Do you volunteer? If so, what and why?

[GlowFlo]

Just being nosy really and looking to volunteer a bit more!
Would love to be inspired by Mumsnetters.

I volunteer as an athletics official. In the summer it is something I do most weekends (less in the winter tbf) but I could do it less if I wanted.

Someone asked me the other day i I got any money for it. Errr no! I get petrol money if it's a nationally organised event (like BUCS) but otherwise I do it bc I love it. My kids used to do the sport and I'd always enjoyed it. I find it great fun and very absorbing (which is a good thing!) plus I get to meet some lovely people – athletes and officials.

I'm also on the committee for the local athletic club in a way that uses my skills from work.

I used to be a school governor and also was on my DCs' PTAs while they were at school.

If you want a good place to start OP your local Parkrun will for sure need people to marshall or check barcodes on a weekly basis.

I worked out a while ago that I do 250-300 hours volunteering each year alongside my full time job.

I’m a Parish Councillor, a Trustee of a charity and assist in the organising and helping at multiple other charitable events each year for various local organisations.

Why? I was brought up to believe that if you can help your community or those less fortunate then you absolutely should to the best of your abilities. I have always felt an inherent need to help others and make the world a better place.

And I love it. All of it. Even though my day job is demanding and after a 12 hour day in the office the last thing I sometimes want to do it go to another meeting for a committee or event…. But I go and always feel better afterwards. And when I see the impact of the work we do, it’s 100% worth the stress and exhaustion.

I volunteer as a section leader in our local Scout group. I started because my child wanted to join but the section had closed down so needed volunteers to get it running again. I'm carrying on after my children have moved on though because I really enjoy it.

I'm also a governor at the local primary school. Again, I started because of my children but it's been really interesting.

School Governor, Sunday School teacher.

My parents always volunteered, so it’s my normality.

Both DC now volunteer -food bank and sports coaching.

I'm a Brownie leader, have been helping with them since I started DofE at 14! I was never a Brownie myself but was in Guides and Rangers and got so much from it, I want to pass some of that on to "my" girls. I don't agree with everything Girlguiding says, but I strongly believe that having a girls-only space for them to try new things is so important. The admin is a faff, but the actual meetings with the girls and my leadership team are great fun. One day I'd love to lead an international trip with older girls, as I went on two when I was younger and they were awesome, but sadly for now my annual leave in school holidays is dedicated to childcare.

I have previously run an NCT walking group, but stopped that in 2020, and by the time lockdown restrictions were eased, my DC were too old to take along.

My kids' school doesn't have a PTA at the moment - if it did, I'd volunteer for it, but I'm not up for setting it up/running it by myself!

I volunteered as a charity trustee when I wasn’t working (recovering from burnout) to feel useful and keep my skills up. I’m now the Chair and I love it. It takes a lot of time on top of my (now) full-time job and my family but it’s so rewarding and I believe we are making a difference to a wide community

That would be amazing! I hope they are able to help your families.

Yep, I do the accounts for a charity for free, I'm the chair of the bloody PTA (only because no-one else would do it) and I'm a volunteer Scout leader.

I do the latter two partly because it's important for kids to have a better funded school/outdoor opportunities, and partly due to Catholic guilt

Yes, once a week in a museum. It's great, gets me out of the house and meeting new people.

Ooh, what is that real difference?
I'm semi retired and volunteer as a sports leader and non executive director for a charity as well as committee member for another charity.

I volunteer as a steward at festivals

I volunteer at the local youth club because there is so little for teenagers to do in our area unless they are into sport.

In the past I have been a befriender and volunteered at crisis at Christmas.
At the moment I only do Parkrun which couldn't operate without the volunteers.
I just feel it's good to give back in any way you can. We all have something to offer.

I’ve volunteered since I was at school, it’s a way of life. Done lots of different things over the years - reading on the talking newspaper, teaching literacy skills, various committees.

I’m now semi retired, and I volunteer as a room steward at a local stately home, I help at a local music festival, and I’m on a couple of committees for organisations that I’m involved in. I also do the tea parties for the elderly mentioned above (Re-engage), I used to be a driver but now I’m a host. I love baking so it’s an opportunity to show off a couple of times a year!

