Voluntary Action South West Surrey

Amphibian and Reptile Conservation is a national wildlife charity (Registered Charity 1130188) committed to conserving amphibians and reptiles and saving the disappearing habitats on which they depend.

Our vision sees amphibians and reptiles thriving in their natural habitats, and a society inspired and committed to their conservation.

The British Regional Transport Association (BRTA) is a voluntary membership-based, pro-public transport improvement association with several of its projects having a nationwide positive benefit and impact. Membership is open to all.

Our Vision

A world where butterflies, moths and nature thrive and can be enjoyed by everyone, forever.

Our Purpose

Butterfly Conservation conserves and recovers butterflies and moths and champions them for the benefit of nature and people.

Come and join our new volunteer team in Guildford.

We rescue surplus food from businesses, supermarkets and farms. This food is nutritious, in date, and safe and includes a high proportion of fresh vegetables, fruit, meat and fish. If we did not rescue this food, it would be at risk of going to waste. Instead, we deliver it to charities, schools, food banks, community pantries and fridges and other organisations serving vulnerable people.

Our new warehouse in Guildford will provide us with increased capacity for frozen and chilled food. By opening this warehouse, we aim to increase the amount of food we can save and eventually increase the number of charities and community groups we can work with in Surrey.

Our food is a vital lifeline for vulnerable people in our community. Children and families, people on low incomes, people who have lost their jobs, the homeless, refugees, domestic abuse survivors, the elderly and key workers all rely on our food.

Founded in 2008, Farnham Community Farm—formerly known as Farnham Local Food—is a community-run project powered by volunteer support. Our mission is to provide fresh, locally grown vegetables, produced to organic standards, for people in and around the Farnham area. We also offer volunteering opportunities in a peaceful, welcoming environment.

Here’s what we’re proud of:

• We welcome volunteers of all ages and abilities—whether you’re coming as an individual, with support to learn new skills, or simply to enjoy the calm, open space of the farm.

• We host schools, youth groups (including Cubs, Brownies, and Rainbows), and participants completing Duke of Edinburgh or school volunteering programmes.

• No regular commitment is required—just join us when it suits you. For your first visit, please let us know by emailing: volunteering@farnhamcommunityfarm.com

Our vegetables are as fresh as it gets. Picked the very same day they’re collected, they travel virtually no food miles, helping preserve nutrients often lost in supermarket produce that’s been transported long distances. It’s better for you—and better for the planet.

As with all community projects we always need more help in all areas of our scheme.  If you think FCF is something you may enjoy being part of then come along and see us. All ages, all abilities, everyone is welcome.  We hope to see you there.

Surrey Reuse Network is a group of six social enterprise charities working together in partnership to reduce landfill and help their communities by providing affordable furniture for all throughout Surrey.

Herons Wey Campsite is owned by Girlguiding Surrey West and managed by volunteers.  The campsite and residential facilities welcome members of Girlguiding, the Trefoil Guild, Scouting, uniformed organisations, charitable groups, and other youth organisations including Schools/Educational and Duke of Edinburgh groups for overnight/residential stays and day bookings. 

Girlguiding is the largest organisation for girls and young women in the UK.  The aim is to sustain and promote a stimulating and enjoyable programme of activities.  These will help girls and young women develop their potential and enable them to play an active role in their community.

Do you love gardening? Do you like helping those in your community? Then we have the perfect project for you!

We are looking for volunteers to help those in their local community, who are not able to upkeep their gardens. We are aiming to start the project in Merrow during the Springtime. This is a pilot project and in the future, we would love for it to be rolled out across all the wards of Guildford.

Who are we?

We are a group of a dozen residents in the Guildford area with a passion for growing food and gardening in a sustainable and self-renewing way. The seed bank was set up to involve more local people in seed-saving for using in the next growing season. Each autumn, after the growing season we will pool and share our seed to get more people growing.

Guildford Seed Bank was formed in 2021, and this winter, we announced our arrival with a fantastic community seed swap event, attended by over 150 people. 

We are hoping to bring together people of all ages who are interested in growing their own food (or flowers) and strengthening biodiversity. We also need people to help with social media, and also tending to the Seed Bank beds up at Rosamund Community Garden, where we are growing various crops for seed this year, and of course help with fundraising ideas.

