Oasis: for people & community - Croydon (Foyer Housing)

We are looking for enthusiastic men who are willing to be involved with 'Oasis Allstars' the Foyer football team. We urgently need an assistant coach and administrative and mentoring support for an 11 a side football team that has matches on Sundays and training on Thursday evenings. They are a great team who have won the Norbury Power League a number of times over the last 5 years.

One of our aims is to provide a warm, welcoming atmosphere to everyone who comes through our doors, either seeking training, support or just making enquiries. We are looking for volunteers with excellent communication skills who can maintain that warm atmosphere and assist in covering reception. We would also appreciate assistance with administrative work such as answering the phone, typing etc.

Do you have a hobby/skill that you could share with our residents in an informal environment?
As one of our aims is to prepare young people for independent living, we run weekly workshops on various topics to assist them with this. The theme of these workshops varies greatly, from Job Skills to Sexual Health, from Cooking to DIY. We are always looking for volunteers to run these hour-long evening workshops.
There may also be opportunity to assist with or lead art or fitness workshops.

We are not looking so much for expert ability, but a passion for young people and ability to engage them. These are generally held on weekday evenings from 7.00 p.m until 8.00 p.m but other times over the school holidays could be discussed.

Would you like to share some of your cooking skills with our residents?
At the Foyer we are trying to create a homely environment for our residents and once a month we cook a meal and eat together on a Sunday evening. Assistance with cooking this meal would be appreciated and would give volunteers a chance to spend time with the residents here (Sundays, anytime between 4-7pm). In addition we hold weekly cooking workshops for 4-5 residents on Monday evenings with each month having a different cooking theme. We are always looking for volunteers to assist with these. This is a great way to interact with residents.

Learning Power Award (LPA)
This is a City & Guilds accredited qualification which our residents can complete – it is particularly good for those who are not currently engaged in employment or education. We would value help in running modules and workshops.

Photography Project
We would value help in supporting and mentoring participants, organising exhibitions and open days.

Handyman/ woman
If you have skills in DIY, we always have far too much to do and not enough time and it would be fantastic to have someone to help with such things as putting up blinds, shelves etc.

Fundraising
We are often applying for various funds so the Foyer can continue to run and in order to offer additional services to the residents and members of the community. Someone with skills in the area of business or proof reading and/ or can complete application forms and carry out research in funding opportunities would be very useful.