Volunteering

The Middlesex Association for the Blind is very grateful to, and heavily reliant upon, its core of over 300 trained volunteers who regularly give their time to helping people with sight loss. However, we still have many more people in need of our services, particularly the Home Visiting Service and the MidSight Hospital Information Points. Our Volunteer Recruitment Campaign aims to encourage active volunteering within the local community.

One of MAB's valued volunteer home visitors

Who can Volunteer?

You don't need to be an expert. All you need is patience, friendliness and empathy. We need people of all ages, cultural backgrounds and experiences. Whether you are retired, unemployed or in full-time employment, as long as you can commit to at least one hour per week we would like you to join our team.

For full-time employees, why not ask your employer to support Employer Volunteering either in work time, outside work hours, or even in your lunch break once a week? To find out more about this initative, go to Volunteering England.

Our Volunteer Coordinator will go through your interests with you, so as to be able to match you to a suitable client or activity. We will also undertake a Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) check on your behalf as part of our policy and procedures of working with vulnerable people.

Volunteering at our art workshop.

Volunteering opportunities with the Association for the Blind

By Volunteering your time and energy you can assist us in many ways, such as the:

• Home Visiting Service: befriend a person with sight loss and relieve their isolation by assisting them with reading, writing, shopping and other everyday tasks
• MidSight Hospital Information Points: provide information and advice at one of the Association's voluntarily run eye clinic help points that aim to support patients at the point of diagnosis of their eye condition
• IT training: become an IT tutor on our specially adapted computer courses for the visually impaired
• Do you have green fingers? Our Sensory Gardens in Harrow and Barnet need that special touch to keep them looking neat and tidy
• Fundraising: help to plan and organise events for the Association
• Resource Centres: help to run the open coffee mornings at our Daily Living Centres
• OUTLOOK magazine: contribute to the editorial content of the Association's newsletter
• Administration: help with clerical duties at the Association's Harrow office
• British Wireless for the Blind: Distribute radios to people with sight loss
• Clubs, social events and support groups; help to run activities for visually impaired people.

What does the Association offer volunteers?

We greatly value our volunteers and appreciate the work that they do. We are proud of our record of retainment, having hundreds of volunteers who have been with us for several years and thoroughly enjoy what they do. This achievement is only possible by recognising the tremendous contribution made by our volunteers, and by providing:

• Placements that are matched suitably for both volunteer and client/service
• Awareness training for working with the visually impaired
• Advice and support
• Travel expenses
• Appreciation events and certificates, and the feeling of being part of a team
• Free subscription to OUTLOOK our quarterly newsletter

What are the benefits of volunteering?

• Meeting people
• Learning new skills
• The satisfaction of putting something into your local community
• A new direction in your career or retirement
• Gaining confidence
• Plugging experience gaps in your cv
• Doing good is medically proven to heighten your senses of well being and strengthen your immune system

Jean, our resource centre volunteer (who has been with us for 12 years!) has this to say about volunteering "I enjoy meeting and listening to people who visit our resource centre and coffee morning. I get satisfaction when I know I've helped."

Interested in Volunteering for the Association for the Blind?

If you are, then please contact us or complete the Volunteer Interest Form.

Help us to recruit volunteers

If you would like to have copies of our new volunteer recruitment poster to display, or leaflets to distribute, please contact us.

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