Oxford students and volunteering

Oxford University Student Union (OUSU) has a number of initiatives to develop students’ fundraising skills and to encourage students to become active citizens in their local community and beyond. One of these is the OUSU Student Community Warden scheme, which works with students to become ambassadors in their local communities, particularly in areas where lots of students live. OUSU also actively works the local community to out on events, with the Oxford Volunteering Showcase being a recent example.

OUSU also has a number of campaigns to make the world and our community a better place, from the Environment and Ethics Campaign, to the Living Wage Campaign, to Target Schools, which is a campaign to encourage students to apply to Oxford. We also have a number of other social justice campaigns; these include the Campaign for Racial and Cultural Awareness, the Women’s Campaign, It Happens Here and the Disabled Students Campaigns. For more information about these campaigns and RAG, contact OUSU’s Vice-President for Charities and Community at charities@ousu.org

If you’re passionate about fundraising for charity, OUSU’s Raise and Give (RAG) is the place to go. RAG is the society that has it all – hitch hikes, sports tournaments, talent shows, street collections, Blind Date, and the prestigious RAG Ball! All the money raised goes to four charities elected by students each February. This year the charities RAG will be supporting are Giving What We Can, Education Partnerships Africa, Students Supporting Street Kids and the Oxford Food Bank. We try and keep our charities at the heart of our work and they’re always happy to have students see first hand what a difference they make with talks, seminars and site visits.

Oxford Hub is the centre for local volunteering at Oxford. If you're looking for an opportunity to get involved in the local community, there are over 22 student-led projects that you can get involved in. Amongst the opportunities you can: support young people with their learning in local schools, get matched up with an older person in their home, help run a local sustainable food growing project or get the new cafe started in its grounds, or organise activity days for young carers in Oxford city. There are opportunities to suit all interests and availabilities and if there isn't something that's right for you, we can work with you to set a new project up.

Oxford Hub also runs a non-stop programme of events for students interested in all social, ethical or environmental. From talks on human rights in Afghanistan, training on how to work with young people with challenging behaviour, there's always something of interest going on at the Hub.

Oxford Hub has it's own home at 16-17 Turl St, housing a cafe bar restaurant (The Turl St Kitchen), as well as a cosy lounge and events space open all day during termtime.

To find out more and to get involved visit us on the second floor of the Hub or online.

Oxgrow and the Hogacre Community Cafe

Oxgrow is a community food growing initiative built on the site of a former college playing ground. Oxgrow now acts as giant community allotment, maintained by volunteers from both the student and permanent resident community. Oxgrow enables volunteers to learn more about food growing and to increase the amount of food grown locally in Oxford City. In 2013 a group of student volunteers are also working to redevelop a disused pavilion on the site into a community cafe to serve the local community and to generate income for Oxgrow and the rest of the Hogacre site.

Schools Plus

In the city of dreaming spires, it surprises many to know educational attainment in city secondary schools falls well below the national average. Over 200 student volunteers work with young people in city schools to enable them to reach their full academic potential. Volunteers offer one to one or small group support for students in a number of academic subjects as well as offering occasional one off events for visit days in specific subject areas.

Kids Adventure

Kids Adventure is a student run project that runs activity days for children in Oxford City. Participant children come from a range of challenging backgrounds and are recommended to the project by local social services. Student volunteers organise regular activity days for uo to 15 children a session in term time, matching them with a dedicated mentor for the day. Past activity days have included trips to the scout centre, the city farm and a scavenger hunt around Oxford City. Kids Adventure places a high value on one to one relationships fostered through the project, allowing the children to benefit from positive adult relationships that they may not have in other areas of their lives.

Oxford Student Consultancy
The Oxford Student Consultancy is a programme of learning and development activities that links University of Oxford students to local Oxfordshire businesses and community organisations. It is an innovative and unique programme that provides employability skills training and work-based experiences to undergraduate and postgraduate students and an opportunity for local SMEs, charities and community organisations to access free consultancy services. Students from all disciplines and year levels participate in the programme and work in teams of four to address a strategic issue or business problem affecting the organisation. In the four years since the inaugural term in April 2009, more than 750 students have participated in the programme and worked on over 250 projects including: Community Action Groups, Modern Art Oxford, Oxford City Council Housing, Oxfam, Pegasus Theatre and the Oxford Playhouse. Many clients have returned several times as they find the students' work so valuable.
www.careers.ox.ac.uk/oxfordstudentconsultancy

Oxford Legal Assistance (OLA)
The OLA programme was launched in November 2009.  It provides University of Oxford law students with the opportunity to work with Turpin & Miller Solicitors LLP, a local law firm offering support to clients in legal-aid cases.  Two student co-chairs, Ayaaz Nawab (a second-year law undergraduate at Trinity College) and Daniel Cashman (a second-year undergraduate reading Law with German Law at Exeter College) helped to establish and now run the programme.  They were charged with selecting sixteen student volunteers who provide weekly assistance by updating the statements and paperwork of existing clients, and interviewing new clients. This enables the solicitors to spend more time giving higher-level legal attention to cases.  Students receive supervision and training from Turpin & Miller as well as practical skills such as how to interview clients, accurately record information and deal with difficult situations.  The OLA programme is a pilot scheme and will hopefully be extended in 2010/11 to give more Oxford students the opportunity to assist with this pro bono project.