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Volunteer for DEBRA UK
Our 1,000+ volunteers are amazing and make such a difference to people living with EB every day. We always need more, though.
Whether you have a specific skill or want to learn something new, however much or little time you can give, and whatever stage of life you are at, there is a volunteering role for you here at DEBRA UK.
With a wide range of opportunities available we’re super flexible in terms of how much time you give, so you can decide which charity volunteering role suits you best.
We have achieved the Investors in Volunteers quality standard which recognises best practice in volunteer management. This accreditation demonstrates how much we value our volunteers and hopefully will reassure you that you’ll receive an outstanding volunteer experience with us.
We have achieved the Investors in Volunteers quality standard which recognises best practice in volunteer management. This accreditation demonstrates how much we value our volunteers and hopefully will reassure you that you’ll receive an outstanding volunteer experience with us.
Through a volunteering role with us you can meet new people, learn new skills, and gain meaningful experiences to enhance your CV and career prospects. It can also boost your confidence and self-esteem.
So, if you have the time to give, please join us and help changes lives. With you we can BE the difference for EB.
Find out more about our volunteering roles below.
Join team DEBRA
Meet volunteer Amber
“Working in a charity shop suits my skill set and I love giving back in a sustainable way, so working with second hand clothing and giving them new life is great!”
Charity shop volunteering
Whether it’s engaging with customers, creating eye-catching displays, sorting stock or more, by volunteering in one of our shops you’ll be part of a team which plays a crucial role in raising the funds to improve quality of life for people living with EB today and to secure effective drug treatments for all types of EB for tomorrow.
We have various volunteering roles available in our shops as well as online volunteering roles, where you can use your passion for fashion and collectables to help grow our online sales.
We have volunteering opportunities available across our UK stores.
Flexible, any time you can give is much appreciated, but if you can do at least 3-4 hours a week, this will help make a real difference.
What we need from you:
- A willingness to learn (if you need training, we’ll provide it)
- A willingness to uphold high shop standards
- Excellent customer service
- To be dependable, reliable and physically able to carry out allocated tasks
- Ability to work as part of a team and on your own when required
Cash desk assistants:
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- Operate a till to process cash and credit card transactions
- Engage with customers from all walks of life to make the most of every sales opportunity
- Promote our latest campaigns including raising awareness of EB
- Sign customers up to Gift-aid
- Assist with stock processing and replenishment
Sales floor assistants:
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- Use your flair for fashion and eye for décor to help our customers find what they want in our stores
- Filling the rails and shelves of our stores with quality pre-loved items
- Dressing windows and creating eye-catching displays to entice and invite our customers to browse and buy
- Assist our customers with in-store donations and sign them up to Gift-aid
Stock room assistants:
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- Ideal for those seeking a behind-the-scenes role, you’ll help sort through the donations we receive, sorting, tagging, hanging, bagging or boxing ready for sales
- Steaming clothes so that they are in very best condition ready for sale
Complete our volunteer form to register your interest:
Online shop volunteering
As an online shop volunteer, you’ll use your passion for fashion and collectables to create and manage the online listings that will drive our online sales growth.
Your day could involve selecting the items from donated stock that will sell well online, researching their value, taking photographs and creating listings on eBay and other online platforms, and then packing up the sold items for shipment to another happy customer!
We have online volunteering opportunities available across our UK stores.
Flexible, any time you can give is much appreciated, but if you can do at least 3-4 hours a week, which will help make a real difference.
What we need from you:
- Ideally some experience of buying and selling on-line
- A willingness to learn (if you need training, we’ll provide it)
- Computer literate
- To be dependable and reliable and physically able to carry out allocated tasks
- Ability to work as part of a team and on your own when required
Complete our volunteer form to register your interest:
Event and office volunteering
As well as volunteering to support our retail operations, we also need volunteers to support our member and fundraising events and office teams.
Pick and choose which event you want to support, whether it’s one of our nationwide member events, which provide vital access to our EB Community Support Team and the opportunity to meet other members of the EB community, or volunteering at one of our many fundraising events, which raise much-needed awareness of EB and the funding that enables us to support the UK EB community.
