Market Drayton’s Volunteers Fair brought charities, community organisations, volunteers and local young people together for a day celebrating the huge amount of voluntary work taking place across the town.
Held at the Festival Drayton Centre, the event was a chance to discover just how many different ways there are to get involved locally – from helping in charity shops and community groups to supporting events, working with young people, preserving the town’s heritage or simply giving a few hours to help with a particular activity.
It was also a chance to hear directly from existing volunteers about what they do, why they got involved and, perhaps most importantly, how much they enjoy being part of their organisations.
So many different ways to volunteer
One of the things that became very clear during the day was that volunteering doesn’t have to mean making a huge commitment every week.
Mencap highlighted opportunities including its Saturday afternoon club, bingo and helping in the shop, while Severn Hospice has volunteering opportunities within its shops and cafés as well as administrative roles.
Scouting offers a wide range of ways to get involved, from becoming a leader or general helper to joining a committee and supporting the people who run local groups.
Macmillan volunteers talked about helping with coffee mornings, activities, open gardens, crafts and events – including practical jobs such as helping to set up on the day.
Market Drayton Museum & Heritage Centre is another organisation that relies on volunteers and is particularly keen to encourage younger people to become involved in preserving and sharing the town’s history.
Rotary demonstrated just how varied community volunteering can be. Its members work with schools and young people, support Christmas activities, organise fundraising, help at other community events and provide stewarding and practical support throughout the year.
Market Drayton Community Enterprise is also working with schools and young people on projects, while Girlguiding offers opportunities to help run groups, support meetings and activities and, as their volunteers pointed out, have plenty of fun along the way.
Market Drayton Climate Action is looking for people interested in getting the community talking about climate change and for ambassadors and supporters who can help with its work.
For people who love music, Market Drayton Choral Society was there encouraging new singers to come along and become part of the choir.
North Salop Wheelers also highlighted the important role volunteers play in helping people get out and about, including opportunities for Passenger Assistants who support passengers using its community transport services.
These were just some of the opportunities represented during the day, alongside many other organisations doing fantastic work in and around Market Drayton.
Grove School students join the team
We were particularly pleased to be joined by students from Grove School, who were given a special mission for the day.
As well as helping as part of the welcome team, they were encouraged to go around the fair, speak to the different organisations and find out more about what they do and the opportunities available.
It was a great way for young people to meet some of the people who help make things happen in their town and to discover that volunteering can start at any age.
The event was also visited by the Mayor of Market Drayton, Cllr Tim Manton, who spent time meeting the organisations and volunteers taking part.
A town powered by volunteers
Helen McCabe, who organised the Volunteers Fair with the help of local volunteers, said:
“What I loved about the day was having the chance to actually talk to volunteers about what they do. Again and again you could hear how much they enjoy being involved, the friendships they’ve made and the difference they know they’re making.
“There was such a variety of opportunities too. Volunteering doesn’t have to mean giving up hours every week. It might be helping at an event, serving a cup of coffee, stewarding, helping in a shop, sharing a skill or giving a couple of hours when you can.
“It was also brilliant having the Grove School students with us. We wanted them to get involved rather than just walk around the fair, so they helped welcome people and went out to discover more about the organisations themselves.
“A huge thank you has to go to all the charities and community groups who came along, Festival Drayton Centre for hosting us, the Mayor for joining us, the Grove School students and, of course, all the volunteers who helped make the day happen.”
Could you give a little of your time?
Market Drayton has an extraordinary number of charities, clubs, societies and community organisations – and many of the things we enjoy in the town simply couldn’t happen without volunteers.
You don’t necessarily need experience and you don’t always need lots of spare time. What many organisations need most are people willing to get involved.
The Volunteers Fair may be over, but the opportunities certainly aren’t.
If something you’ve read here has caught your interest, now could be the perfect time to find out a little more about one of Market Drayton’s local organisations and discover where volunteering might take you.
