Volunteering is the perfect way to give back to your community but its also an amazing experience that will directly benefit you. It is something that will help improve your local community but will also make you feel more involved as whilst you are helping charities, you are able to make connections with a variety of people which gives you the feeling of being part of something big. When TimeBank asked people why they volunteer, out of 700, 46% said: to make new friends and 48% said they volunteer because it made them feel good. As well as this, volunteering can give you valuable skills that employers look for and experience that will benefit you in the future .
Volunteering is very wide and diverse, there are many charities for any issues you feel passionate about from animal cruelty to children in poverty. Find a problem you feel most strongly about and volunteer in a charity dedicated to that issue to make a difference. Remember, that anything you are doing is helping someone else.
When i volunteered at Oxfam, my experience was incredible positive. This is because I really felt like I was making a difference to the charity by helping out and i got to meet so many lovely people. Current college student Karolina Lopinski agrees that volunteering is something everyone should try, "I volunteered for a while at the National History Museum because history is something i`m very interested in, it was something that really helped when it came to applying for universities ".
If you have any spare time, try volunteering and see how it benefits you. Weronika Juszczak Gumley House School
