Volunteer

Volunteering is a very rewarding as well as enjoyable way of helping the charity. Our volunteers never fail to amaze us with their hard work and commitment and we wouldn't have got as far as we have today, were it not for their support. We greatly appreciate any time or energy you can donate to Meningitis UK.

We are always looking for enthusiastic people to help us work towards our vision to eradicate meningitis. If you feel that you could give us some of your time, and would like to meet new people and learn new skills, why not look at the volunteering positions currently available both nationally and at our head office in Bristol.

National Volunteering Opportunities

We are looking for people to help:

Cheer on participants at sponsored events (eg. BUPA Great North Run, Flora London Marathon etc.)
Promote the charity's awareness trailer.
Collect, using the charity's street collection licences.
Manage collection boxes.
Distribute awareness literature to local chemists, schools, doctor's surgeries etc.
Raise awareness by speaking to the media.

Bristol Based Opportunities

At Meningitis UK we are always happy to consider volunteers on an ad-hoc basis, to help us out with tasks such as administration and data entry. From time to time we may also have vacancies for those candidates looking to gain experience in a particular area, such as Communications, PR and Events Management. For more information on becoming a volunteer, or to have an informal chat about possibilities, please contact Penny Crawley, our Office Manager on 0117 373 73 73 or email pennycrawley@meningitisUK.org

Past Volunteers

Frances chose to volunteer for Meningitis UK as Community Fundraising Assistant returning from eight months teaching in Spain. She knew she wanted to work in the charity sector and therefore felt volunteering was the right move to get the valuable experience she needed.

After volunteering for Meningitis UK, Frances went onto secure a position as Community Fundraiser at the national charity Action for ME.

"I volunteered for Meningitis UK for three months, and in that time I learnt about community fundraising and how a charity works as a whole. The work I did was varied and interesting, and I was able to work with different areas of the charity that interested me.

What I particularly valued about the experience was the way in which everyone really made me feel part of the team and really appreciated the work I did. There was a great work ethos, and yet there was a lot of fun to be had too! I really feel I owe my current job to my work experience with Meningitis UK!".

Frances working at the Bristol Office

Sarah joined Meningitis UK after returning from six months travelling. Sarah came from a recruitment background, but knew she wanted to move into the charity sector and that volunteering was probably the best way to gain experience within her chosen field.

Sarah took on the position of Appeals Assistant for a three month placement and whilst here helped to co-ordinate Meningitis UK's Mini Maskthon fundraising initiative aimed at nursery children and to secure sponsorship from major companies such as Hasbro, Fisherprice and Kinderhouse.

Since leaving Meningitis UK, Sarah has secured a job in London working as a Corporate Fundraiser for the Outward Bound charity.

"Volunteering with Meningitis UK was paramount to my transition from working in the commercial world to working within charity fundraising. With such a great team of fun and supportive staff, I gained an excellent knowledge of fundraising in general and within three weeks of leaving, with a CV to be proud of, I was securing interviews with top charities in London. I volunteered full time for over three months and the team at Meningitis UK were really flexible when I needed to take time off to prepare and attend interviews.

I am pleased to say I am now in my dream job as a Corporate Fundraiser. Volunteering is a fun, educational and rewarding experience and I am very grateful to Meningitis UK for giving me my first taste of the thrills of Fundraising".

Sarah Buchanan

Sarah counting Collection Boxes in the Bristol Office

Since tragically losing their 24 year old daughter Helen to meningococcal septicaemia in May 2001, Terry and Sue Laing from Stockton-on-Tees, have become ambassadors for the charity by fundraising and helping to raise awareness of the disease throughout the Middlesbrough area.

Terry and Sue have raised nearly £30,000 for Meningitis UK in memory of Helen and now manage over 50 of the charity's collection boxes.

"As a family we are keen to raise awareness of meningitis and are very pleased with the launch of the education packs by Meningitis UK to all the schools in the local area. We will continue to support the efforts to raise funds to develop a vaccine for Meningitis B. Our main drive is to avoid parents going through our experience and support the work of the charity."

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