You could cheer on one of our runners, help at one of our gala dinners, or look after our loyal golf supporters at one of our many golf days.
If events aren’t your thing, we also need positive individuals with a can-do attitude to support our staff with a range of different administration tasks within one of our office-based teams.
Whatever volunteering support you can provide will make a big difference.
Location
Various. We have member events, fundraising events and challenges, and golf days taking place across the UK throughout the year. For more information about events taking place near you, search our events:
Commitment
Whatever time you can give is very much appreciated and the time commitment will vary depending on the event, for example our golf events normally need support first thing in the morning with registrations, whereas some of our gala events take place in the evening or on weekends.
What we need from you:
- Good organisation, communication, and customer service skills
- A willingness to uphold high standards to ensure our members and/or guests are well looked after
- A willingness to learn (if you need training, we’ll provide it)
- To be dependable, reliable and physically able to carry out allocated tasks
- Ability to work as part of a team and on your own when required
Location
Various. It could be at our offices in Bracknell, Berkshire and Blantyre, South Lanarkshire, or you could volunteer remotely.
Commitment
Flexible, any time you can give is much appreciated, but if you can do at least 3-4 hours a week, which will help make a real difference.
What need from you:
- Good eye for detail
- Computer literate with experience of Microsoft office packages
- A willingness to learn (if you need training, we’ll provide it)
- To be dependable and reliable
- Able to work as part of a team or on your own when required
Complete our volunteer form to register your interest:
Duke of Edinburgh volunteering
We are an Approved Activity Provider for the volunteering section of the Duke of Edinburgh (DofE) Award. This means our volunteering opportunities are pre-approved to meet the requirements of the volunteering section of any Bronze, Silver or Gold DofE Award, so whatever level you are at, whatever time you can give, there will be an opportunity to volunteer with us that will count towards your Award.
If you are aged 14+, you can volunteer in one of our retail shops.
Read our Duke of Edinburgh (DofE) Participants Pack for more information.
As well as giving you the skills and experience you need to complete your Award and helping to raise vital funds that could be life-changing for people living with EB, volunteering is also great for mental well-being; a study by the National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO) found that 77% of volunteers reported improved mental health. In the same study 69% of 18–24-year-olds reported that volunteering improved their employment prospects too.
So, what are you waiting for! Apply now!
Complete our volunteer form to register your interest:
Hoilday home volunteering
To help DEBRA provide memorable holidays and vital respite to people living with EB and their families, DEBRA has a number of holiday homes that members can hire at a low cost.
We require volunteers to support us by visiting our holiday home to look over the property internally and externally spotting any maintenance required, health & safety issues, cleanliness and to generally making sure the holiday home is well equipped and report back to us.
We have holiday homes across the country:
- White Cross Bay Holiday Park, Windermere, Cumbria, LA23 1LF
- Brynteg Country & Leisure Retreat, Llanrug, Near Caernarfon, Gwynedd, LL55 4RF
- Waterside Holiday Park & Spa, Bowleaze Coveway, Weymouth DT3 6PP
- Kelling Heath, Weybourne, Holt, Norfolk, NR25 7HW
- Rockley Park Holiday Park, Poole, BH15 4LZ
- Newquay Holiday Park, Newquay, Cornwall, TR8 4HS
Flexible, just let us know how often you would be available to visit a holiday home, i.e. weekly, fortnightly, and monthly, etc.
What the role will involve
Regularly visiting our holiday home to look over the property internally and externally spotting any maintenance required, health & safety issues, cleanliness and to generally making sure the holiday home is well equipped with good quality items and equipment that is not broken or worn and report back to us.
Ideally we would also like to be able to provide a basic grocery welcome pack in each holiday at the start of each booking. We would also like our volunteers to replace small items as they see fit, e.g. replacing a shower mat, purchasing salt/rinse aid and filling up the dishwasher to prolong its life (if applicable), and of course expenses for items purchased will be reimbursed.
What we require from you
- We are looking for people who will view the holiday home as a ‘home away from home’.
- Have our members’ interests at heart.
- Someone who has an eye for detail.
- Some maintenance or DIY skills would be helpful, but not essential.
Complete our volunteer form to register your interest: