Charities of choice

Find out about staff volunteering and supporting the UN Sustainable Development Goals with our charities of choice.

The following charities have been selected as our first set of charities of choice. We are actively signposting you, as a valued member of our staff, to volunteer with these charities, to build up a critical mass of local impact and strengthened relationships with the local third sector.

Many of these organisations have multiple types of volunteering opportunities, requiring different skills and time commitments. You can find out more by following the links below ahead of booking your volunteering leave on MyView.

Chestnut Tree House and St Barnabas House

Supports UN SDG 3: Good Health and Wellbeing

Chestnut Tree House and St Barnabas House provide hospice care services and community support for people with progressive life-shortening conditions in East and West Sussex and Southeast Hampshire.

They have a range of opportunities, including:

  • attending local community events
  • helping in the hospices’ charity shop
  • co-ordinating collecting boxes.

Where and when: Locations and time commitments vary depending on the role, but their website includes the information you need to decide if it’s right for you.

Find out more.

Fareshare Sussex

Supports UN SDG: 2: Zero Hunger; 12: Responsible Consumption and Production

Fareshare fight hunger and tackle food waste by collecting unused an unwanted food and redistributing to people in need.

There are several different roles available for individual volunteering warehouse: sorting and packing food, and helping delivery drivers, delivery driving, or using surplus food to cook lunch for teams of volunteers volunteering.

Groups and individuals are also able to fundraise, either by joining pre-existing events, or by designing and organising their own fundraising events.

Where and when: Fareshare are based in the centre of Brighton. Volunteers have a minimum commitment of one shift a week for three months, with shifts running from 9am–1pm and 2.30pm–6.30pm, Monday to Friday. 

Staff can volunteer by filling in an online expression of interest form. If accepted, you will then be invited to an induction meeting.

Governors for Schools

Supports UN SDG 5 - Quality Education

Governors for Schools is an education charity that supports schools to find skilled and committed volunteers for their governing boards to improve education for children. As a governor, you’ll utilise and develop your decision-making and leadership skills in a board-level role.

School governors offer strategic guidance rather than getting involved in the operational aspects of a school.

This involves:

  • working with other board members to plan the school’s strategic direction
  • overseeing the school’s financial performance ensuring money is well-spent
  • holding the headteacher or school leadership to account.

Where and when: You will be matched with a local and appropriate School within the area volunteering an average of 5 hours per month.

Find out more and apply using the online form. Once reviewed, the partnership managers will find you the most appropriate school match.

IntoUniversity

Supports UN SDG 1: No Poverty; 4: Quality Education and 10: Reduced Inequalities

IntoUniversity supports young people from disadvantaged backgrounds to attain either a university place or another chosen aspiration. Roles available include:

  • academic support: supporting students with homework, revision, and study skills
  • careers in focus: delivering a short introductory talk about them and their career, delivering an interactive activity to teach students relevant skills, and participating in a question-and-answer segment
  • reading society: participating in a monthly session to discuss a book the students have been reading.

Where and when: The charity has a centre based in Mouslecoomb. For the academic support and reading society roles, you must commit weekly (either 3pm–5pm or 3.45pm–5.30pm) for a minimum of 12 weeks. There is demand for all roles throughout the year, with typically less demand in the summer.

You can sign up via an online form. Training checks are needed but are carried out by IntoUniversity upon the completion of a successful application.

Martlets

Supports UN SDG 3: Good Health and Wellbeing

Martlets is a local charity providing essential care to people affected by terminal illness in Brighton and Hove, as well as surrounding areas. They provide the very best care and support, helping patients and their loved ones to live life to the full during the precious time they have together.

You can either volunteer in one of Martlets’ charity shops or as part of the Compassionate Neighbour scheme, which involves calling someone at risk of isolation for a minimum of one hour a week. Their opportunities require a longer term commitment, but they can arrange 2 hour taster sessions to all new volunteer enquiries.

Where and when: Locations and time commitments vary depending on the role, but their website includes all the information you need to decide if it’s right for you.

Explore their opportunities:

Brighton and Hove Mind

Supports UN SDG 3: Good Health and Wellbeing

Brighton and Hove Mind work to promote good mental health in Brighton and Hove and across Sussex.

Most of their volunteering opportunities require at least 6 months commitment. You can get an overview of the projects that recruit volunteers, as well as seeing current vacancies, online. Opportunities are often advertised in batches to help Mind manage the training and induction process.

