How to become a volunteer and find the right opportunity for you.

how to volunteer

We have been helping all sorts of people in Edinburgh find volunteering for over 45 years

There are hundreds of different ways to volunteer all over Edinburgh. No matter who you are, how much or how little time you have or why you want to volunteer, there is a role that is just right for you. And we can help you find it. We have been helping all sorts of people in Edinburgh find volunteering for over 45 years.

We love Edinburgh, we love volunteering and we want to help you find the perfect volunteering opportunity.

Find volunteering opportunities online

You can search our database of opportunities by clicking on the search button opposite (or below on a mobile device). The choice is huge and you can search by location, the type of volunteering that you want to do, who you would like to help or even use a keyword to narrow your search. You can filter your results by your availability, how accessible venues are, whether expenses are paid or by your age.

The following Volunteering Roadmap details some steps to expect from the very moment you start to think about volunteering until you commence volunteering with an organisation. Please click on the image below to view a full size version that you can also download:

Come and visit us

Come and see us at at our main office. You can search through volunteering opportunities and ask us any questions you have. We have experienced volunteer advisers ready to give you information or guidance that you need. You don’t need to make an appointment, just drop in! Click here for details on how to find us.

If you are thinking about doing some volunteering but aren’t sure how to go about it, or what you can do, then please come along and chat to one of our friendly advisers.

Need some extra help?

We also run drop-in sessions for people who feel they may need a little extra support or help to volunteer, and you can bring a friend or support worker with you if you would like. You can find out more here.

Let us know how you got on

Thank you for choosing us to find out more about volunteering in Edinburgh, and for your interest in offering your precious time. We hope your experience was positive but good or bad we really appreciate your feedback because it helps us to continually improve our service.

If you can spare a few minutes to feedback on your experience with us we’d really appreciate it. You can provide feedback on our form here or by clicking on the ‘Feedback form’ button in the sidebar (or below on mobile).

Family Befriender	Connections Volunteer Mentor	Adult Supportive Transport Driver	Activity Buddy	Lothians Perinatal Befriender
Are you someone who believes in the power of listening and connection? Join us as a Family Befriender at Home Link Family Support, where your support can make a world of difference to families with young children.	Our volunteer mentors are matched with young people who have completed either our Choices or Chances programmes with a positive destination. Main activities will include meeting with your mentee regularly for up to 12 months. Developing an action plan to help them sustain their positive destination. Support your mentee in figuring out what goals they want to work on next. Offer support and advice to your mentee as they navigate the next chapter of young adulthood.	The Supportive Transport Service is a key part of what we offer. It provides transportation to individuals living with or affected by HIV and/or Hepatitis C, helping them meet medical, social care, and daily needs. This might include transport to medical appointments, community activities, or essential errands like grocery shopping. Many Service Users face barriers to traveling independently due to factors such as limited mobility, social anxiety, or financial constraints. In addition to transportation, our drivers often provide a supportive presence by listening or helping individuals reflect on information shared during appointments.	The role of the Activity Buddy is to provide practical support and reduce isolation. The people we work with can find it hard to attend appointments and leisure activities due to poor physical/mental health, limited mobility, social anxiety or literacy issues. When illness, mobility, or side-effects of medication make housework or going out difficult, we offer support to make the home environment more comfortable. Volunteers play a vital part in improving service users’ physical health, mental well-being and quality of life through supportive relationships, community connection, creating pathways for personal growth and collaborative goal setting.	Parents of babies who have received care in hospital from the neonatal team can experience perinatal mental health issues and feelings of isolation.A befriender can provide emotional support to help build positive relationships between parents and their baby and improve parents’ mental health. Accessing activities in the community, going for a walk, or talking over a cuppa are some of the ways in which a Befriender can make a real difference for parents and their babies.
https://www.volunteeredinburgh.org.uk/volunteer/find-opportunities/online-support-pre-school-children-and-families-15161/		https://www.volunteeredinburgh.org.uk/volunteer/find-opportunities/supportive-driver-volunteer-1/	https://www.volunteeredinburgh.org.uk/volunteer/find-opportunities/home-support-service-1/	https://www.volunteeredinburgh.org.uk/volunteer/find-opportunities/lothians-perinatal-befriender-16432/

