VOLUNTEERING

We are always on the lookout for new volunteers at the Soup Kitchen and Food Bank and are very grateful for the support they give as we couldn’t operate without them. Due to the Cost of Living crisis we are getting busier each week and we need help now more than ever.

There are a number of different roles that you can be involved with, depending on how much time you have to spare, how flexible you are, and how careful you have to be about social distancing. Some roles require you to be on site with the guests, others you can do in church on your own, and some can be done entirely from home. We ask for a regular commitment from our volunteers, but that doesn’t need to be frequent. You can volunteer every week, once every three months, or anything in between.

You can find out more about the different roles below.

If you’d like to Volunteer with us, please navigate down to the ‘How to apply’ section.

When?
Sundays
Tuesdays

Time Commitment?
10:30am – 2:30pm (Sundays)
5:00pm – 8:30pm (Tuesdays)

Social Distancing Level?
Difficult. Our kitchens are small, so it’s hard. 

You’ll be part of a team of about four people in this role that is in the thick of the soup kitchen action. It requires a bit more time commitment, and is more suitable for someone who is at a lower risk as social distancing is hard in our small kitchens. We try to communicate prior to the shift what food is available and decide what to make. You don’t need any cooking experience – those who are more confident cooks take the lead. As long as you’re happy peeling and chopping, you’re good to go! 

Your role would be:

  • Arrive at church about 1 ½ hours prior to the session opening to begin preparing the food.

  • You’d be part of the team, preparing food and cooking in the main kitchen. This includes cooking the main meal.

  • We also have a smaller 2nd kitchen (we call the hatch) at the front of the church where we portion up the desserts, cut up bread (only on Tuesdays) and get the takeaway bags ready.

  • During the session you’ll either be helping with serving food, or making soup for the freezer to use the leftover vegetables.

  • Towards the end of the session, you’ll be tidying up the kitchen/hatch and doing some basic cleaning. You’ll usually be able to leave as soon as the session closes, but there might sometimes be a bit more clearing up to do.

When?
Sundays
Tuesdays

Time Commitment?
10:30am – 2:30pm (Sundays)
5:00pm – 8:30pm (Tuesdays)

Social Distancing Level?
Difficult. We try, but again, like the kitchen, our spaces are small. 

You’ll be part of a team of two - four people running the food bank during the sessions. You’ll either be working out the front with guests taking their orders, working in the food bank stocking the shelves, packing/making food parcels, or shuttling bags of groceries to and fro. If you would rather be in contact with fewer people, we can make sure you only work in the food bank. 

Between members of the team, your role would be:

  • Checking stock levels are ready to go for the shift.

  • Preparing the order form ready for the beginning of the session.

  • Helping to manage the queue of guests.

  • Engaging with guests to take their orders.

  • Packing food parcels and taking them to the guests.

When?
Sundays
Tuesdays

Time Commitment?
Depends how fast a cook you are!

Social Distancing Level?
Very good. You’ll be at home and just drop things off to the church. 

Nearly all of our puddings are made off site and then brought to the church on a Tuesday afternoon/evening or Saturday afternoon/Sunday morning. We usually try and offer a choice, and need about 50 portions in total. Different volunteers communicate with each other to decide who is making what and how many portions they can manage. We buy basic dry ingredients in bulk that we can provide you with (mostly flour and sugar) and can reimburse expenses for other ingredients. We also sometimes have surplus fresh fruit, so you may get a challenge! The guests love their puddings (especially Fruit Crumble and Custard) but aren’t that fussy really, so it’s a good chance to try out recipes and be inventive. 

You role would be:

  • To communicate with other volunteers about what you’re making and how much.

  • To deliver food to church prior to the session.

How to apply

Applying is really simple. Just fill in the form (Click blue ‘Volunteer Application Form’ button below) and we’ll get back to you as soon as we can. We ask for two referees (they can be anybody who has known you for at least a year), and you can get involved with as many roles as you wish. Once your references have been returned, you’ll be invited to attend an induction. After which we’ll explain how the rota and everything works.

If you need any further information or help with applying, please email volunteering@sjebp.com.

Any questions?

If you’ve got any questions about any of the roles, or want to know anything more, feel free to get in touch!

volunteering@sjebp.com
@sjebp