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.

My daughter (9) and I are volunteer fence judges for British Eventing. We are both horse riders, but I am too breakable and she is too young to ride in the competitions, so instead we take part by volunteering.
We do it at least twice a month between March and October. We get to talk to famous riders, Olympians, YouTubers etc.
We've made so many friends, we absolutely love doing it.

I don't currently because I don't have the time but previously I have been a school governor, a mentor for young people out of work and education, a trustee/safeguarding lead for a local charity, an advocate for an adult with autism and LDs.

Probably others I can no longer remember!

I do it because I find it interesting, I care about the people it supports, I like to use my skillet in a variety of ways. And I don't watch TV so doing stuff related to volunteering gives me something to do in the evenings.

Same, although I've moved to mainly the start box now. It's great fun isn't it, think I'm volunteering for the next 5 weekends now

I did some volunteering for Girlguiding with the younger Rainbows group. Loved the kids, loved the crafts and games. I would have stayed as I was hoping for a long-term thing to really get involved in - but the other women were proper martyr types who moaned about all the volunteering they did. I didn’t want to turn into them!

As a coach / committee member / dogsbody at my local sports club.

I volunteer as a school governor and as a charity trustee. I do it because I care about education and the cause of the charity and I feel that I have relevant skills to offer in these roles.

I also mentor a disadvantaged teen because I feel that some kids get a much better start in life than others, and we all need to do what little we can to try and help level the playing field.

I help run a local parkrun, I'm the "run director" for some events or do timekeeping or another role like that. Because I went to parkrun a few times and then realised it was all organised by volunteers, so I figured it was only fair to help out now and then or otherwise it wouldn't happen. Enjoyed volunteering as a marshal and things like that. Kept doing it. Was eventually invited to try run directing and to join the "core team" of volunteers. We've got people who just give up a run every few months to help or people who never run, they just like coming and marshalling in the same spot every Saturday morning as a social activity. I think that's really nice. You can do the same at junior parkruns for kids on Sunday mornings.

Trustee for a local scout group. Sit on the committee for the regional group of my professional society

in the past I’ve been a cub leader and active member of a local political party

it’s a good way to be part of a community. It doesn’t directly help at work, but my network is richer for it.

I volunteer as an owl at brownies. I started as DD was doing it and I just thought if I was dropped and picking up I might as well see if she (brown owl) needs help.

When I first retired, I did some voluntary work at my local hospital. I used to chat to patients on the dementia ward. I would always introduce myself and ask if they wanted to chat. I was on the same ward and went once a week for about 5 years. I also volunteered for Cats' Protection . I used to help socialise the cats who were going to be adopted. Sometimes they needed handling, sometimes they were very wary of any contact and needed to get used to human proximity; in one case I had to sit inside the long cage and read aloud to the cat. I got a lot from my time volunteering. It helps to find something that you are interested in, of course.

DH found out his company offers two paid "volunteer days" per year, which is great as he'd been taking them as annual leave previously so we got two more days to ourselves.

Forgot to say why!

My late DM went almost blind from diabetes and although my dad would read to her she liked to hear different voices! Carried it on after she died.

I have been a trustee of two charities, did collections for a food bank, gave employment law advice, fundraising for a DV charity, this was while I was working FT.

Now I am a volunteer cook at lunch clubs and do the window display and sort stock out in a charity shop.

Much of this volunteer work should be or used to be paid. As someone who has seen people lose their paid jobs to volunteers, I couldn't do it.

Definitely this.

The various volunteer roles I have had used to be paid roles.

I have a very highly accomplished friend who is now volunteering 7 hours a week for a government agency (in her professional field) because she can't find work and the government agency has promised her it may lead to something. She is in her early 50s. Has awards in her field is freelance and is now begging for crumbs.

I also suspect most volunteer roles are performed by women. Highly qualified women. This country relies on an unpaid female workforce IMO who through a sense of obligation and or love fuck themselves over. I am one of them.

I think you are being unrealistic there.

People have been volunteering for all my decades on this earth.
Most of what people have said here just wouldn't happen if people didn't give up their time. It really isn't taking paid work at all, it is adding something to society.

I volunteer two days a week at a cat charity shop, I used to volunteer at the rescues centre but then they stopped the bus from my town to the town where its located so making it too hard to get to and home again , two of my cats are from this charity so I am passionate about this particular charity , its an independent one not a national one, at the shop I sort through clothes donations for sale in the shop, I am retired now so it gets me out of the house and company of friends I have made there

I'm a volunteer moderator for a local Freegle reuse and recycling group. It's customer relations/service really, I do it because I believe in the cause and it's something I can fit round work and other commitments as it's "remote". I've done other volunteer roles in the past but time and a rural location make that difficult now so this fills a gap. Hopefully it's useful too.

I volunteer at a well known cat charity because I took early retirement and worried how I would fill my days (that’s a laugh). I choose this charity because it involves lots of cat care, cat and kitten cuddles and is extremely rewarding, I also got first pick when I adopted my latest cat.

I absolutely love it, the other volunteers are predominantly middle aged cat lovers like me and we have a laugh and share our moans on aching joints and menopause.

trustee of small charity or scout group? Playgroup leaders? Listening to children read? Most of these types of things are what have been mentioned.

Admittedly there are a few things that should be jobs, but there have been far fewer of these.

So do something that wouldn't otherwise be a paid job. None of the volunteer roles that I've had over several decades would ever have been a paid role. It's not like volunteer roles like mine are hard to find.

None of my volunteer roles would have been paid jobs, especially at the frequency I'm able to attend them.
Very few paid roles would allow me to only work when I'm feeling well, often only about once a month and for no more than an hour on any day with rest days before and after.
Several of my volunteer roles are things I created as an outlet for my interests or eg to fill bookshelves somewhere other than my house!

I volunteer on 2 village committees and at a food bank . I am retired early and am grateful for my lot - good to help where others haven't time

Same @billydilly it's just a lovely thing to do isn't it.

I volunteer as a guide at a house museum. I started it as something to keep me on my toes after retirement. It's a field outside my teaching one and built on my skills of presenting to groups. It's not a static exhibition so something new to learn twice a year.