Due to the ongoing impact of COVID-19 and recent government advice, Volunteer Centre Hackney will be temporarily suspending all face to face appointments. However, we’re still very much open for business on the phones and online. Please read further for information on what to do if you are keen to help out in these difficult times.
I want to volunteer – how do I get involved?
If you want to give your time and support to local charities and find a volunteer role you can. Our brokerage service is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week via our online database, Simply Connect.
Once you have registered and applied to local groups to volunteer, please be aware that due to current circumstances, some organisations may take a while to get back in touch with you.
I want to help out and have time on my hands now – where do I start? If you want to get involved, please complete the short sign up form and we will get back to you as quickly as we can to process your details. Please bear with us as we are expecting a huge number of local people to be offering their help.
We are collecting people’s information that will help us match you to a role quickly, that could include the following:
– Telephone befriending
– Delivering activities and services online
– Collecting and dropping off food, medicines etc
We’re currently working hard with local organisations to gather information on what is needed, particularly to support older and vulnerable people who are becoming increasingly isolated. Bookmark us and follow us on social media to get the latest updates on these.
You may have seen many local volunteer groups that have been set up online on Facebook and WhatsApp platforms. Whilst we encourage you to get involved and support others, please be mindful about the personal information that you share with others, and your own safety.
I’m an organisation and need some advice, can you help?
We continue to offer support to any organisation working with volunteers via phone and email. Head to our Support for organisations page here to find out more.
If you are in urgent need of volunteers to support residents or run services, or have volunteers that could be deployed to another organisation, let us know what you need or could offer by emailing us at [email protected].
VCH is currently contacting all groups, charities and local organisations to explore how they can continue to support their clients and service users, and what volunteer support or help they might need at this time. We will then be directing those people looking to volunteer towards your organisations.
Other useful sources of information that might be helpful include:
– NCVO
– NCVO KnowHow
– NHS
A vulnerable person I know needs help – who can I get in touch with?
If you are an individual in need of support during this time, or you want to make a referral for a friend, client or service user you can do this in two ways:
Things are constantly changing at present and we’ll be updating this information regularly, so please check back regularly for new roles, ways to get involved and ways we might be able to support.
Keep healthy Hackney,