Our charity shops across the Thames Valley generate vital income needed to keep our Hospice services running. Our thriving portfolio of stores – including contemporary and vintage, the Home store, Home Studio and eBay – means there is always a need for volunteer support.
Find out more about the various retail roles below. You can also view a list of our current opportunities.
Retail Assistant
Download role descriptionReading Superstore Book and Vinyl Enthusiast
Download role descriptionReading Superstore Drivers Mate
Download role descriptionReading Superstore Retail Assistant Fashion
Download role descriptionReading Superstore Retail Assistant Home
Download role description
Whether you can provide strength moving furniture in our Home store, or merchandise, sort, stack, style, paint, serve customers or put your eBay knowledge to good use, we need you in our shops.
Not sure just yet? You can register your interest in volunteering at one of the Thames Hospice shops by signing up for a no-obligation taster session. A taster session lasts for around two hours in your chosen shop, and gives you the opportunity to try out the different tasks involved in the Retail Assistant role, see the environment and learn a bit more about how our shops work before you decide whether you'd like to volunteer for us.
Sign up for a session by completing the taster session form below, or you can enquire by popping into your local shop to arrange.
Ready to apply? Click the button below to apply for any of our current opportunities in our shops.
Take a look at which retail volunteer roles are currently available to apply for.
For a role in our shops you need to be aged 16 or over. It is now possible to volunteer in selected shops if you are aged 14 and over and completed your DofE award.
We take a flexible approach to volunteering to make sure it fits in with your life. Normally a volunteer will do one 4-hour shift per week, but if you would prefer to volunteer on a ad-hoc basis, or more than once a week, then that’s not a problem. Let us know your availability when you apply.
You can find a map and list of all our shop locations here.
Yes, we have lots of Duke of Edinburgh participants (aged 14 and over) who volunteer with us, and also those who are completing a volunteering element of school, college or university courses. Your Manager will be able to complete any paperwork you need to do. If there are any tasks in particular you need to complete while volunteering eg. creating a window display, please discuss this with your Manager and we can support you.
Everyone is different and will prefer to do different things as part of the role so we are happy to accommodate your preferences when it comes to giving you tasks to do. For example, if you are not keen to serve customers on the till there are plenty of things to do either in the back of the shop or on the shop floor. Please let your Manager know when you start and they can give you tasks accordingly.
You don’t need any particular skills or experience to volunteer in our shops, we will teach you what you need to know! Just a willingness to get involved and be part of the team. If you do have particular skills or experience that you’d like to put to good use then that would be great, please add the information to your application form and discuss with the Manager when you start.
We are happy to provide a reference for you once you are a volunteer, we do suggest though that you volunteer with us for around 3 months first (based on a once-a-week shift). Your Manager will be the best person to provide this reference but for a basic reference (confirmation of dates and role) you can provide the Volunteer Services department’s details.
We are happy to help you explore whether a role in our Retail team is right for you. To start with you can have a read of the role description by clicking on the links above, or you can give the Volunteer Services team a call on 01753 842121 to discuss, or you can pop into your local shop to talk with the Shop Manager. Otherwise you can sign up to an no-obligation Taster Session, where you can come along to the shop for an hour or two and the Shop Manager will give you a tour, talk you through the role and give you some tasks to try your hand at. If you decide you’d like to start volunteering we’ll take you through the application process and you can begin straight-away!