Where and when: Details of the volunteering role will be provided when roles are advertised.

Find out more.

Brighton Permaculture Trust

Supports UN SDG 15: Life on Land

Brighton Permaculture Trust promotes greener lifestyles and sustainable development through permaculture design and runs courses and events applying permaculture principles.

The Brighton Permaculture Trust has several roles available to individuals and groups: many of the volunteer opportunities take place in Stanmer Park where they have 3 orchards and a permaculture gardening plot. They also hold regular sessions at Racehill Community Orchard which is located in Whitehawk. Sessions range from gardening to orchard maintenance (they have planted a number of small orchards around Brighton), fruit picking and juicing late summer and autumn plus tree planting over winter.

Where and When: Most volunteering opportunities take place within Stanmer Park, or Racehill Community Orchard (East Brighton). Volunteering opportunities are available all-year round, though it should be noted that some roles are seasonal so it is worth checking their website regularly.

Potential volunteers can join the Permaculture Trust volunteer mailing list and receive a weekly email listing what is available or visit their volunteer listings webpage.

Raystede Centre for Animal Welfare

Supports UN SDG 15: Life on Land

Raystede Centre for Animal Welfare is an animal sanctuary giving unwanted and abandoned animals a better life. There are a wide variety of individual roles available for individuals and groups. 

Individual opportunities include shop work, gardening and event promotion. These roles can be applied for by visiting Raystede’s volunteering webpage, selecting a role, and filling in a short application form. Responses can be expected within two weeks.

Groups work includes the Corporate Volunteering Scheme, for groups of around ten people. On the day of volunteering, each group will be assigned a selection of maintenance and gardening work. Corporate Volunteering Scheme opportunities are limited to 9am–4pm on Tuesdays or Wednesdays. Find out more about corporate volunteering. 

Surfers Against Sewage

Supports UN SDG 6: Clean Water and Sanitation and 14: Life Below Water

Surfers Against Sewage (SAS) is a local grassroots environmental charity dedicated to the protection of oceans, waves, beaches and wildlife.

The Million Mile Clean is open to anyone to join, anywhere in nature (beach, street, park, river, mountain etc). You can choose any date or location that suits you. You will be covered by their public liability insurance, receive the relevant risk assessments, and can request free equipment for up to 30 people. The kit includes re-useable rubbish bags, gloves, sanitiser and a first aid kit.

Where and when: You can choose any date or location that suits you.

You can register your cleans and find out more here. 

Sussex Wildlife Trust

Supports UN SDG 15: Life on Land

Sussex Wildlife Trust is a conservation charity which aims to protect natural life in Sussex.

A range of individual roles are available, largely focusing on public engagement and practical conservation work. They offer sessions through their 'Work for Wildlife' environmental team building programme.

They also host several corporate beach cleans and litter surveys, which focus on searching for small items of litter in amongst the pebbles and the sea weeds in a small area of beach, recording the findings and submitting the findings to a national database. The information is used to influence businesses, council and the government.

Where and when: Opportunities are available all-year, though it should be noted that roles are seasonal, so specific duties are likely to change regularly. They currently have limited opportunities on nature reserves and can only offer opportunities with the Gatwick Greenspace Partnership in the Gatwick area.

Staff can apply for individual volunteering roles by filling in an online form. Group volunteering can be booked through Sussex Wildlife Trust’s volunteering team.

Time for Dementia

Supports UN SDG 3: Good Health and Wellbeing

Time For Dementia is an education programmes that aims to transform healthcare for people with dementia by increasing the knowledge and understanding of medical students.

Individuals with experience of dementia can support the Brighton and Sussex Medical School (BSMS) Undergraduate course’s dementia education module. This consists of a person with dementia and their carer or family ‘teaching’ BSMS students about their experience from their home. There are six 90-minute sessions over two years.

Other roles offered by Time for Dementia include fundraising, companion calls and administration. Corporate volunteering is also available for groups and covers a range of activities, including using existing skills and expertise of volunteers to improve our business and process.

Where and when: BSMS course volunteering is carried out from the volunteer’s home, so no travel is required. Other roles, such as event work, will take place in various place within the South-East.

Potential volunteers can contact Time for Dementia at timefordementia@alzheimers.org.uk or 07562 430 204.

Case studies

If you undertake volunteering either individually or as a team, we’d love to hear from you. We want to include some examples to inspire others to give it a try. Please contact the Sustainability Team at sustainable@sussex.ac.uk if you would be happy to be featured.