Volunteers at Netley Marsh, Southampton HQ
Around 100 volunteers are part of our team at Netley Marsh, helping keep everything moving.
In our workshops, volunteers sort, repair and refurbish donated tools and sewing machines, giving them a new lease of life before they are put to use through our programmes or – in the case of items that are surplus or unsuitable for our training projects – sold for fundraising. Workshop volunteers also sort donated haberdashery and craft materials.
Alongside this workshop activity, our retail team runs the ReNew Store and helps manage our online shops on eBay and Vinted.
We also have volunteers supporting our office and administration, and helping with events both at Netley Marsh and out in the community.
There’s a real mix of skills, experience and interests among our volunteers, but everyone plays a part in keeping Tools for Self Reliance running.
Volunteers across the UK
Our UK volunteer network reaches far beyond Netley Marsh. Around 25 volunteer groups across the country collect, sort, repair and refurbish tools, as well as raising vital funds to support our work.
Many of these groups have been part of Tools for Self Reliance for more than 30 years, building strong local communities around their shared interest in practical skills and making good use of tools that might otherwise go to waste.
Together, our UK-wide network includes over 250 volunteers, who give their time and expertise to support Tools for Self Reliance in all sorts of ways. Some groups also collect tools from people in their local area, making it easier for donations to find their way to us.
Find a group near you here.
“The idea of taking a rusty tool that might well have been destined for landfill, then cleaning it up and restoring it to a usable state for someone to have as a basis for becoming self-sufficient in a trade is a strong motivating force for showing up each week as a volunteer.
Although the initial model of making regular shipments to Africa has evolved, the underlying thrust remains the same: improving lives through vocational training and business development skills, with the refurbished tools supporting that training.” – Martin Bridle, Netley Marsh volunteer
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