Volunteering with our Culture and Libraries service is a wonderful way to meet new people, support your wellbeing, develop new skills, and make a positive difference in your local community.

You can volunteer as much or as little time as you like, whether that’s running a weekly session, helping occasionally at events, or contributing your own ideas for new activities.

Below are the current volunteering opportunities available:

Library roles

(available at all libraries – see Our Libraries – West Berkshire Council )

• Event Volunteers – Support our weekly and monthly events such as Rhyme Time.
• At‑Home Volunteers – Help deliver books to people in their homes across West Berkshire.
• Community Volunteers – Assist with shelving and keeping the library organised.
• DofE Volunteering – Complete Bronze, Silver or Gold volunteering sections with West Berkshire Libraries.
• Meet & Greet Library Volunteers – Provide a friendly welcome, help visitors use self‑service machines and assist with issuing/returning stock.
• Summer Reading Challenge Volunteers – Summer‑only support to help children and families develop a love of reading.
• Code Club Volunteers – If you’re skilled in Scratch, help run our weekly Code Clubs at Newbury.

Organising & remote roles

• Volunteer Organiser (Hungerford) – Assist with organising the weekly rota; this role can be done remotely.

Museum & heritage roles

• Museum Front‑of‑House Volunteers – Serve hot drinks and cake in our beautiful historic building.
• Family Activities Volunteers – Support weekly and monthly activities at West Berkshire Museum.
• Collections Store Move Volunteers – Help pack and move artefacts during the museum’s collections move.
• Shaw House Café Volunteers – Make and serve hot drinks in a customer‑focused, historic setting.
• Shaw House Experience Volunteers – Support visitors and help them get the most out of their visit.

For more information…

To speak with someone about any of the volunteering roles you can email:cultureandlibrariesvolunteers@westberks.gov.uk.

If you would like to apply for any of the above roles, please complete the application form here: Volunteer to help your community – West Berkshire Council.