About FareShare Greater Manchester
FareShare Greater Manchester is the local branch of national charity FareShare, which works to help people experiencing food hardship in Great Britain.
Every hour of a single person’s volunteering contribution results in 60 meals being delivered to people in need in Greater Manchester. Every 1kg of food saved from Anaerobic Digestion is equivalent to a 3.7kg CO2 (Carbon Dioxide) saving.
How Fareshare Greater Manchester Works
FareShare Greater Manchester operates with the generous support of many partners, including major supermarkets and fresh produce retailers, who donate surplus food to the charity on a regular basis.
The food is delivered to the FareShare Greater Manchester warehouse in Openshaw, East Manchester, where it’s unloaded, recorded on a stock database and then sent out to good causes across the city region.
The donated supplies are usually in the form of in-date fresh food, with a short shelf life; perishable grocery items that have been over-stocked and would otherwise go to waste and end up in landfill sites or incinerators.
Volunteers at FareShare are therefore contributing a double benefit: helping people in need and the environment too.
What Opportunities Are There For Volunteers With FareShare?
There are lots of varied and interesting roles available for volunteers in FareShare Greater Manchester’s operations, with opportunities available in our office, warehouse and out on the road across the city region.
Office Roles
These are a very important part of building and maintaining our relationships with our Community Food Members (the projects and people we support). Our volunteers help with getting food orders made up, taking orders and managing all our stock. Office volunteers work in close partnership with the warehouse team every day to find out what’s in stock and then match the supplies with orders.
These roles are customer-facing and involve a lot of talking on the telephone and using a database, so are best suited to people who are confident communicators with a friendly manner, and who have good IT skills.
If you aren’t familiar or comfortable with using a computer, don’t worry, you can still help. There are plenty of equally important traditional office tasks to be carried out, like filing and archiving.
For further information about volunteering for Office Roles, click here.
Office Roles
These are a very important part of building and maintaining our relationships with our Community Food Members (the projects and people we support). Our volunteers help with getting food orders made up, taking orders and managing all our stock.
Office volunteers work in close partnership with the warehouse team every day to find out what’s in stock and then match the supplies with orders.
These roles are customer-facing and involve a lot of talking on the telephone and using a database, so are best suited to people who are confident communicators with a friendly manner, and who have good IT skills.
If you aren’t familiar or comfortable with using a computer, don’t worry, you can still help. There are plenty of equally important traditional office tasks to be carried out, like filing and archiving.
For further information about volunteering for Office Roles, click here.
Warehouse Roles
If you prefer a practical role and don’t mind the weather, helping out in our goods warehouse may be just the thing for you. Operations here are hands-on and mostly involve receiving and moving food in a busy environment and keeping a record of stock levels.
Once the supplies have been unloaded and entered into the database, teams pick the food orders and pack them ready to go onto the vans for distribution. For many of these roles you will need to have good reading and writing skills and be comfortable with making calculations associated with quantities of goods. You’ll also need a basic level of fitness and mobility, as warehouse tasks involve physical activity and working partly outdoors.
For further information about volunteering for Warehouse Roles, click here.
Delivery Teams
Volunteering with our delivery teams is best suited to people who love being out on the road.
Our drivers and driver’s assistants deliver food across the whole of Greater Manchester to over 200 Community Food Members. Drivers in particular will require special skills and experience, such as a good working knowledge of the Manchester area and its roads. Drivers need to be over 25 and have a full UK driving licence with no more than three penalty points. Good customer service skills are also necessary in order to interact with our food members.
Driving teams are the face of FareShare, so a friendly, confident and professional personality is also essential in these customer-facing positions.
For further information about volunteering for the Delivery Teams, click here.
Delivery Teams
Volunteering with our delivery teams is best suited to people who love being out on the road.
Our drivers and driver’s assistants deliver food across the whole of Greater Manchester to over 200 Community Food Members. Drivers in particular will require special skills and experience, such as a good working knowledge of the Manchester area and its roads. Drivers need to be over 25 and have a full UK driving licence with no more than three penalty points. Good customer service skills are also necessary in order to interact with our food members.
Driving teams are the face of FareShare, so a friendly, confident and professional personality is also essential in these customer-facing positions.
For further information about volunteering for the Delivery Teams, click here.
Other roles
We are a very open and flexible organisation, so there’s always a possibility that we can specially create a role to match your skills and experience. We particularly welcome contributions from people who can help us with research, business development and expansion of our services.
Who can volunteer?
We welcome volunteers from all walks of life. This reflects and complements the recipients of the food FareShare delivers, who are also from all circumstances and backgrounds. Whoever you are, we will be as flexible as possible to accommodate you and will make sure you feel comfortable and valued.
What experience do I need?
No experience is required, but you must have a willingness to work and to learn about the tasks and procedures involved in volunteering with us. Tasks may be adapted to suit various levels of ability. All volunteers need to be able to follow procedures, especially relating to food hygiene and health and safety.
What commitment do I need to make? (Is there a minimum number of hours required)?
We ask for a basic level of commitment to us, and in turn we will give you flexibility to meet your personal circumstances. Ideally, we would like you to offer FareShare at least one day per week, but we are happy to consider a minimum of one 4 hour shift per week, depending on what skills and experience you can offer.
Expenses and PPE (safety) equipment
Expenses for lunch and travel will be reimbursed (up to a set limit), and you will be provided with Personal Protection Equipment. Please see our Frequently Asked Questions page for more details.
Equal opportunities
FareShare Greater Manchester and its parent charity EMERGE 3Rs are fully committed to equal opportunities. We’re completely inclusive; welcoming everyone from all walks of life. We’re also very flexible and will do our best to include you, whether you’re actively retired, semi-retired, self-employed with spare time, parents, job-seekers, students, or anyone with spare time on their hands, we can usually find a role that suits the majority of people in all sorts of circumstances.
How do I sign up?
Ready to volunteer? Signing up is quick and easy.
Just click on the REGISTER button below to be taken to our simple form. If you prefer, or if you need more information that’s not covered in our FAQ section, you can call us instead and speak to Liz, our Volunteering Manager. Our number is 0161 223 8200 (Option 6). You can also email us: volunteering@emergemanchester.co.uk
Benefits of volunteering with FareShare
As well as gaining valuable skills and experience and making new contacts and friends, at the end of each shift you will leave knowing that you have made a measurable positive difference to the lives of people living in hardship, as well as saving perfectly good food from being needlessly destroyed. Every 1kg of food saved from Anaerobic Digestion is equivalent to a 3.7kg CO2 (Carbon Dioxide) saving. This is very good for the planet and your own sense of wellbeing.
If you choose a placement in the warehouse, there may also be health benefits associated with volunteering in a physical role, such as the possibility of boosting your fitness levels.
If you are job-seeking, FareShare is happy to provide a job reference to volunteers who wish to return to paid work. This is normally after a minimum period of 3 months.
