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Not knowing where to start with volunteering is usually the biggest barrier for people wanting to give their time as a way to give back. Understanding how to volunteer with a homelessness charity, and what that charity expects from volunteers, can make that first step less daunting. This How to Get Started Guide is designed to help remove those barriers and explain how to volunteer with a homeless charity and secure a meaningful volunteering opportunity that supports people experiencing homelessness.
Homelessness charities offer a wide range of volunteering roles to suit different skills, interests and levels of experience. Roles are varied and extensive and could include something people-facing, such as offering practical support within supported accommodation or temporary accommodation by assisting with mental health support, facilitating wellbeing activities, signposting individuals to specialist services, volunteering with a mental health crisis line or providing a listening ear and offering guidance for people who need urgent emotional support. Or roles could be something more behind-the-scenes, such as helping with administration, technical support or monitoring and evaluation. Together, these roles play a vital part in helping individuals experiencing homelessness access stability, care and hope for the future.
Volunteering for a homelessness charity can be a very different experience to other types of volunteering due to the complexity and immediacy of the support involved. While roles are often people-focused, due to the varied nature of homelessness, there are lots of opportunities across a range of skillsets that can make a meaningful difference to people experiencing or at risk of homelessness.
Some of the most common volunteering roles in P3 and other homelessness charities may include:
While volunteering with P3, and most other organisations that specialise in homelessness support, you would never undertake your role alone. You’d work alongside experienced staff to gain insight into homelessness and the issues commonly linked to it, including the known links between homelessness and mental health and homelessness and substance misuse. Whether you’re offering practical help, emotional support or helping behind the scenes, volunteering gives you the opportunity to be part of a team committed to ending homelessness and helping people build safer, more stable futures.
Many people accessing support services are facing multiple challenges alongside housing insecurity, either as a cause or result of homelessness. Because of this, volunteers can expect more structured training and boundaries.
Lydia McHugh, P3 Charity’s Community Engagement Coordinator, who works with volunteers across the charity, says,
Our volunteers are central to everything we do at P3. They bring compassion, determination and lived experience into every space they enter, helping the people we support to feel seen and heard. By investing in high-quality training, we can ensure our volunteers feel confident, safe and empowered to continue making a genuine difference, not just for the people we support, but for themselves, too. We want them to gain as much from their volunteering as the people they’re supporting.
Another key difference you may find with volunteering with a homelessness charity versus any other charity is the focus on long-term impact rather than short-term outcomes. Because of this, an individual’s progress is often gradual, which requires patience and resilience from volunteers and staff, but it also allows you to see meaningful change over time.
Volunteering with a homelessness charity comes with a strong sense of purpose, often helping volunteers build their own confidence and skills while addressing social issues in their local communities.
Start by considering what you enjoy, what skills or experience you can offer and how much time you realistically have to give. This can make it easier to find the right role for you when you approach charities.
It’s worth having a look at current roles with organisations that work in homelessness near you, but don’t be put off if nothing feels like the right fit. Homelessness charities can sometimes be flexible based on your skills and experience, and it’s important that you are too, having an open mind can lead to meaningful opportunities you may not have considered.
If you’re not sure where to find these organisations, try search terms such as ‘homelessness volunteering opportunities in [your city name]’ or ‘homelessness charity volunteer roles in [your city name]’.
Often the first step to finding the right role is giving the charity a chance to get to know you in order to understand a bit about what motivates you as a volunteer. Be honest and transparent about what you would like to gain from volunteering so they can ensure this is factored into the role. This is also your chance to ask them any questions you may have about volunteering or the organisation. Don’t be shy, as there really are no silly questions.
Homelessness charities place a strong emphasis on boundaries, wellbeing and safe practice for everyone involved, so if you’re offered a role, you can expect to be given training and guidance on areas such as safeguarding, professional boundaries and data protection, and you should expect to undergo what’s known as a DBS check, a formal background check. This all ensures you’re confident and supported in your role, keeping both you and the people you’re working with safe.
