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Volunteering: What, Why, and How?

This week is National Volunteering Week. All of us, at some time in our lives, will hopefully get the chance to volunteer in some way for a cause we feel is important. 

The charity sector is largely built on the hard work of volunteers, and most charity staff will have volunteered at some point during their career. 

The benefits of volunteering are not just one sided or good to stick in a CV. It is a great way to learn new skills, build confidence and gain experience in a new area or role. I personally volunteered my time as a fundraiser putting on concerts that led on to being recruited for a staff role, and now I am full time member of the team. Volunteering time is an essential way of getting a good feel for a charity and understanding how they really work. 

We have some amazing, dedicated, and valued volunteers at Grassroots Suicide Prevention – one is Anna Budden. We tracked her down in lockdown to find out more about what it is like for her to be a volunteer at Grassroots – What she does? Why she does it? And how she finds it? 

“I am currently a final year psychology student at the University of Sussex. I started volunteering for Grassroots Suicide Prevention as it would enable me to contribute to the prevention of suicide and be part of a charity which aims to build awareness and support around mental health issues.

As a volunteer I have prepared the information packs for the different training events, I have sent running T-shirts prior to fundraising events, followed by thank you letters for the funds raised, I have helped out with the recording of data regarding feedback from training events and I have been given the opportunity to take part in the different training courses offered. Whilst being a volunteer for Grassroots Suicide Prevention I have enjoyed witnessing how involved it is with the community, for example, music events are organised as well as charity runs, and it has given me an insight into the support and tools that are offered regarding suicide prevention in the community.

Volunteering for Grassroots has been rewarding as I have been able to contribute to a good cause and learnt more about suicide, however, it must be said that the experience has been made so much more enjoyable because of the people who work at the charity. Although the pandemic has meant that the last couple of months have been online, the team is always in a good mood and very dedicated and enthusiastic about the work that they do. This has given me something different to look forward to every week whilst working hard at university.”

– Anna Budden

Thank you, Anna! If you would like to become a volunteer for Grassroots a good starting point is to sign up to our monthly mailing list to receive regular updates from us, including any upcoming volunteering vacancies. You can sign up for our newsletter in the footer of this page.

1-7 June: Volunteers' week. Time to celebrate

Did you know 1 in 5 people will have suicidal thoughts at some point in their lives?

With your generosity, we can help people stay safe and provide the support they need in times of crisis