Volunteer with us

Our wonderful volunteers are the heart of what we do and without them, we couldn’t do the work we do to get people housed.

Volunteering brings new experiences, new friends, new skills and a chance to give back. Maybe you can give us two hours a week to help out, whether it’s washing pots, mentoring at our employability project Renu or going on street outreach in the evening to build relationships with people who need our help to find a home.

Every single one of our volunteers brings a talent or skill which we can use. We’re blessed to have so many fantastic people on our team. We’d love to welcome you too!

You can choose to volunteer in our drop in centre during the day or the evening, helping people get the essentials and accessing healthcare. We are also always looking for volunteers and our office, storage and helping out on the van. In addition we always need volunteers for prayer and the God Slot.

You don’t need to be a Christian to volunteer but we do ask for people to be sympathetic and respectful of our Christian values.

We are currently at full capacity on volunteering due to social distancing measures that are in place. Please check back once lockdown measures are eased for any future volunteering opportunities.

The process is simple: complete the form, and choose a date and time for your interview and taster session. The interview is a short conversation to make sure that volunteering at Barnabus is right for you and the taster session gives you a chance to decide for yourself that you are happy to continue the process. Once those are done, we offer you training and help with applying for an Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service Check for working with vulnerable adults.

Having a conviction is not a bar to volunteering at Barnabus; if you want to talk to us about any issues before you decide to apply, contact Neil Cornthwaite for a chat by emailing [email protected].

How to apply

To apply to volunteer with us please fill out this form

Latest

The Dwell Project

The Dwell Project is the umbrella for all of our different faith-based ministries that runs throughout Barnabus. When people come through our doors, we don’t just offer them hope of a change in their physical circumstances but we also offer them hope for their emotional, mental and spiritual well-being. We aim to teach our guests how to abide and thrive in Christ. Empowering people into a home in Christ's love.
Our Support Office Reopens

Since lockdown our support team has been providing support over the phone to people experiencing homelessness. We've now made our office COVID19 secure, this week we have been able to reopen our support office to offer face to face support.
Wellbox care packages support Barnabus

Send you friends, family or colleagues a care package of delicious snacks and support people experiencing homelessness. Wellbox (operated by South Catering) is generously donating the cost of a meal for one of our friends for each box ordered
Sad news from the streets

It doesn't happen often anymore, thank goodness, but a couple of weeks ago, someone we knew died on the streets in Manchester.

Our Support Office Reopens

Since lockdown our support team has been providing support over the phone to people experiencing homelessness. We've now made our office COVID19 secure, this week we have been able to reopen our support office to offer face to face support.
40,000 meals delivered to rough sleepers during Lockdown

The Beacon Team, our volunteers, Feed my City, the Rev Ellie and Alan and Darren (our delivery team) have now cooked and delivered over 40,000 meals to people experiencing homelessness in Manchester. As we prepare to hand over the food provision to the hotels which are housing people experiencing homelessness we are taking the opportunity to reflect on the last three months and everyone that has made it possible.
End of week blog 28/05/2020

We are now in the exciting position to begin planning how our services and premises are going to reopen in the coming weeks and months. We are really looking forward to be able to return to some form of normal, to be able to offer face to face support and advice for housing, health, drug and alcohol dependencies, universal credit and opening bank accounts. Sadly many people are in need of this support to help them get off the streets and build new lives.
End of week blog 15/05/2020

Last week we reached a milestone. Since the start of lockdown we have prepared, cooked and delivered over fifteen thousand meals to vulnerable people and people experiencing homelessness in Manchester. We spoke to some of our staff and volunteers to hear what their thoughts are on reaching this milestone.
Fundraising in Lockdown

Despite the lockdown and government guidelines limiting what we can do you can still challenge yourself and fundraise to support Rough sleepers through this Coronavirus crisis and beyond, helping them into homes and new lives
Our CEO on how Coronavirus affects rough sleepers and our services

Yvonne our CEO on how Coronavirus affects rough sleepers, the impact on our services and how Manchester can pull together to help us.
Homelessness in Manchester

If you’ve walked the streets of Manchester, you’ve almost certainly passed by a rough sleeper. In fact, you’ve probably noticed that there are more people living and sleeping out on the streets. In 2010, the official rough sleeper figure was 7. In 2018, it was 94. Unfortunately, we know that in reality, the number is much higher. Please read on to find out more about homelessness in our city.
How we're helping

The stress and anxiety people can suffer when they are homeless means they often feel afraid to reach out and taking that small step towards getting help can seem like a mammoth task. That’s why our team is there to help from the start, giving tailored support and advice every single step of the way.

Sad news from the streets

It doesn't happen often anymore, thank goodness, but a couple of weeks ago, someone we knew died on the streets in Manchester.
End of Week Blog 27/03/2020

What a week it’s been, not just for Barnabus, but for the whole of our nation. Last week was all about shock and panic, this week was all about mobilisation when we realised we were moving to lockdown due to the corona virus.
Our support team are still a lifeline through this lockdown

Stephen Rowley is our Head of Support; before the crisis he was supporting rough sleepers and people experiencing homelessness with one to one support at our Support Office and Drop in. During this lockdown he is now providing support on the phone to rough sleepers in hotels and tenants self isolating in our Resettlement project. He is also feeding back to the team any deliveries or practical support that may be needed.
Volunteer with us

Barnabus relies on over 90 volunteers a week to open our doors and welcome people who need a friend. We have volunteers from all over Greater Manchester, as well as Cheshire and Lancashire, all age groups and all walks of life.
End of week blog 8/05/2020

Sadly there is still a small group of people rough sleeping in Manchester, spending their days and nights on the streets. We are now doing street outreach again to feed these people and support them into accommodation
Homelessness in Manchester

If you’ve walked the streets of Manchester, you’ve almost certainly passed by a rough sleeper. In fact, you’ve probably noticed that there are more people living and sleeping out on the streets. In 2010, the official rough sleeper figure was 7. In 2018, it was 94. Unfortunately, we know that in reality, the number is much higher. Please read on to find out more about homelessness in our city.
Donate Items

During this Covid 19 crisis we've cooked and delivered 40,000 meals to rough sleepers in emergency accommodation so that they could self isolate and keep safe, while ensuring they have essential supplies and food. We are also out on early morning outreach to support rough sleepers who may be new due to this crisis or mentally unable to cope with being indoors.
40,000 meals delivered to rough sleepers during Lockdown

The Beacon Team, our volunteers, Feed my City, the Rev Ellie and Alan and Darren (our delivery team) have now cooked and delivered over 40,000 meals to people experiencing homelessness in Manchester. As we prepare to hand over the food provision to the hotels which are housing people experiencing homelessness we are taking the opportunity to reflect on the last three months and everyone that has made it possible.
End of week blog 15/05/2020

Last week we reached a milestone. Since the start of lockdown we have prepared, cooked and delivered over fifteen thousand meals to vulnerable people and people experiencing homelessness in Manchester. We spoke to some of our staff and volunteers to hear what their thoughts are on reaching this milestone.
End of Week Blog 17/04/2020

How we're adapting our operations to help people experiencing homelessness through the Coronavirus Crisis and lockdown.