We are a charity that harnesses the transformative power of play and exercise to help vulnerable children recover from complex trauma. Our goal is to nurture the confidence of every child we work with and develop valuable life skills to help them reach their full potential.
Volunteers will support children at Solidarity Sports projects during school holidays. In practice this may be running through playgrounds with our children, supporting them as they try bouldering for the first time, ice-skating, and many more fun activities. Volunteers will build a positive, trusting relationship with our children, and make them feel special and valued at all times during our projects.
During our children’s Christmas holidays (23rd, 27th, 30th December 2024, and 2nd-3rd January 2025), we are bringing our children to various venues across London for exciting day trips!
We have projects every school holiday, in Christmas, Easter, Summer, and Half-Terms, Monday to Friday, from approximately 10am-4pm.
Your team leader will assign you 1-2 children as partners for the day. We maintain a good ratio of 1 adult : 2 children so we can give our children as much attention and care as possible. We ask that you bring your ENERGY, passion and enthusiasm to volunteering! Please also take initiative to help out with various tasks.
Location: West London (outside Shepherd’s Bush, Hammersmith, Earl’s Court, or Notting Hill Gate underground stations)
The volunteer coordinator will contact you with details of meeting point.
Reimbursement: Travel is reimbursed up to £15 and lunch up to £4.50 with receipts provided.
Person specification: You MUST have a passion for working with children. Our children have been through a lot in their short lives; it is vital we listen and give them a safe and fun space to express themselves. We want to create a happy, loving environment for them.
Requirements: All volunteers will be DBS checked before volunteering. We will help you obtain an enhanced DBS check for free. If you have lived in the UK for less than 3 months you will have to obtain an equivalent background/criminal check from your previous country of residence.
Flexibility:
This is a very flexible commitment – you can do 1 day in this week, 2 days, or all 5 days if you’re keen!
We do ask however that volunteers commit to the 10am-4pm time slot, as you will be paired with two children during this project, and if you are not able to stay for that amount of time there will not be enough volunteers to adequately supervise the children (there should be at 1 volunteer:2 children ratio at all times).
Onboarding: After signing up, we will organise a quick 30-minute call with you to discuss volunteering logistics and your motivations. We will also help you get an enhanced DBS check for free if you don’t already have one.
This is the perfect opportunity to give back to the community while having fun. Our volunteers and staff enjoy the fun activities as much as our children!
You will gain hands-on experience by applying key psychological theories (e.g. trauma recovery, attachment) to real-world situations, and develop a better understanding of how they influence children's emotional and social development. You will also learn to be empathetic and sensitive in supporting our children, who have experienced significant adversity.
You MUST have a passion for working with children. Our children have been through a lot in their short lives; it is vital we listen and give them a safe and fun space to express themselves. We want to create a happy, loving environment for them.
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