Festive Volunteering Opportunities 2022
It’s that time of year again - the festive season is upon us! There’s a crisp chill in the air, party plans are being made, and there’s twinkly lights everywhere. In the midst of all the holly jolly festivities, we can forget that for some people, the holidays are an incredibly difficult time. It’s important to remember that a little bit of kindness can go a long way when the most vulnerable members of our Bristol community feel most isolated or in need. Want to know how you can help? Here are a few ways you can get involved in spreading kindness and generosity across Bristol this holiday season!
Christmas Craft Fair | 9 December
Join the Sanctuary Scholars fundraising group for a Christmas craft fair in the Bristol SU living room on Friday 9 December. There will be the opportunity to make your own Christmas crafts with help from other students whilst giving to a great cause. All sales from the event will go to the Sanctuary Scholarship Legal Aid Fund, which helps to support Sanctuary Scholars to fight legal challenges whilst they are studying.
Pitstop & Phab Winter Fete | 10 December
Pitstop is a student-led volunteering project that runs day trips for teenagers with learning disabilities in the Bristol area. They are organising a charity craft/bake sale and raffle in collaboration with Bristol Phab - another volunteering project that organises fortnightly events for disabled young adults in the local area. The event will take place on 10 December in the Richmond building foyer to raise money for both projects. Come along from 10:30-4:30 to get a tasty treat, artistic piece and try to win a prize in our raffle! We also are looking for donations of baked goods for the sale and are organising a gingerbread decorating social in the week before the event - so please do get in touch if you'd be able to make anything to contribute!
Phab Christmas Party | 15 December
Phab get together every other Thursday with disabled and non-disabled young people. On Thursday 15 December they are holding a Christmas Party and you’re invited! It'll be an opportunity to meet people from the local community as well as other like-minded students. There'll also be plenty of snacks and entertainment! If you would like to come along, email bristolphab@gmail.com.
Application deadline: 13 December
Clean Up Bristol Harbour December Litter Pick | 18 December
Come along to help pick up litter from the Harbourside to help make Bristol better in December.
Clean Up Bristol Harbour aims to help clear the harbour area of litter that collects in the water. They aim to keep a record of the amount of rubbish they collect at each Clean Up and show how this litter affects our beautiful harbour. At our monthly events, we work in association with Bristol Ferry Boats and also work closely with the Harbour Office. Boats full of trusty volunteers head out into the harbour and get litter fishing!
Sell a Tree & Help a Refugee (Gloucester Road)
Aid Box Community will be selling Christmas trees to raise MUCH needed funds to continue to provide basic essential items, community and welcome to Bristol's displaced and often isolated individuals and families. Help in the shop as a one off or deliver the trees. It’s so easy to sign up for a specific shift.
Application deadline: ongoing, shifts until 21 December
Caring in Bristol: Bristol's Big Christmas Dinner
Young people disproportionately experience homelessness in Bristol, along with people of colour, people with disabilities, care leavers and newly recognised refugees. Sign up for a shift with Caring in Bristol this Christmas to be part of their huge Christmas campaign.
Application deadline: ongoing, various shifts
Fareshare Cost of Living Crisis Appeal
Every year, more than two million tonnes of food go to waste. Meanwhile, the cost of living crisis is driving millions in to food insecurity.
FareShare has a plan to help tackle the cost of living crisis using England’s surplus food.
By spending £25 million a year, the government could deliver an additional 42,500 tonnes of surplus food, the equivalent of 100 million meals, to the people worst hit by the cost of living crisis.
Take action now. Ask your MP to back FareShare’s #CostofLivingAppeal by signing our letter to the PM, and get #FoodOnPlates to those affected by this crisis.
Donate to a Local Foodbank
People across the UK are facing impossible decisions this winter, having to choose between staying warm or buying food. Food insecurity affects millions of people across the UK, not just the homeless. Foodbanks provide emergency food parcels for those in need because no one should have to go hungry. Why not get some friends together and collect a box of food donations and drop it off at one of the foodbanks across the city?
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If hearing about all the ways you can be part of helping the local Bristol community has left you feeling inspired, why not make volunteering your new year's resolution? Bristol SU has several amazing student-led volunteering projects, as well as hundreds of organisations advertising volunteering roles on our website, and one-off volunteering opportunities that happen throughout the year. There’s something for everyone so why not see how you can get involved?
