Helping Hand at Community Furniture Stores

Location

• 1 day (7 hours) per month

3 positions available

Wheelchair accessible

Community Furniture Stores are a group of three charities dedicated to helping local communities. Established in 1988, our stores are open to everyone to buy good quality pre-owned furniture at affordable prices. People donate their items, which we then clean, repair and put out for sale, offering a discount to those who need additional financial support.

We are passionate about helping people in need and reusing anything we can. We aim to put pre-owned donated furniture back into circulation to reduce waste and protect the environment.

What You'll be Doing:

You will be helping us with essential operations that we don’t usually have opportunity to complete, but which mean our store is more attractive, more furniture can be sold, and our charitable aims are more achievable. You will be:

-    Upcycling furniture 

-    Cleaning donated furniture, such as white goods

-    Arranging our store in a presentable way to make it more appealing to our customers

There may also be other opportunities on the day, such as painting the store!

There are no specific skills required, all we ask is for a team that is ready to get stuck in and help out. 

These projects are super helpful to store operations, providing an extra set of hands to support upcycling, cleaning, and store presentation.

Unless told otherwise, there is nothing special that you need to bring with you on the day. Please dress appropriately, in warm, comfortable and safe clothing you don’t mind getting dirty. You are welcome to bring your lunch, and we are very close to Foss Islands retail park, where you can find a Lidl, Morrisons, Greggs and Starbucks, if you want to grabanything to eat. 

Address:

Unit 29

The Raylor Centre

James Street

York, YO10 3DW

Getting Here:

The York store is accessible by car, with free parking available. As you enter, any of the spaces on the left-hand side of the centre which aren’t marked with a business name are free to use, as well as parking around the front of the store.

The nearest bus stops are either James Street or Lansdowne Terrace on Lawrence Street, both of which are no more than a 5-minute walk to the site.

We have a small bike rack and are completely accessible by walking.

When you arrive, turn into the Raylor Centre industrial estate, and follow the road down until you can make a right turn. We are one of the first units on the right after turning, opposite from YO1 Radio.

Need help on the day? Call the store on 01904 426444.

Onsite we have a staff room with a fridge, tea and coffee facilities and microwave, as well as a toilet - volunteers have access to all staff facilities.

We are wheelchair accessible and open to discuss any specific requirements you may have.

When you arrive, you will be met by the Operations Manager of the store and will need to sign in. They will get you set up with a tour of the premises, as well as fire and health and safety information. You’ll be set up with any equipment or PPE you need for the day, too.

You will have been allocated a supervisor for the project, who will be there to support and answer any questions you have. There will also be other volunteers and staff members on site to assist you if you need it.

Mostly, we want you to have fun and help us achieve our project aims! If you have any questions, just ask, and if there is something you don’t want to do or are unsure of, we will not make you do anything. All we ask is that you turn up ready to get stuck in.