THERE HAVE MANY TYPES OF VOLUNTEER

Wide ranging volunteering opportunities

Here are some of the most well-known types of volunteering work. More information can be found from your local volunteering centre or by looking at the "Search for a Vacancy" section of this website.

Administration, IT, management and finance

Many organisations depend on volunteers to help them with a wide range of "office" type work - from photocopying and envelope "stuffing" right through to helping with more specialist areas such as School Governors and Organisation Trustees:

School governors

School governors form the largest volunteer workforce in the UK with around 350,000 governor places. Governors play a crucial role in the teams that run schools, helping to ensure that all pupils develop as individuals and receive a good quality education. Governors have responsibility for the strategic management of the school, working closely with the headteacher and staff. As a governor you will attend regular governing body meetings, visit the school to meet staff, see the children at work, participate in the life of the school and attend special events.

Trustees

Trustees, (also known as management committee members, or Board members) play an essential part in the running of voluntary organisations. They are responsible for ensuring that a voluntary organisation has a clear strategy, that it remains true to its original vision, and that it complies with all necessary rules and legal obligations.

Being a Trustee means you have an obligation to provide good governance along with a number of important responsibilities. You may be directly involved in carrying out some tasks, while others can be delegated to the staff you employ. 

Briefly, trustees' responsibilities include strategic planning, monitoring and evaluating the work of the organisation, managing property, staff, public relations and overseeing fundraising activities. As a trustee, you are also likely to be responsible for the actions of your organisation’s staff: this will involve you in monitoring the way they carry out their duties.

People from all walks of life become trustees of voluntary organisations, and together they contribute huge amounts of time and energy to a wide variety of good causes.
Advice, information giving, counselling, listening and befriending

Many organisations also rely on volunteers to provide a wide range of support to individuals who are in difficulty or don't know where to turn. They often provide training to enable their volunteers to undertake this sort of work and the knowledge and skills gained can often be used by the volunteers in other parts of their lives.

Prison visitors

The Prison Service recruits prison visitors to help provide some contact for prisoners with the outside world. Any prisoner may apply for support from an Official Visitor. Volunteers should have a desire to befriend prisoners and give support through visiting. They visit all categories of prisoners, whatever their circumstances, and are encouraged to become involved in the general life of the prison, as well as helping to meet the needs of the prisoner.

Event organising, fundraising, marketing, campaigning, public speaking

Many organisations again rely on volunteers to support their work by undertaking a range of activities to promote their organisation and its work, to the wider community. Some but not all give training to help volunteers develop these skills but many welcome volunteer contributions to support the work of those who already have them.

Fundraising

All charitable organisations seek fundraising volunteers to help raise income levels and fund their work. One benefit of fundraising is that you can work for charities in which you have a strong belief. It may be as simple as rattling a collection bucket one weekend, or you could get involved in working in shops, developing new ideas, educational visits to schools and running events.

For example, The British Red Cross run a fundraising week, every year, and need volunteers who can give talks to help spread their message and sign up new members, make formal applications for funding and help organise and run events.

Childline looks for volunteers who enjoy meeting new people, organising parties and who are good at coming up with ideas and applying them.
DIY projects

Many charities rely on volunteers to undertake a wide range of practical work such as decorating, gardening and other types of maintenance and repairs to their properties. Such work is usually supervised by experts in these areas so people without specic skills or experience can be valuable contributors to their work.

Conservation and the Environment

There are a number of organisations that provide volunteering opportunities in conservation and the work varies from charity to charity. Opportunities to do practical work and help your local environment, such as constructing footpaths and creating wildlife habitats, are available with the British Trust for Conservation Volunteers

The work of volunteers is essential to the successful management of the RSPB’s bird reserves. Volunteering can be an ideal way to learn about wildlife and conservation while helping the local environment.

The National Trust requires people to help look after properties and land and to prepare and run public events.

Local Authority Countryside and Forestry Units need volunteers for conservation work including tree planting, path work, stile building, creating ponds, surveying sites and dry stone walling. Specific opportunities may exist to work at public locations. There are also many smaller groups which look after properties and land and require volunteers to carry out similar work. 

Learning, Training and Teaching - Class Room Support with Reading

A variety of opportunities exist to work with schoolchildren and adults, helping them to learn to read. A popular form of volunteering is to help disadvantaged children who find reading a challenge and are at risk of falling behind their peers. These children may also find it difficult to interact socially with adults and volunteers can help build their confidence as well as improving reading ability. The work takes place in schools but outside the classroom.

For more information contact Volunteer Reading Help, a national charity which trains volunteers to help support children week-in week-out by offering quality, one-to-one time.

Many schools are now involved in schemes whereby adults from the local community assist with pupils' reading on a one-to-one basis, outside of the usual classroom environment. Volunteers usually undergo a short period of training before committing to spending a set amount of time per week (usually an hour) with a child, for at least a term. Volunteers are not expected to take the place of a teacher but are there to give one-to-one encouragement to children, helping them to relax, gain confidence and enjoy their reading. Volunteers from business can also function as role models to children who are unfamiliar with the world of work. 
Artistic, creative, reading, music and dance

Volunteering and the Arts

For many organisations in the arts sector, volunteering is central to them being able to run effectively, with often limited resources. 

There are many reasons for recruiting volunteers and many different roles available. Volunteers can help with the management and running of the organisation, assisting with events and activities, administration, and fund-raising. If you already have creative skills you could help run arts workshops for young and disadvantaged people.

You may not be creative but if you have an interest in the arts you could help run local theatres, music or dance schools and groups. This could involve running a box office, ushering, working in the bar, making costumes and helping backstage.

Welfare, justice and the emergency services

Opportunities for volunteers exist in a wide range of emergency response organisations, from the Police Force to the Royal National Lifeboat Institution. Training is almost always provided by these sort of organisations and such skills can be used in many other aspects of volunteers' lives.

Magistrates

According to The Ministry of Justice, magistrates make life-changing decisions every day: decisions that affect the lives of every defendant and, ultimately, everyone in the community. They don't have any special qualifications. They just have the right personal qualities and a willingness to commit some of their time to serve their community voluntarily. They deal with the less serious criminal cases like minor theft, motoring and public order offences. They may also deal with a range of non-criminal issues affecting families and children, or with licensing applications from betting shops and gaming clubs. In each case they consider the evidence and reach a verdict.
Sport

From small amateur sports clubs to major sports governing bodies, there are many opportunities for volunteering in sport. The 2012 Olympics as well as the Government drive to increase activity levels among schoolchildren and adults, is creating increased demand for volunteers. The 2012 Olympics as well as the Government drive to increase activity levels among schoolchildren and adults, is creating increased demand for volunteers.

post by KANG CHIN YI