Volunteering Roles

Are you passionate about enabling those in later life to live independently with dignity and choice? If so, then why not consider joining our Trustee Board and help us shape Age UK Bournemouth, Poole, and East Dorset.

About Us

We are an independent local Charity and a brand partner of the national Age UK charity. We have operated since 1985 to support people aged 55+ in Bournemouth, Poole, and East Dorset.

Our mission is to care for and work with older people and their carers to improve their quality of life through the promotion of choice, opportunity, and independence.

We do that through a range of services including our:

• Day Services
• Health & Wellbeing services
• One to one support services, including Befriending
• Dementia services
• Information & Advice
• Retail
• Footcare services
• Benefit advice & form completion

We are committed to a continual review of our services to ensure that we are meeting the changing needs of those in later life and the area we serve. We value creative thinking and want our services to be responsive to those changing needs.

We are now looking for new Trustees to join us and help to shape our future. The Board of Trustees work with the Age UK BPED Chief Executive Officer to agree the strategic vision and mission, guiding the Charity towards achieving its goals.

What will you be doing?

We operate in a challenging environment. As with all charities working in adult social care, budgets have been tightened and we need to ensure that we continue to deliver high quality services in difficult times. It is an exciting time for the charity as we look to grow our Health & Wellbeing Services, as well as reopening our Day Services provision and further develop our Dementia Services.

As a Trustee, you will work in partnership with your fellow Trustees and the Chief Executive Officer to agree the long-term vision and strategic objectives of the charity, which will include how to effectively enhance our services and make best use of our assets and investments. Your role as Trustee is also to ensure that the Charity complies with the necessary charitable and company governance frameworks. You will need to be able to devote time to attend the Board meetings, which take place bimonthly from 6pm -8pm (usually on a Tuesday).

Who are we looking for?

We are looking for Trustees who have a strong empathy with our mission and values, are collegiate in approach and are comfortable working with others to develop a strategy that will deliver positive change, and ultimately will make Bournemouth, Poole, and East Dorset a great place to live in later life. We welcome applicants from any background and are committed to developing a diverse board of Trustees. Whilst we are particularly interested in applications from those with a background from the list below, we would also welcome applicants who can add real value to our charity

Legal/ Financial/HR

Retail

This is a voluntary post (as with all Trustees) but all reasonable expenses will be reimbursed.

Benefits of being a Trustee

Being an effective Trustee is a challenging, rewarding, and fulfilling experience. You will have the opportunity to make a real difference to those in later life. You may also gain new skills, obtain board experience, and expand your network.

Interested persons are invited to ring 01202 530530 to discuss the position with the Chief Executive Officer. We would also be pleased to arrange visits to the Charity to meet with the Chair. For an application pack, please

Call: 01202 530530

Email : sarah.lloyd@ageukbped.org.uk

Work Location: Remote

Befrienders provide regular low-level contact and support to lonely or isolated people through home visits. The emphasis is on reducing social isolation and promoting independence, by providing emotional support and/or enabling people to be re-integrated back into the local community. 

Befrienders do not undertake personal care or domestic tasks. 

Our Befriending volunteer role would suit someone who enjoys working on their own, while also having the support of a team. Befrienders will use and share their skills, knowledge and experience to enable an older person to lead as full a life as possible.

Any amount of time you can give will be valued and appreciated by the service. Please note that befrienders will operate within the hours of Monday - Friday 9am - 4pm. While we are grateful for any volunteers, we have a shortage of befrienders in the Christchurch area, so we would love to hear from anyone willing to travel to those locations. We aim to have a diverse and inclusive range of befrienders and, in order to achieve this, we are currently looking to increase the number of male befrienders we have volunteering for us. However, we welcome all volunteers who have a friendly and positive attitude and would love to hear from you if you fit this description.

We are looking for volunteers to use their own vehicle or drive one of our minibuses to take people to our Day Centre or our Meet and Eat Clubs. Volunteers required Monday – Friday, particularly 08:30-10:30 and 14:15-16:00 on Wednesdays.

Volunteer minibus drivers will be required to undertake MIDAS training and all other training will be provided as necessary.

