Becoming a volunteer

VOLUNTEERING

Being situated in the middle of a very highly populated area, with the Hillingdon, Slough, Windsor, Kingston & District branch of the RSPCA covering the enormous environs from Slough to Burnham to Uxbridge to Hayes to Windsor to Staines to Kingston and the surrounding areas, obviously tremendous call is put on the services of our Animal Welfare Clinic and Rehoming Centre.

In order to allow our qualified staff to concentrate on the animal welfare work of the Clinic and the re-homing of any unwanted animals, behind the scenes is a group of people supporting them in different ways, from answering telephones, helping in the Branch's Charity Shop, providing transport, helping within the Clinic and assisting at the many fundraising events.

There are a number of ways you can help the Branch in a voluntary capacity:

Attend or help at a Fundraising Event

We organise and run a number of fundraising events, from Summer Fayres to sponsored dog walks, through to supermarket collections.

Events are held throughout the year and throughout the Branch area, doing a variety of things. See the Calendar of Events for dates and locations of our events.

See the Membership page for more information about becoming a "Friend", which is someone who commits regularly to helping at events and coming up with new ideas for fundraising.

Become a volunteer at the Branch Charity Shop

Duties include sorting donations, arranging displays, helping customers, operating the till, and generally having a good time with the other volunteers and meeting new people.

Shifts can be for a few hours, to half a day, to a whole day. Regular commitments are obviously helpful but are not necessary.

Experience is great but also not necessary as full training will be given, including Manual Handling training.

See our Charity Shops page for locations and opening times.

Home Visiting

Each of our potential animal adopters undergoes a Home Visit so that we can ensure that our animals are going to the right home for them. For this opportunity, we ask that you have owned animals yourself to give you a basic understanding of the responsibility of owning an animal. Full training on what to look for and how to conduct a Home Visit will be given. We need volunteers who can carry out Home Visits in their local area all over the Branch area.

Dog-Walking and Animal Care

There are a limited number of opportunities to work on the direct animal welfare side that arise from time to time. Priority for these opportunities is given to people who have volunteered as a Friend or in the Charity Shop. We ask that you give some time to the fundraising side of the Branch so we can get to know you. As all our animals are currently housed in the Uxbridge area, these opportunities are also limited to those who live near or are willing to travel to us on a regular basis.

For a printable summary of the different volunteering opportunities available...

If you would like to become a volunteer, please complete our volunteer application form

To ensure that our volunteers have had the appropriate checks and are placed into the best area of work for them, the volunteer application process is as follows -

Application form completed and recieved by Branch Office
Referees are sent a form and pre-paid envelope and positive references are received by Branch Office
Applicant is invited to a New Volunteer Meet & Greet Session, where they will find out more about the RSPCA, our Branch, and the volunteering opportunities available. There will be an informal one-on-one chat with a Trustee or Staff person and a tour of the Branch Clinic is offered.
A trial day, shift, or event will be arranged by the supervising person of the area of work, giving the applicant a chance to see what the work will really be like.
Arrangements are made for ongoing volunteering and a New Volunteer Induction is carried out to ensure you know everything you need to know for the role you will be playing.

For more information please contact us or call for a volunteer application form if you are not able to print from the above link (leaving your full name and postal address if you are asked to leave a message).

Sponsored by:

Broken Gate Lane, Denham, Uxbridge, Middlesex, UB9 4LA
Fax preferred: 01895 834461 Telephone: 01895 834606