Crisis at Christmas | How to volunteer in 2023 and help this festive period

Although Christmas can be the most wonderful time for many, it can be incredibly difficult for others. If you find the festive period difficult and want to give back to the community, there are opportunities to volunteer at the charity Crisis. They have a section ‘Crisis at Christmas’ where you can discover how to create a virtual stocking to help someone experiencing homelessness,  you can choose from entertainment gifts that are priced at £5, toiletries for £8, mobile phone top up, £10, warm essentials, £10, clothing kit, £20, bedding set, £21 and welcome pack, £23. 

If you want to volunteer with Crisis this Christmas, you can apply directly on their website. You can choose if you would prefer to work directly with Christmas guests or there are other opportunities such as helping in one of their retail shops or working from home as a ‘Reflective Practice Facilitator Volunteer.’ For this role you will need to meet the requirements in relation to qualifications and insurance outlined on the website.  In June 2023, Prince William launched a major five-year campaign to end homelessness. The Prince of Wales said that "Everyone should have a safe and secure home.”

His late mother, Diana, Princess of Wales became Patron of Centrepoint, a homelessness charity in 1992 and in March 2023 Prince William revealed that she would have been disappointed at the level of homelessness. In a video for this year’s Red Nose Day charity appeal, he said that “I think she would be disappointed that we are still no further on, in terms of tackling homelessness and preventing it, than when she was interested and involved in it.”

One of the reasons, the Prince of Wales and his wife, Catherine, Princess of Wales launched Homewards, the five year programme was because they were keen to "demonstrate that together it's possible to end homelessness-making it rare, brief and unrepeated."