Residential Volunteering in the UK

Former Member

Sorry if this has been posted elsewhere- I had a search couldn't see anything.

I'm currently unemployed and feel like my time could be better spent. I was looking online at volunteering opportunities and came across this:

http://www.csv.org.uk/Volunteer/Full-time/

It seems interesting and worthwhile from the website, but I am slightly worried about signing away four months of my life working what would be (obviously) unpaid, full time hours doing...what could be anything.

I was wondering if anyone has had any experience with this or any other residential volunteering schemes in the UK?

Fiz

Hiya, residential volunteering can be a really good way of getting heavily involved in a project or community, taking a break from your normal routine and expanding your horizons. Personally I volunteered overseas for three months and accommodation was provided as part of this it was certainly one of the best challenges I?ve ever faced. I was got involved in things I never experienced before and learnt new things whilst having the support of the organisation that provided the accommodation.

I?ve met people that have experienced residential volunteering in the UK and generally seem to get a lot out of it. It crucial that before you enter into this you really think about why it is you want to do it, and what it is you are expecting from the experience. Being able to tell the organisation exactly what you expect will means there is a better chance of the experience matching up to that. Ask as many questions as you can before you commit to anything it?s equally as important that you are happy with the opportunity as well as the organisation is happy with you as a volunteer. It seems like the application process at CSV for this opportunity is quite long winded so that indicates you will have a good chance to find out everything you need to know before you actually start.

Finally if you do decide to take this further, my top tips would be; to really consider why you want to do it, to ask as many questions as you can, be as honest as possible with the organisation about what you are hoping to get out of it, and ultimately the all important one make sure you enjoy it!