Community

Our Employee Volunteering team has over 24 years’ experience of providing tailor-made service support to employers developing their own corporate volunteering and business volunteering programmes.

Equip Mentoring provide support for young people who are not in employment, education or training (NEET).

Futures Matter trains and supports volunteer leaders to devise and run volunteering initiatives for the benefit of their local community in Ipswich.

Volunteer mentors on Into Hackney support adults over 25 with learning disabilities to volunteer and get involved in their local community.

KEO recruits and trains volunteers to empower families with young children to take more of an active role in their child’s education.

Through our fantastic volunteers, Match and Mentor provides support for individuals with learning difficulties and additional support needs to volunteer.

Milton Keynes Community Car Service provides a door-to-door service which aims to help people access key appointments

Norwich Community Mentors sees young people paired with a fully-trained volunteer mentor at key stages of their development. The project is designed to improve social mobility across Norwich.

The Loop gives beneficiaries the opportunity to become volunteers. It enables participants to access the social group as and when they need support, progress onto the Goals Group when ready and take their learning further within the Projects Group.

Inspired by Ipswich-based project WASSUP, We Are Patrick is a youth social action programme delivered by young men in Ipswich.

All local authorities have a statutory duty to provide independent visitors to all children in care (aged 8 – 16+) who would benefit. In Hounslow, London, we’ve been providing an Independent Visitor Service – Hounslow Allies – for over 12 years. We also run Grandmentors in Hounslow. Grandmentors is an intergenerational mentoring programme that matches … Continued

'It feels to me that I have gone full circle in the volunteering world, by starting as a volunteer and being empowered by the staff there, to becoming a staff member myself and empowering the next generation of volunteers.'

'That's why, if you like to meet new people, to discover a new country and to help people while developing your skills then become a volunteer!!'

'My personal opinion about volunteering is that I am able to support and help others actively so I should make use of it.'

'The goal is to get the kids out of the house, away from their problems, and let them enjoy their time.'

'I have learnt how important is to practice active listening, and how it has enhanced my empathy for vulnerable individuals.'

'I used to think that one person couldn’t change the world, but I changed my mind... a small impact on one person that is a huge change.'

Hena found that being a part of Volunteers Supporting Families not only helped a vulnerable family but also helped her to apply for a social work degree.

The role of a Full-Time Volunteer (FTV) can be very varied, and supporting full-time carers is just one of the ways that FTVs provide incredible support to those they volunteer with. Volunteering Matters has been working with Carers’ Support Bexley for over 20 years (back when we were known as Community Service Volunteers!) and we … Continued

Clare's young person never failed to make her laugh, and even though she was apprehensive about the training, she says she couldn't thank staff enough for the support.

Following a difficult start in life, Asmita has found real purpose, positivity and friendship through volunteering with the Get Out Get Active programme.

Anna was an EVS Full-Time Volunteer with Volunteering Matters in South East Wales, where she befriended older people and people with disabilities.

Our Brighton-based LifeLines volunteers were joined by two very special guests from Strictly Come Dancing, and were featured in the Daily Mail and The Argus.

Our long-running Action Earth scheme is celebrating the one millionth hour of volunteering time given by volunteers on its funded projects this decade!

Volunteering Matters' award-winning Grandmentors featured in the Guardian. Honor's inspirational support of Kai demonstrated the life-changing impact Grandmentors makes.

260 Volunteers from Volunteering Matters in partnership with Southend Borough Council celebrated ten years of turning around lives of families in the area.

On Friday 28th June our Activ8 project won the Youth Work Project category at the Youth Excellence Awards 2019.

By giving something up this #GivingTuesday and donating the money that you save to Volunteering Matters you can help our young volunteers drive local change

Our volunteers and guests from projects running across Scotland were nominated to attend as a gesture of thanks for their commitment to their roles supporting vulnerable people in the community.

Written for Companies House blog to mark Volunteers' Week 2019, our Director of Strategy Paul Buddery talks employee volunteering.

Volunteering Matters North Lanarkshire Befriending Project volunteers were congratulated in a Holyrood Motion, tabled by Clare Adamson MSP, and supported by 11 MSPs. Volunteering Matters is calling for similar projects for all vulnerable young people in Scotland.

We are very proud to announce that the new Mayor of Ipswich, Jan Parry, has chosen WASSUP and We Are Patrick as her chosen projects to support through her term in office!

Sunshine Café, which acts as a social hub for the village of Leeswood celebrated its first anniversary. The morning’s filling included the usual fare of hot chocolate, teacakes and laughter.

We are excited to announce that Stockton Borough Council Public Health Team have provided Sporting Chance with a further two years of funding!

Lord Freud has been appointed the new President of Volunteering Matters. He succeeds Lord Levy, who has made an outstanding contribution in his twenty years as President.

Volunteering Matters has launched a brand new, innovative volunteering network in Newcastle for organisations assisting people in mid to late life and Dementia.

Grandmentors volunteers and young people on our award-winning Grandmentors project enjoyed a trip to Parliament for a soft matching event.

Volunteering Matter’s Grandmentors programme won a prestigious national award recognising its transformational work in mentoring young care leavers. The Grandmentors programme received the honour in the Third Sector category at the recent National Mentoring Awards, in recognition of the 1:1 support that Grandmentors provide young people leaving care. One of the key areas that impressed … Continued

Volunteering Matters CE and president of Volonteurope, Oonagh Aitken, gave her update of the new Erasmus+ Project ‘Job Bridge’.

We've made the final shortlist for the National Mentoring Awards 2019 with our Grandmentors programme!

We've got a new opportunity for Norwich volunteers to make a massive different to a young person's life.

Thanks to the Freemasons Grandmentors Milton Keynes will reach even more young people leaving care.

Our project WASSUP has won the Third Sector Award for Volunteer Team of the Year!

Mind Matters have been shortlisted in the Advice and Guidance category of the Children & Young People Now Awards 2018!

Staff from People’s Postcode Lottery went to visit Sporting Chance in Stockton to see first-hand the sort of projects their funding supports.

A quick update from our Chief Executive, Paul Reddish, on our response so far to COVID-19.

Director of Strategy Paul Buddery on why Volunteering Matters is delighted that social prescribing is a high priority for health services across the UK.

Rachel Evans reveals how community-based solutions to help isolated older people are being shared across the UK.

Volunteering Matters' Chief Executive Oonagh on Volunteers' Week for Third Sector.

'Being an active volunteer and from being a Volunteer Manger I recognise how important mental health is and how to be open about it.'

For Mental Health Awareness Week, Grandmentors Volunteer Manager Kelly told us how volunteering in her community enabled her recovery from postnatal depression.

Covering a whole range of exciting, high-impact activities, the term ‘Social Action’ can mean everything from campaigning and fundraising to volunteering. At Volunteering Matters we refuse to see young people as anything other than as asset, whose voices should be heard and ideas taken on board. This is why we focus on youth social action … Continued

This month has been an exciting and nerve-wracking time for students across the UK; those in Scotland received results for their Highers, and UK A-level results were released last week. Whatever your next move, whether you’re happy with the results you received or whether you missed out on the opportunities you had planned, we think … Continued