There are a many different volunteer roles available here at Battersea and we regularly develop new roles depending on the needs of the animals in our care, and the teams that support them. We strive to create an inclusive environment and ensure that our volunteers are involved in all aspects of our work, are valued for their commitment, and recognised for the extraordinary things they do for us.
Follow a day in the life of Vicki and Norman, Kennel Support Volunteers:
What do our volunteers do?
We are supported by over 600 volunteers across the three centres who assist our staff in a variety of ways. As well as our ever-popular animal welfare roles, volunteers help staff with office duties and represent us at events.
Why volunteer with us?
People volunteer for many different reasons, but they all share a passion for and commitment to animal welfare. Volunteering at Battersea is a rewarding experience, an opportunity to meet new people (and animals!) and gain new and transferable skills.
Every volunteer supports us to help the dogs and cats in our care and further the work that we do.
Becoming a volunteer
All volunteer positions are advertised on our current volunteer vacancies page and successful applicants for a role will be asked to attend a group recruitment and information session or interview. This is an opportunity for prospective volunteers to learn more about the role, as well as a chance for the Volunteering Team to learn more about applicants and why they want to volunteer. Applicants who are successful at interview or group recruitment will then attend an induction session where they receive all the training relevant to their role.
The recruitment process to become a volunteer with us is competitive so we ask that you think carefully about the time you can commit before applying.
We ask for a minimum commitment of six months, but we would love for volunteers to stay with us for a lot longer – and many do.
See a day in the life of Susan, one of our Cattery Support Volunteers:
Volunteering FAQs
We welcome applications from anyone over the age of 18, we have a wide variety of roles available to suit different interests and skillsets. Unfortunately, we cannot accept volunteers who are under 18 years of age due to our insurance policy.
Roles in our kennels and catteries are by far our most popular. To enable us to manage the number of applications we receive and to allow our staff to train volunteers we have specific recruitment drives at different times throughout the year. Please keep your eye out on our current volunteer vacancies page.
We ask for a minimum commitment of six months for most of our volunteer roles due to the levels of training and support we provide. However we recognise that many people are unable to offer this much time and if that is the case for you then you could consider getting involved with our fundraising schemes.
Experience is always useful for any role, as well as a friendly attitude and a willingness to get involved in some hard work. Please consult the individual role descriptions for desirable skills and experience.
Volunteers should not be out of pocket as a result of volunteering with us. We reimburse out of pocket travel expenses to and from the organisation, and other expenses by arrangement.
We are not able to offer work placements at our centres.
We are unable to accommodate for ad-hoc corporate volunteering.
Our volunteering and fostering programme is made possible by the generosity of players of People’s Postcode Lottery. To date, players have raised more than £148 million for good causes and we are all incredibly grateful for their ongoing support.
Accredited by IiV
Investing in Volunteers (IiV) is the UK quality standard for good practice in volunteer management.