Pewley Down is a Local Nature Reserve, owned and managed by Guildford Borough Council. Pewley Down is chalk grassland, renowned for its unusual flowers, and the butterflies which depend on these. Pewley Down Volunteers have been conserving the Down for wildlife for over twenty years.

Volunteers work under the guidance of Pewley Down Volunteers Group Leaders.

We meet on the first Saturday of every month throughout the year, at 10am by the Pewley Hill entrance to the Down. Work parties go on until 2pm. Drinks & biscuits are provided. Volunteers should wear strong boots as the ground is uneven, with lots of rabbit holes. Participation by Duke of Edinburgh Award Candidates is encouraged. The main work is to keep the scrub under control, using saws, rakes and loppers. We also monitor plants and insects on site.

Puttenham Barn is run by a small environmental charity called Project Oasis North Downs (POND).

Its mission is to provide simple inexpensive overnight accommodation in a 250 year old barn, in an environmentally responsible way.

It is aimed at walkers, cyclists & people enjoying the surrounding beautiful countryside.

The Barn has many environmental features including solar panels (on its bike shed!), rainwater harvesting & local varieties of apple trees in the garden.

We aim to open at weekends, during school holidays and on as many other nights as we can between Easter & October.

Guildford Repair Cafè runs every third Saturday of the month at The Hive Community Centre in Guildford from 10am to 12 noon. A friendly group of volunteers run the café and help repair small household items, from clothing to electricals and toys to gardening tools. The Repair Café is supported by Guildford Borough Council and the ‘Rotary Club of Guildford Wey’

Over the years our skilled repairers have helped save thousands of products from landfill and have given a new lease of life to some much-loved items, as well as more practical objects. Recently we were able to repair a small wooden stool that its owner had bought on honeymoon many years before, and countless lamps are now shining brightly again, thanks to our electrical specialists.

So don’t be shy, pop in for a free cuppa, and see what its all about, or message us if you have an item for repair. It’s always worth checking before the next session to make sure that we have the right repairer available on the day. Even more importantly, we’d love to hear from you if you have repairing skills that you’d like to share

The Surrey Hills Society is an independent charity formed 15 years ago.  It promotes the positive enjoyment and care of the Surrey Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, which is in the course of being rebranded as one of the UK’s National Landscapes. We encourage those who live, work in, or visit the area to explore and learn about the special qualities and distinctiveness of the area.  The Society also uses its extensive network to actively promote the conservation and enjoyment of the Surrey Hills.

In June 2019 the Society was presented with the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service which is the highest award for volunteer groups to recognise outstanding work done in their communities and is the equivalent of an MBE for voluntary organisations.

Our mission is summarised by four words: Conserve, Inspire, Educate and Enjoy.

For further information visit our website.

Conservation charity engaging communities, individuals & organisations. Conducting practical conservation work, community engagement, health walks and other activities to bring people and green spaces together.

To tackle disadvantage, social exclusion and hardship in local communities. To reach out to families to equip them with the skills to improve their economic situation, to reduce social isolation and break the cycle of deprivation. 

The Therapy Garden is a registered charity based in Normandy Village, consisting of one acre of community garden which is managed by a team of horticulturalists, staff and volunteers to provide gardening and horticulture therapy to the more vulnerable members of society. We provide practical horticulture therapy to adults and young people with learning disabilities, mental health issues and physical disabilities.

Our ‘Green School’, enables young people aged 11-16 with learning difficulties such as autism, Down’s Syndrome and Asperger’s to achieve a City & Guilds qualification “Skills for Working Life: Horticulture” in a safe and structured environment. Students are referred to us and funded by mainstream and specialist schools in Surrey and Hampshire and many have gone on to achieve a college place or ongoing employment.

The Therapy Garden is currently days for other groups in the local community such as brain injury and stroke victims and Dementia sufferers and we are able to plan bespoke activities that are tailored to individual client needs.

Zero Carbon Guildford is a charity set up to enable local community action to tackle the climate and ecological crisis and associated social issues.

Zero Carbon Guildford operates a Community Hub, in the centre of Guildford, to enable the community to come together to tackle these issues.  

The Hub includes a café, houses our many projects  and showcases ways local people can make changes to help Guildford's journey towards a zero-carbon future.