A small honest invitation

We do not need many volunteers. But the few we do need, we need rather a lot.

Most of our work is done by the nine trustees. There are five small roles where another pair of hands — quiet, regular, willing to stay for a year or two — makes the work meaningfully easier.

Three volunteers and a trustee at the back of Bardney parish hall, sorting envelopes after a Saturday morning meeting

What we can promise.

Most of what we ask of a volunteer is regularity. A small kindness, repeated for a year or two, is worth far more to us than a large enthusiasm that fades by November. We will not waste your time with training days, away-days, or 'volunteering brand campaigns'. We will pair you with one of the trustees and tell you exactly what is needed.

You will not be asked to fundraise. You will not be asked to canvass. You will not be expected to wear a hi-vis vest unless you genuinely want one. The trustees keep a small DBS-checked list of volunteers who work closely with the Southrey widows; the rest of the roles do not require checks.

Five roles in five paragraphs

Our open volunteer roles, 2026.

Role · Southrey

Companion-visitor

Tue evenings · 18.00–20.00 · once a month · DBS-checked at our cost

Sit and have a cup of tea with one of the widows on our pension list, on a fixed evening each month. We pair you with one neighbour. There is no script. There is no agenda. You are not expected to fix anything. You are there to be a familiar face. Most of our companion-visitors stay paired with the same person for two to three years, and the trustees check in informally with both of you every quarter.

Team lead · Katie East, trustee

Role · Bardney

Grant-day note-taker

Sat mornings · 09.30–11.30 · four meetings a year · no DBS required

Help the trustees keep tidy minutes on the four grant days a year, and on the occasional special meeting between them. We need someone comfortable with a notebook, reasonable handwriting, and an instinct for discretion. The minutes are typed up later by the secretary — your job at the meeting is to capture the gist and the resolutions. A working knowledge of Microsoft Word is useful but not essential; one of our most diligent note-takers does the whole thing in a Pukka Pad.

Team lead · Geoffrey Pacey, chair

Role · Witham Walks

Witham Walk steward

Two Saturday afternoons a year · 12.00–17.00 · April & October

Our spring and autumn fundraising walks raise modest sums for the funds — usually £600 to £900 per walk. Stewards meet the walkers at the bridge in Southrey and at the abbey ruins in Bardney with hot tea, a clipboard, a first-aid kit, and a kindly word for anyone whose pace has flagged. You will be paired with a trustee for your first walk. No prior experience necessary; wellington boots advised after October rain.

Team lead · Christopher Pacey, trustee

Role · Bardney

Dispatch folder

One Thursday afternoon, four times a year · 13.00–16.30

Four times a year we send out the quarterly Letter from Bardney — the print edition. The folding, stuffing, and stamp-applying happens on the Thursday afternoon before posting, around a long trestle table in the vestry hall. Tea is supplied. Conversation flows. Most of our folders treat it as a quietly social afternoon. You can come to one and skip the others; we keep a small rota.

Team lead · Catherine Lee, trustee

Role · Remote

Website & mailing-list keeper

Flexible · ~2 hours a month · home-based

A small technical role. Keep this website ticking over — add the quarterly news note, post the annual report PDF, update the events page in February and August. Manage the small newsletter mailing list of around 460 names. We need someone reliable rather than expert. The current site is a hand-written set of static pages; familiarity with HTML, or willingness to learn, is helpful. The role can be done entirely from home.

Team lead · Darren Wilkinson, treasurer

A short form

If one of these roles speaks to you, please write.

There is no application form to fill out, in the strict sense. We will write back within five working days, suggest a time for a quiet conversation, and (if both you and we are content) take it from there.

We will read your enquiry ourselves at the Kitchings General Charity. We never share your details. Our privacy policy explains how we hold this information.