set in Liverpool’s Sefton Park Care Village, providing residential, nursing and palliative care for up to 50 older people. The home enjoys a welcoming and homely atmosphere, thanks to the dedicated and caring work of their round the clock team.

They rely on the support of volunteers to allow their residents to stay connected with their local communities and have the special one-to-one time and stimulation that volunteers have the time to offer. Not all of Arundel Park Residential and Nursing Home’s residents have family or friends who can visit them regularly so by becoming a volunteer you can offer a valuable link to the wider world.

You can find out more about becoming a Volunteer Befriender via the Guild’s website.

If you are interested in any of our other befriender roles you can also become a Cinema Befriender for Making Space, or a Telephone Befriender, Sighted Guide Befriender or Regular Befriender for Age Concern Liverpool and Sefton.

4. The Crossing Point: Submitting Grant Applications

According to the latest statistics, around two million adults a year experience domestic abuse, which is sadly a figure that tends to spike during the festive season. It is a time of merriment for many of us, but it can also be a time of increasingly strained relationships. Domestic Abuse can be psychological, emotional, sexual, and even financial.

Over the winter period, you can sign up to become a volunteer for The Crossing Point, a free and confidential domestic abuse service for women, men and young people who are, or have been victims of abuse. As a volunteer you’ll be working case by case to help submit grant applications.

If you would like to make a real difference to this organisation to help them apply for more resources, but also to assist in their education programme then this is a great opportunity for you! The organisation are looking for volunteers to assist on Mondays and Wednesdays.

You can find out more about becoming a Grant Applications Submitter via the Guild’s website.

If you have any further questions about the following opportunities, or would even like to find out what the Guild’s Volunteering Liverpool platform has to offer you, please feel free to contact us at: guildvol@liverpool.ac.uk

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