10 Charities You Might Consider Getting Involved With

The Samaritans

As a volunteer for the Samaritans, you’ll be helping people in desperate need of mental and emotional support. You don’t need any qualifications to apply – a kind, open-minded attitude is the only requirement. Depending on your skill set, you can help the charity deliver its 24-hour telephone and email service via fundraising, generating publicity, admin and finance.

If you think on-site volunteering in one of their call centres is for you, then recruitment and training is currently being carried out by each branch with social distancing measures in place. 
 
Visit Samaritans.org

Royal Voluntary Service 

Love driving? Volunteer your time and your vehicle to give people who can’t get out on their own some life-changing freedom. As one of Royal Voluntary Service’s drivers, you’ll be meeting the needs of your local community, and there’s plenty of flexibility to find an opportunity that’s right for you.

In your role, you might be picking up shopping or driving someone to a doctor’s appointment. All new volunteer drivers receive a full health and safety induction, while the charity will ensure you can transport people safely to and from their destination.
 
Visit RoyalVoluntaryService.org.uk

The Silverline

If you’re a good listener, empathetic, and a natural on the phone, with the capacity to commit to a 30-minute chat per week, you can volunteer as a Telephone Friendship Service volunteer with charity The Silverline. Together with their partner charity Age UK, The Silverline offers a free telephone friendship service for people aged 60 and over, who’d like to talk to someone on a regular basis. 
 
Visit Silverline.org.uk

Meals On Wheels

Meals On Wheels provide a vital service, distributing nutritious food – along with friendly visits – to older people and those living with disabilities. If you’d be happy to assist eight-to-ten members of your local community, it’s a great volunteering opportunity for families and work colleagues, alike, to get involved in. Whether you want to help out with the delivery or on the meal prep side of things, you’ll receive full training either way.
 
Visit MealsOnWheels.com 

The Felix Project

Working hard to stop vulnerable people going hungry – and reducing food waste in the process – London-based charity The Felix Project has depots all over the capital. Right now, the organisation needs volunteers for its Poplar, East London location.

You might be collecting food from partner cafés, delis, and bakeries, or helping to sort through produce at the depot. Drivers are also needed for designated routes around London, delivering food to charities and schools. Shifts are at a time and frequency to suit you. 
 
Visit TheFelixProject.org

GoodSAM 

Become an NHS Volunteer Responder with the GoodSAM App, in partnership with the British Red Cross. GoodSAM is seeking volunteers for a variety of roles, including community responders to collect and deliver shopping, medication or other essential supplies to those self-isolating.

Meanwhile, check-in-and-chat volunteers provide short-term telephone support to individuals who are at risk of loneliness, and help transport equipment and supplies between NHS sites. Sign up via the website – and you’ll need to download the app, too.

Visit GoodSamApp.org

Bookmark 

In lockdown, children everywhere have fallen behind with their reading. As a Bookmark volunteer, you’ll help a five-to-eight-year-old learn to read, so they can succeed in school and beyond. Through a secure online platform, you’ll deliver a structured reading programme, play games, and see your young reader progress.

It’s hugely rewarding – but crucially, it's a commitment to support a child. Each programme involves two 30-minute sessions with the same child, per week, for six weeks in total. Volunteers are asked to complete at least three programmes a year.
 
Visit BookmarkReading.org

Housing For Women

For more than 40 years, Housing for Women has supported women and children in London escaping domestic violence and abuse, empowering them to overcome trauma and rebuild their lives. They require a variety of volunteers, including telephone befrienders for residents over 60, who phone residents at agreed times for a chat, as well as office volunteers to support staff in areas such as finance.

Refuge volunteers (female only) are needed to work alongside staff in refuges, providing practical support to woman and children fleeing abuse. 

Visit HFW.org.uk

Age UK 

Covid means we’re now living our lives through tech more than ever before. But according to research, almost half of people over 65 say they feel out of touch with the pace of modern life.

By becoming an Age UK Digital Buddy, you can encourage older people in your local community to get online at their own pace, introducing them to the benefits of apps like Skype and WhatsApp, with the help of information, support and guidance from your local Age UK. In doing so, you’ll be helping someone communicate with loved ones, participate in their community, and access crucial online services.  

Visit AgeUK.org.uk

Young Minds

New service, Shout, is looking for volunteers for their 24/7 messaging service for people in crisis in the UK. Free on all major mobile networks, it’s designed for anyone struggling to cope. You’ll receive online training and be overseen by Clinical Supervisors and coaches, working remotely from your own home, in the time that you are able to give. You don’t need to have worked in the mental health space before; all you need is a secure WiFi connection and somewhere private to work.

Visit YoungMinds.org.uk