Make volunteering work for all

If you're struggling to find volunteers to join your community organising group, perhaps look at breaking down the responsibilities into smaller roles which are more manageable for people's time. Could two people share one role? Are there opportunities for people to come along and get involved in a one-off activity?

There may also be other short-term volunteering opportunities you could offer. You might need someone with specific skills to help you out on a project, perhaps someone with design skills to develop a poster or someone with specific horticultural skills to offer advice. Some of these opportunities could be remote voluntary roles that are administrative or computer based. Halesowen in Bloom has worked with volunteers from local businesses who have helped them to design graphics to use in the campaign and promote Bloom more widely across the community.

When working with young people there may be some things you might want to adapt or do differently. There are many ways to successfully welcome, include and work with young people. It can also be a good idea to research what youth organisations operate in your local area, for example, Girlguiding, The Scouts and Duke of Edinburgh Awards Scheme and speak to them about ways Britain in Bloom or It's Your Neighbourhood could link to their work.

When involving young people it's important for them to be part of the decision making process. For Amersham in Bloom this has proved invaluable with many of their projects, leading to the young people taking ownership and pride in a project. One of these projects involved young people to plan and install a pond in a wildlife area. The young people were consulted on the location of the pond, size and the plants that should go in and around it. As a result, when the young people bought a group of their peers to visit the area they commented about how proud they were to have managed their part of the project. 

It's also important to make sure activities that involve young people are engaging. Amersham in Bloom also worked with a school to sow a wildflower meadow. The students learnt about the lifecycle of a seed and measured the area of the bed to calculate the amount of seed needed. Then they were encouraged to visit the flower bed to check its progress with their family and friends, engaging a wider audience beyond the students.   

For more tips read our resource - Gardening with young people

Community gardening is a great way to involve everyone in your local community. For those who have additional needs, think about how you could make your activities accessible to wheelchair users. This might be by having some raised planters or thinking about other activities they can do. The links below will point you to additional sources of support.  

Growing food can also be an effective way to bring people together. You could grow food suggested by community members and share the produce or cook a meal with others, perhaps by hosting a lunch event. Read our Create a community food garden resource and discover Anne's story which includes examples of where sharing recipes and food has brought people together.

Holding events that aren’t specifically focused on horticulture can also encourage others to get involved with what you're doing in your local area. You could hold a family-friendly event to get others involved, such as a bake-off, duck race or a garden-based art workshop, and while participants are there, ask what other kinds of activities might appeal to them. Find more tips in our resource- Running community events.

There's a whole host of organisations across the UK who can offer expert support and guidance for working with those who may have additional needs. A small list of organisations are listed below but there may also be organisations local to you who can also offer support or training.

• Action on Hearing Loss - the new name for RNID and the largest charity for people with hearing loss in the UK
• Mencap - the leading voice of learning disability with a learning disability helpline
• Mind - providing advice and support to anyone experiencing a mental health problem or those around them
• Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) - one of the UK’s leading sight loss charities and the largest community of blind and partially sighted people
• Scope - the disability equality charity which provides practical advice and emotional support through the Scope helpline, their online community and engagement programmes
• The National Autistic Society - the UK’s leading charity for people affected by autism