Volunteers
Please ask your friends and family to come too!
Setting up 12-2pm
Drop in session 2-4pm
Clearing up 4-4.30pm
To volunteer or for more information, please email us at:
nnlsdropinvolunteer@gmail.com or info@nnlsdropin.org.uk
FAQs for new volunteers
Who runs the Drop in?
The Drop in is run entirely by volunteers and has been since it started in 2006. There is a board of trustees and a core team that co-ordinates operations between Drop in sessions. At our Drop in sessions we need about 75 volunteers for it to run smoothly.
Who uses the Drop in?
We welcome all asylum seekers, including those whose claims have been refused and who are preparing fresh ones. We don’t support those who have been granted leave to remain, or migrants who have never claimed asylum.
Why do they need our help?
Many asylum seekers have risked their lives to escape torture, war or persecution in their own countries; but once here, their struggle isn’t over – they have to navigate a complex, lengthy and often hostile asylum process, with the threat of detention and forced removal often hanging over them.
What do we do for them?
We offer a kind, warm and welcoming environment and a wide range of services, including:
• A supermarket voucher and travel expenses
• A cooked meal
• Hot and cold drinks and desserts
• A supervised play area for children
• Consultations with lawyers and doctors
• Help with access to free health care
• Informal ‘befriending’ – just chatting and listening to people.
How does it work?
We have hundreds of clients on our books, so in order to manage the numbers, they alternate between coming inside one month, with access to all the services listed above, and getting an express service outside the next month.
What happens when I volunteer for the first time?
Upon arrival you’ll get a briefing and a chance to have your questions answered. You will be allocated a job according to availability and your own preference.