Volunteer with the British Red Cross
Join the British Red Cross as an emergency volunteer, support refugees or help in a charity shop. Together, we're the world's emergency responders.
How can I volunteer with the British Red Cross?
Volunteering with the British Red Cross is your chance to make a real noticeable difference in your local community. Have fun, build new skills, and support vulnerable people when they need you most.
However much time you can give and whatever your experience, we have volunteering roles to
suit everyone:
- Charity shop volunteer
- Community Education
- Fundraising and events
- Health and care volunteers
- Opportunities for young people
- Remote roles (volunteer from home)
- Supporting refugees
- UK emergency response
How do I apply?
Here’s how you can begin your journey as a British Red Cross volunteer:
- Find a role near you.
- Complete the application form. Once you have applied, you will receive a confirmation email where you can track your application progress.
- One of our friendly recruiters will be in touch to arrange a telephone conversation to discuss the opportunity with you.
- Depending on the role, additional checks may be required. These will be discussed with you on the phone.
- Full training for the role will be provided.
5 reasons to become an emergency response volunteer
How to make a real difference to someone’s life – including your own.
How and where can I volunteer?
There are lots of volunteering opportunities with the British Red Cross. Our volunteer jobs include:
- emergency response volunteer
- charity shop volunteer
- ambulance volunteer
- refugee support volunteer
If you can't find volunteer opportunities near you, you can volunteer virtually from home by supporting vulnerable people through our national helpline.
What are the benefits of volunteering?
If you're wondering why you should volunteer, consider how this experience can not only benefit you but also your community. There are various benefits of volunteering with the British Red Cross, including:
- Make a difference to someone's life.
- Volunteer with other passionate people.
- Be recognised for the skills and experience you bring to our organisation.
- Learn new skills that could help your career.
- Be a part of the largest humanitarian organisation in the world.
How old do you have to be to volunteer with the Red Cross?
You can volunteer with the British Red Cross from the age of 15, across many of our services, including in our charity shops and as a wheelchair volunteer. Once you turn 16, you can also volunteer in our refugee support centres. People aged 18 or older can also volunteer for charity work abroad in Europe at a wide variety of placements and programs.
Learn more about volunteering opportunities for young people.
What's the application process?
We have volunteer jobs that suit everyone, whether you can give a few hours or a few days a week. There are volunteer roles available across the UK and abroad, including volunteer work in London, Manchester, Edinburgh, Bristol and Glasgow.
Once you have applied, you will receive a confirmation email where you can track your application. We will be in touch with you to arrange a telephone interview with one of our friendly recruiters.
Depending on the role, we may need to do a criminal record check. Full training for the role will be provided.
Volunteers for the Ukraine crisis
Please note that we are not currently sending volunteers to Ukraine. This includes medical and logistics experts. Our teams there have told us that the best way to support the response in Ukraine is to raise funds. This is our focus, through our emergency appeal.
We don’t have any specific volunteering jobs to support Ukraine in the UK. We are constantly monitoring the evolving situation and will keep this page updated with opportunities.
Do you have a question about this page or want to give us feedback? Visit our Contact us page.