Family Befriender

Connections Volunteer Mentor

Adult Supportive Transport Driver

Activity Buddy

Lothians Perinatal Befriender

Are you someone who believes in the power of listening and connection? Join us as a Family Befriender at Home Link Family Support, where your support can make a world of difference to families with young children.

Our volunteer mentors are matched with young people who have completed either our Choices or Chances programmes with a positive destination. Main activities will include meeting with your mentee regularly for up to 12 months. Developing an action plan to help them sustain their positive destination. Support your mentee in figuring out what goals they want to work on next. Offer support and advice to your mentee as they navigate the next chapter of young adulthood.

The Supportive Transport Service is a key part of what we offer. It provides transportation to individuals living with or affected by HIV and/or Hepatitis C, helping them meet medical, social care, and daily needs. This might include transport to medical appointments, community activities, or essential errands like grocery shopping. Many Service Users face barriers to traveling independently due to factors such as limited mobility, social anxiety, or financial constraints. In addition to transportation, our drivers often provide a supportive presence by listening or helping individuals reflect on information shared during appointments.

The role of the Activity Buddy is to provide practical support and reduce isolation. The people we work with can find it hard to attend appointments and leisure activities due to poor physical/mental health, limited mobility, social anxiety or literacy issues. When illness, mobility, or side-effects of medication make housework or going out difficult, we offer support to make the home environment more comfortable. Volunteers play a vital part in improving service users’ physical health, mental well-being and quality of life through supportive relationships, community connection, creating pathways for personal growth and collaborative goal setting.

Parents of babies who have received care in hospital from the neonatal team can experience perinatal mental health issues and feelings of isolation.A befriender can provide emotional support to help build positive relationships between parents and their baby and improve parents’ mental health. Accessing activities in the community, going for a walk, or talking over a cuppa are some of the ways in which a Befriender can make a real difference for parents and their babies.

https://www.volunteeredinburgh.org.uk/volunteer/find-opportunities/online-support-pre-school-children-and-families-15161/

https://www.volunteeredinburgh.org.uk/volunteer/find-opportunities/supportive-driver-volunteer-1/

https://www.volunteeredinburgh.org.uk/volunteer/find-opportunities/home-support-service-1/

https://www.volunteeredinburgh.org.uk/volunteer/find-opportunities/lothians-perinatal-befriender-16432/

