Volunteering Opportunities

While many organisations focus on offering referrals, accommodation, education, and training, few explore the loneliness that often comes with those who are homeless or socially isolated. 1 in 4 Australians say they are currently experiencing an episode of loneliness¹ and 1 in 10 Australians aged 15 and over report lacking social support². These are staggering numbers especially when you consider that social isolation has also been linked to mental illness, emotional distress, suicide, the development of dementia, premature death, poor health behaviours, smoking, physical inactivity, poor sleep, and biological effects, including high blood pressure and poorer immune function.

There are many benefits to volunteering, studies have shown that it can give you a sense of achievement and purpose, help you feel part of a community, help you feel better about yourself, help you learn new skills and create a better work-life balance, combat stress, loneliness and social isolation, depression, and help you meet new people.¹

There are also some practical benefits to volunteering your time:

• A study by career builder found that 60% of hiring managers see the act of volunteerism as a valuable asset when making recruitment decisions.²
• 92% of human resource executives agree that contributing to a non-profit can improve an employees leadership skills.³

Many of our volunteers also say that they get as much if not more out of attending outreach as our patrons do. To hear from some of the patrons we’ve helped click here.

There are many ways to volunteer with Rosies, whether it’s sharing friendship while attending street outreach, helping to keep young people safe at Gold Coast Schoolies or assisting with admin or donation collections for a particular branch.

Our available volunteer opportunities are listed in the top left corner of this page.

Here some stories from our volunteers:

Sources:

¹ Australian Psychological Society 2018. Australian loneliness report: A survey exploring the loneliness levels of Australians and the impact on their health and wellbeing. Melbourne: APS.

² Relationships Australia 2018. Is Australia experiencing an epidemic of loneliness? Findings from 16 waves of the Household Income and Labour Dynamics of Australia Survey. Canberra: Relationships Australia.

Rosies aims to offer friendship and unconditional acceptance to those who are homeless, at risk of homelessness, or are experiencing social isolation or loneliness. Just as you would offer a cup of tea or coffee to a friend who was visiting your home, we do the same for our friends on the street.