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RSPCA - how you can help RSPCA - how you can help RSPCA - how you can help

Although we are always in need of financial support (see our Donating page), you can also provide very valuable support through the donation of your time!

If any of the volunteer roles outlined below is of interest, please contact us.

Home visiting

Home visitors are an essential part of our animal rehoming and adoption system. They visit the homes of potential adopters to ensure that that every animal goes to a good and suitable home. They talk through the requirements of the animal and ensure that the accommodation, exercise area and containment are adequate.

This is an interesting volunteering role but only suitable if you have regular time to spare, access to a telephone and the use of a vehicle.

Before undertaking any home visits, you will attend a ‘home visiting’ training course which will help prepare you to:

  • Be familiar with, and follow at all times, the national Society’s rehoming policies, guidelines and procedures.
  • Act at all times as a good ambassador for the branch and the national Society, supporting its policies and aims whilst on RSPCA business.
  • Be aware of the needs of a particular animal and assess potential adopters accordingly.
  • Offer appropriate advice and support to new owners in a couteous and supportive manner.
  • Report the finding of the home visit promptly to the Animal Centre to inform their re-homing decision.
  • Complete all required documentation neatly and accurately.
  • Meet agreed time commitments and standards and give reasonable notice if unable to volunteer in order that other arrangements can be made.

Become a Branch Member - and a Trustee

By becoming a member of the national Society you will also become a member of your local branch and a proportion of your membership fee goes to the branch.

Once you are a member, you are eligible to be considered for election to the committee as a branch trustee and you can help contribute to local animal welfare work across the branch area.

Visit the national RSPCA site for more information about membership.

If you are already a member and you are interested in becoming a trustee, see the Trustee info sheet.

Charity shop assistant

We need charity shop volunters that can offer regular assistance with general duties in our Wigan charity shop - just one half-day per week can really help.

There are many ‘behind the scenes’ roles such as sorting, steaming, cleaning and polishing that are vital to the successful running of both shops as well as ‘front-facing’ display, sales and till work.

Volunteer Vacancy (Feb 2012):       Assistant to Van Driver

We presently have a vacancy for an assistant to help our van driver to pick up goods and deliver them to our charity shop, or to deliver small items of furniture to customers.

The days of the week you will be needed will vary depending on the demand for pick-ups and deliveries and the availability of the driver. It will normally be 2 - 3 days per week - but if you can only help with one day then please still contact us.

If you are interested, find out more by phoning the shop on 01942 248493 or calling in at the shop at 54a Market Street, Wigan - ask for the manager Alison Dooley or her deputy Allan Yates. Or you can email us on contactus@rspca-wigan.co.uk.

 

Fundraisers

As an independent charity, we are in continuous need of funds to support the everyday costs of maintaining the PAWS clinic as well as supporting the costs of treating sick animals where their owners are unable to pay the full fees.

We need enthusiastic folk to come up with great fundraising ideas that they will do themselves either as an individual or as a group (e.g. sponsored bike ride or parachute jump, a local coffee morning or bigger event ....). Have a look at the volunteer fundraising page on the national website for more ideas.

If you would like to raise money through a sponsored activity, we can provide a sponsorship form for you.

Whatever you are planning, especially if it is an unusual activity, it may be worth getting newspaper or other media coverage. We may be able to help you with that if you contact us well in advance of your event.

Although you may not be working directly with the animals, the money you raise as a fundraiser will help more animals than any other type of volunteer work and will have a real impact on supporting our local animals. Even if you can only get involved once a year it will help support the branch and the work we do.

Static collection box round

Static collecting boxes (placed for example in shops and pubs or any area accessible to the general public) within a community can really help to enhance the local profile and raise awareness of the work of the Branch and can provide a regular and reliable source of income. When regularly serviced, a good relationship can be built up between the owner/manager of the box site which could lead to other fundraising opportunities (for example, the branch might become the beneficiary of the proceeds of a pub quiz night due to the relationship that started with the placement of a collection box).

Could you look after a round of between 6 and 10 boxes in your local area, servicing them regularly (approx once a month)? We will train you on how to record the monies collected and ensure that the funds get to the branch.

Other ways you can help

We have occasional need for other volunteer roles:

Please note that we are ideally looking for people who are from the local area. If you are from outside the area covered by our branch, you may like to find an RSPCA branch closer to your home.

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