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How to volunteer

Looking for a way to help people in crisis in your community? All our services rely on people who selflessly give up their time to help others. We have a wide-range of volunteer opportunities around the UK so there is something to suit everyone.

Step one - Reading

Read about the voluntary services you could get involved in and decide which service(s) you're most passionate about. Our services fall into four main categories:

volunteer pulling trolley 1 © Alex Maguire
Young people can get involved in all of our services but we also have volunteer opportunities specifically for young people.

Step two - Applying

You can apply online by searching for current volunteering opportunities or by contacting the Red Cross office near you. To apply to volunteer in one of our charity shops, please contact the shop manager near you.

Step three - Talking

After you've made contact we'll fix up a time for you to come in and discuss what you can expect as a volunteer. We welcome hundreds of new volunteers into the Red Cross every year – if appropriate, we can also refer potential volunteers to other organisations.

Step four - Meeting the manager

The next stage is for you to meet one of our service managers or shop managers and have a chat. You’ll discuss why you want to join and we’ll explain in more detail what we expect from our volunteers.

We will be keen to get you started as soon as possible although this will of course depend on your commitments, whatever training is required and the completion of any necessary checks.

Step five - Training

We train all Red Cross volunteers, although in some roles – like our shops – you will learn 'on the job'. As a volunteer, you will first receive full training in the skills needed to carry out your role.

Step six - Doing the job

Following the training, you’ll be a fully-fledged Red Cross volunteer – one of a huge family of 97 million Red Cross and Red Crescent volunteers throughout the world – and ready to help people in your community.

All our volunteering opportunities are in the UK. Find out why we don't send volunteers overseas.

Apply now

related pages

Related pages

Apply now to volunteer
downloads

Downloads

Read the Volunteer HandbookOpens in a new window
(PDF Document)
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© British Red Cross 2008
British Red Cross, UK Office, 44 Moorfields, London EC2Y 9AL Phone: 0844 871 11 11. Fax: 020 7562 2000.
The British Red Cross Society, incorporated by Royal Charter 1908, is a charity registered in England and Wales (220949) and Scotland (SC037738).