Entries
Link to Single Entry	Name	Summary
	Mojtaba (Moji) SedaghatKerdar	Web designer and SEO specialist in Musselburgh. Website builds, updates, local search and social media. WordPress, Wix, Squarespace and other platforms.
	Lauren Gilmour	Jill of all trades former journalist with experience across PR, communications, marketing, social media, photography and volunteer recruitment.
	Alastair Dunn	Able to help with outdoor or indoor tidying and clearance on an occasional basis (as not always in Edinburgh).
	Stewart Dee	Experienced Civil Service Manager looking to use my management and governance experience as a Board Trustee.
	Declan Chambers	IT professional offering tech, data and Infrastructure support, plus teaching and creative skills. Available Mon-Sun, 10am-8pm.
	Sam Clark	Experienced administrative professional offering organisational, data and records management support to charities needing reliable, detail focused help.
	Alastair Logan	Self taught Python and AI developer offering NLP, data, cloud and automation skills to help charities solve problems and work more efficiently.
	Stephanie Alcazar	Available Tuesdays–Wednesdays to support with social media management and training, as well as deliver illustration workshops.
	Jake Whittet	Edinburgh Microsoft 365 security specialist offering free cyber security assessments. Plain English reports, no jargon.
	Samantha Towers	Hello, I'm an experienced joiner, plasterer and painter.
	Thomas Quiroga	Helping charities use AI and low-cost technology to automate admin, improve processes, save time and focus more on supporting their communities.
	Scott Croucher	I’m an experienced chef with over 4 years experience.
	Joshua Stokes	Experienced professional in Data Protection, Records Management and all things considered Information Governance.
	Douglas McEachan	Well-travelled retiree can offer friendly and informal scenic travel slide shows.
	Sophie Jones	Karate coach with 10 years of experience and looking to inspire other people to become karateka (karate kids).
	Declan Gates	French Tutoring
	Valerii Kostikov	Experienced gynaecologist-oncologist (18+ years). Kind, reliable, compassionate and patient-focused. Keen to support people and gain UK healthcare experience.
	Sarah Cleary	Do you have a regular need for someone to sort jigsaw puzzles, bits and bobs (for example sewing beads) that need tidied or organised and sorted by size?
	Dr Donald Glass	Retired University Lecturer offering volunteering time to support visitor experiences at one of Edinburgh's museums.
	ABDUALSME	Experienced barber- qualified for three years.
	BILL KEIL	anything considered
	IAN JACKSON	Team of 10 people available for one day volunteering opportunity. Flexible on what this would entail.
	Izunna Agupusi	I am an Embedded AI Engineer with Raygonal Ltd, Edinburgh, holding an MSc in Artificial Intelligence. I specialise in embedded systems, early career in IT
	Laura McGlennon	As a qualified Yoga & MeditationTeacher I can offer classes teaching children, teenagers and adults. Available Monday to Friday mornings and afternoon
	Rapinder	Pianist, classically trained to above average level.
	Aoife	Passionate volunteer supporting community projects through event help, outreach, and content creation to promote inclusion and positive change.
	Nicole Carter	Qualified Nutrition Adviser who specialises in Eating Well For Good Mental Health free sessions.
	Reuben Nishan Christmas	An engineering degree holder offering to help with STEM tutoring. Also, looking to help out in any capacity related to food/cooking/baking.
	ola amroush	I recently graduated with a degree in Business Management from Edinburgh Napier University. I’ve found it challenging to secure a role in my field
	Brandon Williams	With 35+ years of operational expertise and a passion for helping others, I offer reliable, organised support to make a tangible, positive impact.
Link to Single Entry	Name	Summary

Link to Single Entry

Name

Summary

Mojtaba (Moji) SedaghatKerdar

Web designer and SEO specialist in Musselburgh. Website builds, updates, local search and social media. WordPress, Wix, Squarespace and other platforms.

Lauren Gilmour

Jill of all trades former journalist with experience across PR, communications, marketing, social media, photography and volunteer recruitment.

Alastair Dunn

Able to help with outdoor or indoor tidying and clearance on an occasional basis (as not always in Edinburgh).

Stewart Dee

Experienced Civil Service Manager looking to use my management and governance experience as a Board Trustee.

Declan Chambers

IT professional offering tech, data and Infrastructure support, plus teaching and creative skills. Available Mon-Sun, 10am-8pm.

Sam Clark

Experienced administrative professional offering organisational, data and records management support to charities needing reliable, detail focused help.

Alastair Logan

Self taught Python and AI developer offering NLP, data, cloud and automation skills to help charities solve problems and work more efficiently.

Stephanie Alcazar

Available Tuesdays–Wednesdays to support with social media management and training, as well as deliver illustration workshops.

Jake Whittet

Edinburgh Microsoft 365 security specialist offering free cyber security assessments. Plain English reports, no jargon.

Samantha Towers

Hello, I'm an experienced joiner, plasterer and painter.

Thomas Quiroga

Helping charities use AI and low-cost technology to automate admin, improve processes, save time and focus more on supporting their communities.

