During Week 5 of Winter Term (12-16 February), we will be celebrating LSE Student Volunteering Week 2024, a nationally recognised week led by the Student Volunteering Network. During this time, universities and schools across the country organise  opportunities or events to encourage their students to volunteer and help their local communities.

The LSE Student Volunteering Ambassadors have organised multiple opportunities for the celebration of our amazing student volunteers, as well as for LSE student to get involved in volunteering! One of the SVW committee leaders, Madeline, says “Student Volunteering Week is an exciting opportunity for LSE students to get involved in volunteering and learn more about how they can volunteer during their studies. It’s a great chance to see the diversity of volunteering opportunities and learn from other student volunteers.

So, what’s happening during the week?

All week, we’ll be showcasing causes students can get involved in and highlighting volunteering at LSE. For updates about the week, keep an eye on our Instagram (@lsevolunteering), but here are some of the things in store:

Monday (12 February) 

• 2-4pm Knitting for Syria (one-off volunteering): Our LSE Volunteering Ambassadors will be leading a session where you can make a difference as a volunteer knitter. On the day you will be helping to knit blankets which will be donated to charities supporting those in need of warm items, such as adults and children who are internally displaced or living in difficult and uncertain circumstances. No knitting experience is required and all volunteers will be welcomed and guided through the activity, the LSE Volunteer Centre will be providing equipment so you do not have to bring anything- just yourself and the enthusiasm to volunteer!

Tuesday (13 February) 

• 11:30am-1:30pm Charity Tuesday with Play Action International: Every Tuesday we celebrate Charity Tuesday by inviting a charity partner onto campus to talk to students about the volunteering opportunities they have to offer. During Student Volunteering Week, we are hosting Play Action, who works with some of the most vulnerable children and communities in the world, supporting children living in extreme poverty and those experiencing danger, displacement, conflict and natural/humanitarian disasters. They collaborate with children, parents, caregivers, teachers, community leaders and NGOs to highlight the importance of play and enable them to integrate play-based initiatives for enhanced education, health and development outcomes.

Wednesday (14 February) 

• 2-3pm Horniman Museum – Diversity in Volunteering and Mini Exhibition: The Volunteer Manager and volunteers from the Horniman Museum are giving a talk on different forms of volunteering in the heritage environment, how we can adapt it for current climates, and how they encourage diversity in their volunteer cohort. Join to understand how volunteers create an engaging environment for the public, and make museum collections accessible. The session will involve a short talk, Q&A, and an opportunity to handle items from their collections.

Thursday (15 February): Global Day of Volunteering

• 11:30am-1:30pm Hot Chocolate and Recognising Global Volunteering: Student Volunteering Ambassadors will be joining the Alumni Centre for their Global Day of Volunteering activities! In an effort to showcase the volunteering that the LSE community does globally, the Ambassadors will be running a whiteboard campaign outside of the Alumni Centre in the CBG plaza, with questions such as “where in the world have you volunteered?” and “what has been your favourite volunteering?” Participants can help themselves to a cup of hot chocolate and join us for more Global Day of Volunteering activities.
• 12-2pm Letters Against Isolation: Letters Against Isolation is an organisation dedicated to tackling feelings of isolation which might come with the experience of living in a care home. Volunteers will design and write letters for those in care homes with plenty of guidance, inspiring templates, and crafty materials. Join us by getting creative and making a letter for this global campaign!

Friday (16 February) 

• 11am-12pm Volunteering and Decolonisation of British Cultural Institutions: Join for a discussion on how volunteers can be at the centre of decolonisation efforts. Laurence is a third-year PhD candidate at the Institute of Archaeology, UCL, as well as an LSE alumnus. His PhD is titled ‘Volunteers as Re-Narrators of Colonial Histories: their contribution to decolonisation of the British Cultural Institutions.’

Don’t forget, you can always get involved on social media by connecting with us on Instagram and Twitter @lsevolunteering and using the hashtag #LSESVW24. And you can always drop us an email to let us know what you’re doing to celebrate Student Volunteering Week via volunteer@lse.ac.uk!