Work
Starting to draw a pension doesn’t mean the end of your career. But it does mean you have choices. What you do, how much, who for, how long and when – they now all belong to you.
Govt Regs Full time Part-time Starting a business Non-executive-directors Care VolunteeringGiving of your experience and your time, putting something back into the community can be uniquely rewarding to the volunteer.
Research has shown that, apart from financial reasons, many people keep working because they want to stay active or contribute and be productive. More people are using the second stage of life to take on second careers, start businesses or follow long-delayed dreams to serve their communities.
At RP, we have an association with Reach Volunteering, https://reachvolunteering.org.uk. A leading charity providing a comprehensive national service to all those involved in volunteering. In our listing of voluntary positions available on this page, we feature a number from Reach, but do register with them if you’d like to be kept in closer touch with opportunities as they arise.
Reach are specialists in skilled volunteering. The range of things you can do as a volunteer is huge – from guiding the strategic development of a charity to delivering frontline services.
Reach volunteers have built websites, designed new marketing materials, mentored young people, been legal advisors, become treasurers, advised on IT, chaired boards, undertaken audits, managed projects, worked on campaigns and analysed data – the list is extensive.
As well as a wide range of skilled volunteering positions, Reach also source trustee roles. Many people believe they lack sufficient experience to become a trustee when in fact their skills would be an ideal match for a charity’s board, so it’s worth finding out more about exactly what is being asked for before you decide if something is for you or not..
Reach has introduced The Trustee Works Service, a new service for finding trustees for Charities. This matching service is free for organistions with under £1m turnover.
Social entrepreneurship pioneer and Civic Ventures CEO Marc Freedman has published a book on the subject, The Big Shift. “It’s a time,” he writes, “when many have insight about what matters, a special impetus to act on this wisdom, and the ability to do so. In this respect, it’s a potential sweet spot, a confluence rather than a reinvention.”
Here are some of the ways we have found to do it.
Charities
Most charities both local and national rely heavily on the work and experience given freely by retired people.
For a comprehensive oversight of information on charities
http://www.guidestar.org.uk/Default.aspx
is supported by HM Treasury, the Charity Commission and various trusts.
If you have specialised expertise and abilities, you might like to become a consultant with Eastside Primetimers, and bring your contribute directly into community projects
Or plug into the largest selection of heart-warming work opportunities on
https://www.ncvo.org.uk/ncvo-volunteering
See also:https://do-it.org/
Reach helps to connect volunteers with voluntary organisations
http://www.jobsincharities.co.uk/
is a specialist recruitment website for the not-for-profit and charity sectors.
Community Action Network supports and networks social entrepreneurs who are seeking to improve the quality of life for all, but particularly disadvantaged communities.
Jobs with the Media Trust, which acts as a broker between charities needing media skills and people who can provide these skills.