Scott Croucher

I’m an experienced chef with over 4 years experience.

Joshua Stokes

Experienced professional in Data Protection, Records Management and all things considered Information Governance.

Douglas McEachan

Well-travelled retiree can offer friendly and informal scenic travel slide shows.

Sophie Jones

Karate coach with 10 years of experience and looking to inspire other people to become karateka (karate kids).

Declan Gates

French Tutoring

Valerii Kostikov

Experienced gynaecologist-oncologist (18+ years). Kind, reliable, compassionate and patient-focused. Keen to support people and gain UK healthcare experience.

Sarah Cleary

Do you have a regular need for someone to sort jigsaw puzzles, bits and bobs (for example sewing beads) that need tidied or organised and sorted by size?

Dr Donald Glass

Retired University Lecturer offering volunteering time to support visitor experiences at one of Edinburgh's museums.

ABDUALSME

Experienced barber- qualified for three years.

BILL KEIL

anything considered

IAN JACKSON

Team of 10 people available for one day volunteering opportunity. Flexible on what this would entail.

Izunna Agupusi

I am an Embedded AI Engineer with Raygonal Ltd, Edinburgh, holding an MSc in Artificial Intelligence. I specialise in embedded systems, early career in IT

Laura McGlennon

As a qualified Yoga & MeditationTeacher I can offer classes teaching children, teenagers and adults.
Available Monday to Friday mornings and afternoon

Rapinder

Pianist, classically trained to above average level.

Aoife

Passionate volunteer supporting community projects through event help, outreach, and content creation to promote inclusion and positive change.

Nicole Carter

Qualified Nutrition Adviser who specialises in Eating Well For Good Mental Health free sessions.

Reuben Nishan Christmas

An engineering degree holder offering to help with STEM tutoring.
Also, looking to help out in any capacity related to food/cooking/baking.

ola amroush

I recently graduated with a degree in Business Management from Edinburgh Napier University. I’ve found it challenging to secure a role in my field

Brandon Williams

With 35+ years of operational expertise and a passion for helping others, I offer reliable, organised support to make a tangible, positive impact.

Link to Single Entry

Name

Summary

Mon	Tue	Wed	Thu	Fri
9.30 to 13.00	9.30 to 13.00	9.30 to 13.00	9.30 to 13.00	9.30 to 13.00
closed 13.00 to 14.00
14.00 to 17.00	14.00 to 17.00	14.00 to 17.00	14.00 to 17.00	14.00 to 16.00

how to volunteer

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how to volunteer

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how to volunteer

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how to volunteer

Data protection

We’ll only use this information to contact you about the training or event you’re booking. For more information about how we use your data please see our privacy notice.

Language Barriers?

We’ll only contact you about volunteering and we won’t pass your information to any third parties without your consent. You can read more about how we look after your information here.

If you have any questions about this widget dashboard, please contact us by email here. © 2026 Volunteer Edinburgh, all rights reserved. Volunteer Edinburgh is a Company Limited by Guarantee. Registered in Scotland No. SC202631. Registered Scottish Charity No. SC029681.

how to volunteer

Find volunteering opportunities online

Come and visit us

Need some extra help?

Let us know how you got on

Data protection: We'll only send you newsletters you sign up for and won't pass your details onto any third parties. If you would like to find out more about how we keep your information safe please refer to our privacy notice.

Language Barriers?

We’ll only contact you about volunteering and we won’t pass your information to any third parties without your consent. You can read more about how we look after your information here.

If you have any questions about this widget dashboard, please contact us by email here. © 2026 Volunteer Edinburgh, all rights reserved. Volunteer Edinburgh is a Company Limited by Guarantee. Registered in Scotland No. SC202631. Registered Scottish Charity No. SC029681.

Data protection: We'll only send you newsletters you sign up for and won't pass your details onto any third parties.
If you would like to find out more about how we keep your information safe please refer to our privacy notice.