Time to Celebrate - it's Volunteers' Week 2019

03 June 2019

We’re very proud of our amazing volunteers! Every time they volunteer in one of our shops, offices, events or hospitals they are helping us to raise funds and increase awareness of the amazing work we do - helping over 470,000 much-loved pets and bringing peace of mind to 300,000 owners each year.

We have over 3500 volunteers and some of them have been with us for over 30 years, which is a testament to the enjoyment they get from volunteering. We know that for many of our volunteers, it’s the opportunity to develop skills and gain experience they can put on their CV that attracts them to PDSA but whatever the reason for joining us, all our volunteers benefit from a great induction, training and recognition. As well as celebrating and thanking our volunteers during Volunteers Week each year, we also say thank you throughout the year with long service awards, Volunteer of the Year awards and Christmas celebrations.

We’re always working on ways we can improve our volunteer experience and that includes recognising that the world of volunteering is changing. We know that many people aren’t able to make a long-term commitment, so we’re developing new opportunities to volunteer on a one-off or occasional basis. Our new roles include Community Fundraisers who support fundraising events in their local community and Event Volunteers who support our teams at high profile events like Crufts and Countryfile Live.

For me as Head of Volunteering, Volunteers' Week is an opportunity to look back and recognise the amazing contribution our volunteers have made over the past 12 months - and look forward to the year ahead when we’ll be developing new opportunities and new ways of working. It’s going to be an exciting year at PDSA, and we’ll be looking for even more volunteers to join us.

So whether you’re looking to make friends, develop skills, gain work experience or help support our work treating sick and injured pets, we probably have a volunteering opportunity to suit you.

Why not call into one of our high street shops and have a chat about the volunteering opportunities they have available - or click here to search for opportunities in your area.

Have a great Volunteers Week!

Kate

Head of Volunteering