Volunteering Opportunities

Bath Gateway Out and About provides age appropriate Social and Leisure Activities on a weekly basis for our members of 18 years plus who have many different kinds of disabilities.

Our aim is to help and support our members get out and about and experience some of the pleasures of life that others may take for granted.

Our club is looking for volunteers to help support our members to enjoy Social and Leisure Activities on a weekly basis, for example their programme will include: meals out; boat trips; cinema visits; attendingnight clubs and discos; panto; summer B-B-Qs; picnics in the park; pub visits; day trips; an annual holiday excursion; fundraising events and much more!

The weekly activities take place on Monday or Wednesday evenings between 7pm and 9pm.

As a laundry room assistant, you will support our staff and animals by washing towels, blankets and animal bedding. In addition to this, you will sort through the donated bedding and towels we receive and decide what items we can keep, what can be recycled and what we need to throw away, endeavouring to waste as little as possible. You will also be ensuring that the laundry room is always kept clean and tidy and checking that machines are in proper working order.

Your activities will include:

• Cleaning and drying any laundry that is generated during the daily running of the centre
• Folding and storing clean laundry which will include bedding and towels, toys and vet beds from our recovery suite
• Sorting donated bedding and towels, deciding which can be used, recycled or disposed of
• Keeping the laundry room tidy
• Reporting any issues with the washing machines or tumble dryers to our site maintenance team

About You

This can sometimes be a messy task, so a willingness to get your hands dirty is essential as you will sometimes be cleaning soiled blankets, towels and vet beds used in our recovery suite. There is a manual handling element of the role, so this should be considered upon application.

You don’t need to have any prior experience, you will be given full onsite training on how to use our machines and where everything goes.

The role involves providing a welcome to the city of Bath, handing out maps to visitors, using a tablet to find information for visitors and record enquiries and participating in an initial training session, plus regular meetings to keep up-to-date on what’s happening in the city.

We are always on the lookout for enthusiastic people over 18 years of age who are warm and friendly, with strong interpersonal skills. The team are out and about in all weathers, and applicants must be able to stand and walk for a four-hour shift. You must be proud to show off this city, with a good knowledge of Bath.

The role requires giving eight-to-twelve hours per month on a rota basis (two or three 4-hour shifts). Welcome Ambassadors operate predominantly Thursday to Sunday between 10am and 4pm. Shift choices are 10am to 2pm or 12pm to 4pm, with a tea break in between. During busy periods for the city, such as Bath Christmas Market and university graduation days, there are more ambassador hours and days.

If you’d like us to send you a full role description and an application form, please email welcomevc@bathbid.co.uk.

Our free activities for carers can be in-person, online and over the phone, locations can vary from the comfort of your own home to our office in Bath, community venues, local sites and attractions. You are a friendly and sociable person that enjoys being around people. For this role, you will have excellent listening skills and will be able to empathise with others. You thrive working as part of a team and will ensure everyone is included and feels valued. If you'd like to support online activities, you will be confident in using electronic devices and online platforms like Zoom.

There are lots of amazing reasons to volunteer for a charity. You might feel like you want to give back to your local community, meet new people or gain a new skill. You can do all this and more at The Carers' Centre.

Volunteers are vital to our work in helping unpaid carers, we pledge to provide you with ongoing support throughout your time with us as a volunteer, you will be provided with a full induction and by joining us you will be making a difference to the lives of unpaid carers.

We will, of course, reimburse any out-of-pocket expenses to support you in your role.

Key Responsibilities:

• Assist with event setup and take down
• Help with attendee registration and check-in
• Provide information and assistance to event participants
• Ensure all health and safety protocols are followed, including emergency procedures
• Promptly report any incidents to the event manager
• Create a positive and welcoming atmosphere for all guests and participants

Role Profile

Our shop volunteers play an integral role in the day-to-day running of our charity shops and the maximising of sales to support Bath Cats & Dogs Home. Whether you prefer working behind the scenes or on the shop floor in a customer facing role there are plenty of tasks to get involved with.

Your activities could include:

• Assisting and serving customers on the till
• Providing excellent customer service on the shop floor
• Creating attractive displays and assisting with the visual merchandising of the shop
• Receiving donations from the public and promoting our Gift Aid scheme
• Assisting with the processing of donated stock, including sorting, steaming and hanging of items
• Other daily tasks including cleaning, tidying, dusting and hoovering

The George Street shop is our retail hub as it is also home to our E-Commerce operation. The friendly team working at George Street are happy for potential volunteers to explore the areas that are of interest to them, so if you love researching books or obscure bands, possibly discovering that a donation could raise hundreds for us by being sold online, then perhaps you'd enjoy working within our E-Commerce team! 

About You

You will be a motivated and enthusiastic individual with a love for animals. Good communication and customer care skills are key to a successful charity shop so the ability to work as part of a team and with the general public is desirable. There is a manual handling element to the role so this should be considered on application. The hours are flexible although we ask for a regular commitment of a few hours each week.

Full in person training will be provided for donation sorting and retail guidelines, as well as our waste management and recycling processes.

