Volunteers

Thank you very much for considering volunteering with us. There are several ways you can get involved in helping refugee families resettle in our area.

URGENT VOLUNTEER ROLES

Could you help a refugee family as a volunteer driver/helper? 

Could you help a refugee family as a volunteer driver/helper?  The 3 refugee families that Sevenoaks Welcomes Refugees is helping to support in New Ash Green were heavily dependent on the bus service to Dartford to get to medical and dental appointments, work, shops and the mosque.  The abrupt withdrawal of the bus service recently is a major problem for them.  

We are urgently appealing for people to be volunteers for Sevenoaks Welcomes Refugees in the New Ash Green and Swanley areas, to provide lifts to medical appointments (in Dartford or Gravesend, for example) and to help filling in forms, making sure the follow up appointments are booked etc.  

We are also looking for volunteer drivers who can help in other parts of the Sevenoaks District.

You will need to have DBS (enhanced) clearance; we will arrange this, there is no cost to you. We pay mileage (45 pence per mile).

If you think you may be able to help please email us at our volunteering email address volunteers@sevenoakswelcomesrefugees.org using the subject heading "Volunteer driver/helper", giving us details of how many passenger seats you can offer, and where you live, so we can match you up with those who need help. Thank you!

Other urgent volunteer opportunities are:

Family teams

These informal teams of about 4-5 volunteers build supportive long-term relationships with a family. They make occasional drop-in visits to say hello, pick up small tasks, help with lifts to doctors appointments (we pay mileage) and arrange social outings (costs paid by SWR). They are coordinated by the family's lead volunteer and work closely with their professional care worker.

Language support

Good English language skills are essential to enable the families to gain work and integrate into the community. We are looking for volunteers to help the new families learn English. This is an immensely rewarding experience, and no teaching or education experience is required. Volunteers will be provided with access to our online learning platform and other appropriate resources. 

Fundraising & events

SWR makes grants to refugee families to assist in their long term resettlement and improve their quality of life. From warm clothes and children’s swimming lessons, to laptops and English language books. Our volunteers arrange events and initiatives, large and small, to finance these grants. This team also manages our digital and social media communications. 

Landlord recruitment

An alliance of central government, local government and community volunteers is standing by to receive, welcome and support additional refugee families. All we need is more private landlords willing to rent to a refugee family. Therefore, we are promoting the scheme and its benefits to local landlords, estate agents and other relevant networks. We need volunteers to work with us on this, and to help our team with the extra work generated by the Ukraine crisis. We would be delighted to discuss the various functions within the team - the most important attributes being good interpersonal skills and enthusiasm!

Finance & administration

We need experienced volunteers to help us manage our accounts and the increasing volume of important administration that is required of a small but growing registered charity. This includes managing DBS registrations, GDPR and data security requirements, and coordinating our pool of volunteer drivers. 

Finding job opportunities

We try to help the refugees find work and training opportunities. For each refugee looking for work we build a good understanding of their previous skills, experience and the kind of work they are looking for. We help them prepare a CV and then reach out through our network of supporters and friends to identify leads and possible opportunities. 

Mailchimp and Facebook

If you have experience in using Mailchimp or Facebook and would like to join our communications team, please contact us for an informal chat, or sign up using the volunteer form below.

Interpreters

We are looking for volunteer interpreters and translators in the following languages: Arabic, Turkish, Dari, Pashto, Kurdish and Ukrainian. If you can help we would love to hear from you.

Please get in touch

Sevenoaks Welcomes Refugees is an entirely voluntary group; there are no paid employees. We can only make a difference through our combined efforts and teamwork as volunteers and supporters. All contributions, great or small – whether of time, money or donated items - are valuable and highly appreciated, and everyone is welcome to play a part in our work. 

All our strands of activity need extra people to help – please let us know how you’d like to get involved and feel free to signup using the form below.