We are also seeking drivers (preferably with a larger vehicle) to collect donations and deliver to our shops.

*URGENTLY NEEDED*: Volunteers at our Southbourne Making Memories group on Thursdays 10am-12pm

Making Memories is a popular, enjoyable and successful way to treat the symptoms of mild to moderate dementia.  It is a programme of themed activities, carried out over several weeks in small groups, with each session covering a different topic, designed to improve the mental abilities and memory of someone with dementia. Evidence suggests that these groups can be as beneficial as drug treatments for the symptoms of dementia and is usually carried out over 14 weekly sessions of group activities and structured discussions.

If you would like to assist the leader at one of these sessions, we would love to hear from you.  All necessary training will be given.  Your role would be: 

• Assisting with room set up (setting up tables and chairs)
• Welcoming clients as they arrive and showing them where to sit
• Making refreshments (tea/coffee)
• Participating in the session (contributing to discussion, playing table games) as requested by the facilitator
• Phoning any clients who are missing as directed by the facilitator
• Supporting the facilitator generally to ensure clients feel relaxed and enjoy the session
• Tidying up once the session finishes (washing cups, re-setting the room etc)

We are looking for volunteers to assist the instructor in our informal and low impact exercise sessions, helping to ensure that they are inclusive, fun and safe for all.

The classes are as follows:

Chair Yoga - 1:15 - 2:15pm and 2:45-3:45pm on Wednesdays at Canford Cliffs Village Hall

If you are interested in any of our opportunities, please call 01202 530530 or email: rod.whyte@ageukbped.org.uk

In all cases volunteers can be reimbursed with travel expenses incurred in their work for Age UK Bournemouth, Poole & East Dorset. Training and support are also provided, so experience is not always necessary.

Please note that all volunteers with Age UK Bournemouth, Poole & East Dorset must be over 18 years old and that all our volunteering opportunities are only available Monday-Friday during office hours.

Age UK Bournemouth, Poole & East Dorset have charity shops in Parkstone & Wimborne. We are looking for volunteers for both shops to prepare goods for sale including sorting and labelling, steaming, barcoding for gift aid, serving in the shop itself, helping to maintain a clean and friendly shop and assist with shop displays. Volunteers required Monday-Saturday.

We are also seeking drivers (preferably with a larger vehicle) to collect donations and deliver to our shops.

We have volunteer vacancies available at both our Monday (10am-2:30pm) and/or Wednesday (10am - 2:45pm) Day Centres. There are opportunities to volunteer in our client facing roles as activities assistants, leading fun, engaging and stimulating activities, such as bingo, bowls, and quizzes. For those who prefer more of a behind the scenes role, we are also on the lookout for kitchen assistants - the food at our Day Centres is a highlight for clients, so you would be a valuable member of our team and would make a significant difference to the lives of older people in our local community. 

*URGENTLY NEEDED* Volunteers for our Southbourne group on Thursday 1:30pm-3:30pm 

Memory Club is a weekly two-hour-long social group for people aged 60+ living with mild to moderate dementia or other cognitive related health conditions. These groups run for 2 hours per week and operate in various locations.

Group members take part in meaningful and stimulating activities, proven to help maintain memory and mental functioning. The groups provide a fun, supportive environment where people can build new friendships. 

If you would like to assist the leader at one of these sessions, we would love to hear from you.  All necessary training will be given.  Your role would be: 

• Assisting with room set up (setting up tables and chairs)
• Welcoming clients as they arrive and showing them where to sit
• Making refreshments (tea/coffee)
• Participating in the group (contributing to discussion, playing table games) as requested by the facilitator
• Phoning any clients who are missing, as directed by the facilitator
• Supporting the facilitator generally to ensure clients feel relaxed and enjoy the session
• Tidying up once the session finishes (washing cups, re-setting the room etc)

Our Memory Clubs run on the following days:

Mondays 10am - 12pm

Tuesdays 9:45am - 11:45am, 10am - 12pm & 1:30pm - 3:30pm

Wednesdays 10am - 12pm

Thursdays 1:30pm - 3:30pm