OCVA is the accredited Volunteer Centre for Oxford City, South Oxfordshire, and the Vale of White Horse. If you’re interested in volunteering, or support in recruiting and managing volunteers, we are more than happy to help.
Search for an opportunity near you. Visit Oxfordshire volunteers for jobs in your area.
Volunteering can be a great way to gain experience and skills which you can then talk about on UCAS applications, your CV and future job interviews. It’s also a great way to meet new people, make friends and contribute positively to your local community and causes you care about. OCVA can help you volunteer in all the ways listed above.
As an extra resource for young people, visit the oxme website. This site contains information about volunteering opportunities especially for your age group, as well as training and apprenticeships.
We regularly attend jobs fairs and volunteering fairs and will keep our Facebook page updated with the places we are visiting around the County.
We also keep a blog with updates about volunteering in Oxfordshire and accounts of what we’ve been up to!
Want us to come to you? If you’re hosting a volunteer fair or careers fair and want us to attend, get in touch by emailing vol@ocva.org.uk. We are also happy to organise a visit to a group such as a college or social club to give a talk to members about volunteering.
Volunteering roles in sport
As well as getting in touch with us, you may also want to contact the Oxfordshire Sport and Physical Activity Team. They send out a newsletter of specific sporting opportunities which you can sign up to here. This includes lots of one-off opportunities for event volunteers – ideal of you don’t have much spare time.
Volunteering on a one-off basis
Sometimes it’s hard to put aside the same time every week to volunteer. If you’re more interested in volunteering for a day here and there, we have a section of our volunteering website where these opportunities are held. Visit this page here, and sign up to the website to enrol in an opportunity. You may also be interested in linking up with Team Oxford, who specialise in flexible volunteering.
Becoming a befriender
Visiting an elderly person for a chat, to help with odd jobs or to provide a lift to a medical appointment can be a tremendous lifeline for someone who is lonely and isolated. Ami is a dedicated website which allows you to search via your postcode for people in your local community who are looking for a befriender.
International Volunteer Day (IVD) on 5 December was designated by the United Nations in 1985 as an international observance day to celebrate the power and potential of volunteerism.
It is an opportunity for volunteers, and volunteer organisations, to raise awareness of, and gain understanding for, the contribution they make to their communities. It is also viewed as a unique chance for volunteers and organisations to celebrate their efforts, to share their values, and to promote their work among their communities, non-governmental organisations (NG0’s), United Nations agencies, government authorities and the private sector.