I volunteer because you get out of life what you put into it. It’s brought me friends, satisfaction and a sense of purpose in life.

Just wanted to say that I love how you've phrased this. It encapsulates a lot of why I volunteer (just hadn't thought of it that way for a while). Thank you.

We both volunteer with a large national charity. Main reason is we're retired and it gets us out. We do different days and different aspects so that we have things to talk about and aren't always together, which seems to be pretty standard for us the rest of the time.

I have been volunteering all my life.
I'm treasurer for two local organisations. I sometimes volunteer at events for garden organic, I staff the bar at my allotment clubhouse once a month, I'm involved in environmental campaigning. I love going to festivals and volunteer for Green Gathering and Green Man and I occasionally give talks / workshops on seed saving / propagating plants.

I used to volunteer for a cadets organisation and have a youth work qualification that I did for fun (have never used in jobs) and when the kids came along I did the usual NCT/PTA/After school clubs pathway.

I love being busy and I can't wait to stop working so I can do all the things that I love doing. (Although my job's not bad at all, tbh)

Yes, I've been a regular volunteer at various places for about ten years;

Local children's centre (now closed down)
on the PTA when my kids were little
Library listening to readers doing the Summer Reading Challenge + library home visit service
Listening to readers at the local school
Helping out at a community garden

Basically I love meeting new people, learning new things, passionate about investing in the community I'm raising my children in, and giving back when I can. It's very rewarding.

I volunteered at the covid vaccination clinic. I signed up because due to the nature of my work, the pandemic brought me loads of work and my business took off. All around me I saw people being furloughed and made redundant, and my friend was an ICU nurse and I knew that if I didn’t give something back, if my future grandchildren asked me ‘what did YOU do in the great pandemic’ I didn’t want to say ‘make money’. I wanted to be part of the solution. I had a wonderful time, made lifelong friends and saw society at its best and worst. I have many stories to tell.

I'm a volunteer at an animal sanctuary.

DSis was helping out with her DD, her DD then had too much on so stopped, so I started going with DSis instead. It's harder physical work through winter when it's so wet but we keep on and dream of easier times in summer. We enjoy it so much, getting a field or stable clean - even for a short while - is just so gratifying

It's very satisfying helping, the animals are such characters and it's good for us to get the exercise and meet and engage with new people. A lot of the volunteers are people with life struggles and so many have found a welcoming acceptance there.

I've volunteered for the past 6yrs. For a charity working with ex offenders in probation (but that ended with covid), at a historical venue because I'm a bit mad about castles and, since April, for a charity working with elderly people in care homes who have no friends or family.

I'm an ambulance service volunteer - a community first responder.

I describe volunteering as a hobby that happens to help people - something I enjoy, but that does some good too (and part of the enjoyment is the doing good bit).

I do love being able to help people, and this suits me because I find people so interesting, it's challenging, I have to engage my brain, it's different every time, and it fits perfectly into my life.

If I couldn't do it I'd love to teach reading but we don't have ReadEasy round here.

Different things over the years, I volunteered for crisis at Christmas a few years in a row on night shift at the drinkers shelter, worked as a community theatre liaison in Malawi for 6months, was a court apppointed special advocate for children under children’s services in the courts when I lived in the states. About to start training for Home Start volunteering

I do triathlon so I often volunteer at events when I'm not racing. It's my way of giving back because events can't happen and folk like me can't race without volunteers.

I also used to be on my son's primary school PTA for 4 years until he left. Again, it benefits the kids.

I've volunteered at loads of things over the years, such as;
-marshalling a marathon
-helping at various youth clubs
-fixing up a scout hut
-building set for a youth production
-running a small community "give and take" library
-running a plant swap
-making refreshments on a large scout camp
-donating plants for screening in a scout campsite
-painting up benches and planters for my local Britain in Bloom entry
-planting trees for the Woodland Trust

I'm now largely housebound so can't do as much as I did, but still volunteer where I can and find ways to help within my current capacity.

DS is currently volunteering on the Edinburgh Fringe Festival as stage crew, which is very worthwhile as he gets free accommodation and food, free show tickets for various venues and free transport.

Communities work best when everyone who can help does a bit to make things a bit nicer.