Every charity is different and will have slightly different onboarding requirements relevant to the volunteer role you have taken on. It’s important to check in advance what is expected of you, whether it’s certain references or being able to show a specific type of ID, before you commit to volunteering.
Embrace the start of your volunteering journey by taking on feedback, getting to know the team around you and asking questions about anything you’re not sure of. Just like anything new, volunteering can sometimes be daunting but remember that the team around you are grateful for your support and are there to support you.
At P3, we believe everybody has potential, not just the people we support, but our colleagues and volunteers, too. Most of our volunteering opportunities are flexible and shaped both around the needs of our local services and the experience and availability of our volunteers, allowing you to contribute in a way that fits your skills, interests and availability while ensuring maximum impact for the people we support.
While we offer a lot of roles on our website with clear job descriptions, we know that the best volunteering roles don’t always fit neatly into a job description, which is why we encourage people to approach us, even if they don’t see a suitable opportunity advertised. We often create volunteering roles in response to individual strengths and local need, so if you’re keen to make a difference, we’d love to hear from you.
Have a look at our current volunteering roles or get in touch to start a conversation about how you could volunteer with P3 and help change lives in your community: volunteering@p3charity.org
It’s worth having a look at current roles with organisations that work in homelessness near you, but don’t be put off if nothing feels like the right fit. Homelessness charities can sometimes be flexible based on your skills and experience.
If you’re not sure where to find these organisations, try search terms such as ‘homelessness volunteering opportunities in [your city name]’ or ‘homelessness charity volunteer roles in [your city name]’.
Organisations that work within the homelessness sector are always looking for a range of people with different skillsets and experience to connect and contribute in ways that matter to them.
We’re of the belief that everyone has something to offer, so a good first step is to speak to the organisation you’re interested in volunteering with and find out what they’re looking for and what they have to offer you as a volunteer.
Homelessness charities can sometimes be flexible about volunteering roles and responsibilities based on your skills and experience, and it’s important that you are too, having an open mind can lead to meaningful opportunities you may not have considered.
Unless it is stated on a job description, most organisations will be looking for the right values, rather than the right skills. Many homelessness charities will be looking for people with a genuine interest and passion for helping people to get back on their feet, as well as someone who is kind, patient, empathetic and non-judgmental.
Communication and interpersonal skills are always great to have when working closely with people, but compassion is at the heart of what volunteering is about, charities can train people to learn new skills, but they can’t teach people to have values that are people-led.
Volunteer rotas vary based on the charity and the role. Often times and organisation can be flexible to work around you and your commitments. The important thing to remember is to be honest and transparent about what you can commit to the organisation knows they can rely on you and so you can balance the role with other responsibilities, such as work or family.
Training and development for volunteers working with people experiencing homelessness is essential for both the volunteer and the charity they’re working for. Having the necessary skills and knowledge to support people experiencing homelessness helps volunteers feel confident and get the most out of their experience, but it’s also essential to keep the volunteer, the organisation and the people being supported, safe.
As well as supporting others, volunteering with a homelessness charity is a great opportunity for personal growth, providing skills development, improved wellbeing and valuable work experience. It’s also a great way to connect with your local community, meet new people and learn more about how other people experience the world. Volunteering is of course incredibly valuable for the organisations being supported, but people often underestimate just how much the volunteer gains from the experience.
The type of support given to a volunteer will vary based on the organisation, and it’s a good idea to ask this during the recruitment stage so you’re confident you’d be supported in a way that’s right for you.
Organisations such as P3 would assign you dedicated line manager to support you in your role and have regular check-ins to talk about things such as your wellbeing, any further training you may need, if you’re getting all of the support you need, address any questions you have and if all of your developmental goals are being met.
Volunteering in any form can be a valuable addition to a CV, showing commitment, passion and empathy, the homelessness sector in particular demonstrates kindness, compassion and strong interpersonal skills, which can be transferrable skills in any future role.
Duration times for volunteering will vary based on the role and the charity, but many organisations, including P3, offer seasonal volunteering opportunities as well as long-term, fixed roles.
Often charities will advertise voluntary roles to provide temporary cover or during busier seasons.
