Organisation Name:
Community Furniture Stores
Organisation's Cause(s):
Environment / Green Spaces
Homelessness & Housing
Local Community
Poverty
Location of voluntary activity:
York Community Furniture Store
Unit 29
The Raylor Centre
James Street
York, YO10 3DW
When are volunteers needed: Monday – Saturday
8am - 4.30pm
Type of Voluntary Activity:
Customer Service
Logistics / Supply Chain / Transportation Support
Practical work & DIY
Role description:
Our stores all have large amounts of donated furniture, which needs moving on a daily basis, including loading and unloading our delivery vans and arranging the store, as well as small scale furniture assembly and repair. We need people volunteering in our stores to support these operations.
Responsibilities of the Role:
• Moving furniture around our stores and warehouse
- Moving lighter items by yourself, and heavier items as part of our team
- Moving new stock to the sales floor so customers can see it, and setting this up in an attractive way
- Moving sold stock to our sold area so it can be delivered
• Unloading & loading vans
• Cleaning and preparing donated furniture to be sold
• Furniture assembly (usually beds)
• Minor repairs where needed (supervised and supported, only when you feel comfortable)
• Interacting with customers in the store in a positive, polite and helpful manner
- General customer support, such as answering questions and giving directions
Who this role would suit:
• Those looking to gain skills and experience in:
- Warehouse work
- Delivery work
- Customer service
• Those with a background in carpentry and furniture repair who are looking to contribute this experience as part of a voluntary role
• Those with a background in warehouse work and customer service who are looking to contribute this experience as part of a voluntary role
• Anybody willing to learn, support, and be part of the warehouse team
Skills and behaviours needed for the role:
Skills required:
• You will need to communicate well with the rest of the warehouse team
• Being a positive, polite, and helpful representative of the store to customers, ready to help them out when needed
• You need to be able to lift and move furniture - although we will never ask you to lift anything you are uncomfortable with and will provide full manual handling training
• If you have skills in carpentry, furniture repair and assembly, this is a bonus, but not a requirement of the role. If you are interested in sharing these skills with us, there may be more opportunities for furniture repair, assemblies, upcycling and other ‘odd jobs’
What we expect from you:
• A minimum time commitment of 4 hours per week
• Ideally, a set volunteering pattern
• Being punctual, reliable, and ready to help
Will there be a DBS check? No
Driving Licence required? No
Volunteer's own vehicle required? No
Suitable for:
Ongoing Volunteering
Volunteers Under 18
Volunteers with limited English
Work Experience
What will the volunteer gain/benefit from:
• Full training in health and safety and role specific skills, including manual handling
• Access to wider volunteer training opportunities, such as First Aid training or PAT qualifications
• Support and mentorship from a member of our team
• A focus on skills and employability development, if this is something you would like
• Being part of the CFS team & supporting a valuable local cause
• Relevant PPE (Personal Protective Equipment). This includes steel capped boots for work in the warehouse
• Travel expenses reimbursed
How to get involved:
To apply, please fill in our short application form on our website - https://www.communityfurniturestore.co.uk/volunteer/
Alternatively, you can email our volunteer coordinator, on volunteering@cfstores.org.uk - or just pop in!
Web link: Click here
Closing date: 31-12-2025