Volunteer for us

Join a dedicated team of friendly and helpful staff and volunteers, and contribute massively to our work.

For us, volunteering is the commitment of time and energy for the benefit of society, the community, the environment and/or individuals outside one’s immediate family. It is undertaken freely and by choice, without any concern for financial gain. There are many ways for you to volunteer your time and energy at Save the Family.

Volunteer on mower

We have a variety of volunteer roles available. If you would like more information and request an application form, please register your details using the Volunteering Form click here

If you are interested in applying for voluntary work please note that all successful applicants will need to supply two references, will complete a DBS check and be 18 and over.

Corporate Volunteering

Are you a business or organisation? Why not join us for one of our Volunteer Days?!?

If you are looking to fulfil your Corporate Responsibility and want to help Save the Family, give us a call on 01244 409100 or e-mail info@savethefamily.uk.com.

Work-based Learning Placements

Save the Family host student work-based learning placements throughout the year.

If you are interested in doing your placement with us please send a CV and cover letter explaining why you’d like to do your placement with Save the Family to info@savethefamily.uk.com.

Volunteer Stories

“It is important to me to try to help others less fortunate”.

Margaret Walker, Admin Volunteer in the Fundraising Department, has been been volunteering at Save the Family for over 10 years! She uses her office skills to write thank you letters and maintain the Save the Family’s Supporters Database. She has also helped out in reception providing a front of house presence for residents, volunteers and visitors.

“I have been very fortunate,” says Margaret, “being part of a loving family both before and after marriage means it is important to me to try to help others less fortunate.” She supports “the ethos of Save the Family which is about teaching people to help themselves to a better future through practical support and mentoring.”

Margaret likes to “keep busy and stay active and helping at Save the Family is also a way of keeping up-to-date with modern administration techniques.” Volunteering with a local charity “enables me to feel more involved rather than a national charity which, however worthy, can be more impersonal. I also enjoy the friendship from regular staff and volunteers.”

“I want to work with my heart.”

Camille Desvigne (Sewing and EBay Volunteer) has volunteered since May 2017. When asked why she volunteers, Camille states that she is “looking for more challenges at this stage in my life. I really enjoy helping people, as I did with French families arriving in Germany and am looking to continue to use these skills here in the UK.”

“I prefer to be active, I want to be useful and meet other people. I prefer to help others by giving my time, rather than just giving donations of money. I want to work with my heart.”

She is “happy to help people who really need it” and spends her time creating items for Save the Family and helping residents sew things. Camille also helps to sell items on EBay for Save the Family.

Camille says that respect and kindness are important to her. She is also a very busy lady with plenty of hobbies. “I have so many hobbies: travel, creating things, decoration, decluttering, cooking, craft activities, photography, cultural exhibitions, and sport.”

“Volunteering at Save the Family is about making life and things better for people”

Volunteering with Save the Family since Easter 2016, John Clee (Workshop Volunteer ) thoroughly enjoys his time with us.

“Volunteering fits with my personality and skill set and I am happy to share my skills with others. I volunteer in the workshop working alongside residents to fix and make things basically – anything the residents want to do,“ says John.

As a father of five and grandfather to eight, John balances his family duties with his time as a volunteer. John always says to expect the unexpected, “I try to explain to my wife what I do and find it hard because I could be doing anything that helps the residents. Take today for example, instead of making key rings, we’ve been helping a couple of teenagers to make walking sticks and the younger ones wanted to make giant toadstools for their gardens. You just never know what to expect – it’s fun.”

Aside from the fun aspect, John knows that his time truly helps our residents make positive changes in their lives: “Volunteering at Save the Family is about making life and things better for people – I enjoy that.”

“It isn’t just being a volunteer; it is changing people’s lives”

Roger Coupe (Workshop Volunteer) has been volunteering with Save the Family since January 2016 and really loves interacting with our residents especially young people.

Roger has a lifetime of experience working with young people. As the former Apprentice Training Manager for ICI Northwest, and then latterly for TTE, he used to recruit up to 160 apprentices a year for 8 sites across the northwest region. “I tried to focus on their personal development so would send them on out-of-bound courses because I felt it was all about developing the whole person. That’s what I also bring to my volunteering – whole person development,” says Roger.

Working alongside our residents in the workshop means that Roger could be doing anything from helping residents to create wooden keyrings and bird boxes to mending bikes. Roger says “Volunteering is important to me. You have to keep busy otherwise you would dry up or get depressed. So I mix my volunteering with my hobbies – sailing my boat and repairing classic cars.”

Roger also helps out with our enrichment sessions aimed at helping younger children develop a thirst for learning new things and as Roger says “at Save the Family it isn’t just being a volunteer; it is changing people’s lives!”

“I want to help the children I work with to achieve their potential”

Volunteering at Save the Family since 2012 – soon after Cotton Hall farm opened – Kerrie Pimm runs a ‘homework club’ for school-aged children once a week – one afternoon to early evening after school. Children are invited to come and bring any work they need help with which can range from reading to maths to whole projects. If children don’t have homework they are able to come and play games or just chat about things if they want to.

Kerrie volunteers “because I want to help the children I work with to achieve their potential and also improve their confidence and attitude to work/school.” She enjoys “seeing the children complete homework they have been given and I enjoy it too! It is lovely to see how they change over time as they begin to get to know you and want to talk to you and get help with activities or general problems they have.”

Looking after our environment is important to Kerrie as she feels that “we are all responsible for taking care of the world around us and leaving it in good condition for future generations. This includes responsible use of energy and natural resources; conservation and protection of animals and generally behaving in a sustainable manner.”

Kerrie is a member of Girlguiding and helps to run a Rainbow and Brownie unit. She also enjoys watching a wide variety of sports, reading (she is part of Waverton Good Read) and walking, gardening and generally being outside – weather permitting!

“I enjoy the interaction with different types of people”

Hayley Cadman (Volunteer Family Mentor) has been volunteering with Save the Family since November 2016. She volunteers because she likes to use her spare time more usefully and for the good of others.

“I enjoy the interaction with different types of people to what I’m used to. I mainly meet scientists and NHS workers in my day to day job. And it’s nice to meet people who work and volunteer for a caring charity.”

As a Volunteer Family Mentor, Hayley spends time getting to know residents and currently helps out with coffee mornings and is part of the Healthy Eating Group.

What’s important to Hayley? Food and friendships. “I think making and eating good food can improve your life as well as your health and having good friends and family who you can talk to and have fun with is important. The best friends are the ones you can be silliest with.” Hayley works fulltime alongside volunteering and still finds the time to enjoy cooking, baking (“badly”), Pilates, running, music and going to the cinema – a busy lady indeed!