About the Role

Our Grounds and Maintenance Volunteers play an integral role in the day-to-day running of our site and there are always plenty of tasks to get involved with. You should be confident to undertake general grass cutting using a ride-on lawnmower and other grass cutting equipment, for example pedestrian mowers, strimmers and brush cutters. Your key activities could include: 

• Grounds maintenance including grass strimming, weeding beds, borders and pathways.
• Maintenance of hedges and uncultivated areas - cutting back brambles, nettles and overgrowth.
• Weeding and power washing kennel block paddocks.
• Assisting the maintenance team with any current projects
• Minor redecoration work as directed including internal and external finishes, fences and gates  

You will be volunteering at our home site and grounds at Claverton Down, Bath.

About You 

You will be a motivated and enthusiastic individual with a love for animals. This role requires elements of manual handling so you will need to be physically fit and this should be considered upon application. You will be a team player who is able to carefully follow instructions and relevant health and safety requirements for the position, for example the use of appropriate PPE. 

Bookmark Reading Volunteers directly support children who are at risk of leaving primary school unable to read well. Struggling to read can contribute to poor educational attainment, lower literacy in adulthood and has even been linked to a lower life expectancy. You can help ignite the joy of reading and change a child’s story.

In this volunteer role, you’ll have 30-minute one-to-one reading sessions on 2 days per week. This is across 6 weeks with a child aged between 5 and 11 years old. Each session will involve reading stories and playing literacy games on our secure online platform or face-to-face. You’ll book your reading programme through Bookmark’s Volunteer Hub and select sessions on days and times that work with your commitments.  

Volunteers tell us they find the role flexible, impactful and rewarding. More than 60% also say their own wellbeing has improved because of volunteering with Bookmark!

The role is also set up for you to bring your own personality into the sessions and get to know your reader’s interests. Volunteers report they enjoy providing the child one-to-one attention and being able to introduce a book, comic or poem for the first time that they love! 

Bookmark pays for your DBS checks, provides online training and offers volunteers ongoing support so that you can deliver fantastic and fun reading sessions, enabling all children to discover the joy of reading. 

To find out how to apply, please email community@bookmarkreading.org and state that you found our opportunity through the University of Bath Students' Union.

Bookmark are proud to offer inclusive volunteering and work to deliver a greatly accessible volunteering role. Many of our reading programmes take place online, so there’s no need to travel or access a physical location to volunteer with Bookmark. Our application process and training are all completed online, and we have a helpful team at hand to offer support with technical or access requirements.

Bookmark is committed to promoting a diverse and inclusive community. We aim to create an environment in which all individuals can make best use of their skills, free from discrimination or harassment, and in which all decisions are based on merit.

To become a Bookmark Reading Volunteer, you should be: 

• 18 and over, and currently living in the UK.
   
• able to provide enthusiasm, encouragement, empathy and patience.
   
• free to commit to 30-minute one-to-one reading sessions on 2 days per week, across 6 weeks.
   
• able to provide two references for your application (for safeguarding reasons)
   
• prepared with access to a PC, laptop, Chromebook or iPad with a webcam and internet connection, and feel relatively comfortable using technology (for online reading programmes).

What we're looking for

Volunteers can offer their support for a variety of local events and initiatives. To help build a group of passionate people we can call on if we need an extra pair of hands.

Around 90 per cent of our income comes from our supporters and we couldn't continue doing what we do without them. That means, our community fundraising volunteers play a really important part in rallying people together to raise vital funds which help to protect children and prevent abuse.

What you'll do

Helping out when you can at local fundraising and awareness raising events in support of the NSPCC - organised locally by our Bath and District Committees, local campaigns team and/or Community Fundraising Manager.

You will be representing the charity in a professional manner. Some examples include:

• Helping in-person events run smoothly
• Childhood Day collections
• Local Pride events
• Bath Half Marathon cheering 
• Acquiring prizes for events
• Assisting with ticket sales
• Advertising and promoting events through networks and social media

A key role will be to share news about our work in the local community and helping promote upcoming fundraising events and initiatives.

If our Friends wish to get together and organise a fundraiser too, then that's also encouraged and very welcome. 

What you'll get

• A designated point of contact
• We will support you with the right information, tools and training
• Be part of the NSPCC and our mission to end child cruelty 
• Meet like-minded people and enjoy new experiences
• Access to the Volunteer Portal with training opportunities, knowledge and learning - and a discount portal 
• Volunteer newsletter

Who's right for the role?

Anyone who enjoys meeting people, who does not want a regular time commitment but is able to help us build strong community relationships through "As and When" support. 

Being reliable and trustworthy are an integral part of this role, as well as having a passion for supporting your community and helping every child and young person have the best chance regardless of their start in life.

Join us on December 7th as a volunteer for the V-Run Santa Dash! We need enthusiastic helpers to make this five-kilometre fun run around our campus a success. Your role will involve signposting the course, assisting with organizational tasks, and ensuring everything runs smoothly. It’s a great opportunity to contribute to the V Team while soaking up the holiday cheer and supporting fellow students!

Why volunteer?

Gain valuable event management experience

Be part of a university-wide event and make new friends

Support great causes and spread Christmas joy!

Sign up now to be a part of this merry and meaningful event!