To become involved in any of these programs, download an application form and post it to:

Coordinator, Volunteer Services
City of Mitcham
PO Box 21
Mitcham Shopping Centre
TORRENS PARK SA 5062

Current Vacancies Include:

Community Connections	Days/Times Negotiable
Volunteer Drivers	Days/Times Negotiable
Community Bus	Days/Times Negotiable
Urrbrae Wetland	Tuesday mornings, 9 am - 12 pm
Nellie's Garden	Monday mornings 9.30 am - 12.30 pm
Gamble Garden	Tuesday mornings 9 am - 12.30 pm
Lunch Clubs	Tuesday or Friday 10 am - 1.30 pm
LifeLinks Volunteer	Days/Times Negotiable
JP Service	Days/Times/Location Negotiable
Mitcham Trails	Working Bees are scheduled, usally on a Saturday

The Urrbrae Wetland is a water quality improvement and environmental education project, established in partnership with the Patawalonga Catchment Water Management Board, Urrbrae Agricultural High School and the City of Mitcham on land gifted to the school by the late Peter Waite.

The Wetland was established in 1997. Conceived initially as a means of controlling flooding in the local area, the site is now a permanent wetland. The area has been landscaped and revegetated with plants indigenous to the area and grown from locally collected seed. An impressive education centre has been built and a full time teacher provided. The area now provides excellent opportunities for students to observe and study this environment first hand.

The Friends of Urrbrae Wetland are a group of volunteers who have been active at the Wetland almost since its establishment and play an important role in the enhancement and promotion of this valuable environmental asset.

Duties include

• Identifying and documenting native plants
• Mulching and planting
• Conducting tours of the site for interested groups eg. service and social clubs, historical groups, church societies etc
• Weeding, pruning and planting
• Holding open days for the general public
• Minor repairs

When and Where

Volunteers meet every Tuesday 9am to 12pm at the Urrbrae Wetlands, Cross Road, Netherby (next to Urrbrae Agricultural High School).

Nellie's Garden, the Mitcham Railway Station, was established in 1959. Bob Ellis, the Station Master at Mitcham Station, designed and built the garden for his wife Nellie who suffered from Agoraphobia. This garden was to provide a gateway for Nellie to make her way back into the world. Nellie died in 1983 and Bob passed away late 1997. Mitcham Council purchased the Mitcham Railway station in 1990 along with the garden and as a community project, with the help and support of volunteers, is restoring Nellie's Garden to its former glory.

Duties include:

• Weeding
• Pruning
• Watering/irrigating
• Minor irrigation repairs
• Hoeing
• Planting
• Path raking
• Litter Control

When and Where

Volunteers meet every Monday at 9.30 am to 12.30 pm at Nellie's Garden, Mitcham Railway Station, Belair Road, Lower Mitcham.

Gamble House was a gift to the City of Mitcham in the early 1980s by the Gamble sisters who could no longer look after the property. A volunteer group, Friends of Gamble Garden, was formed in the mid 1980s to restore and now maintain the developed cottage garden area and expand where possible the cottage garden concept over the existing grounds.

Duties include

• Identifying and propagating appropriate plants for the cottage garden area
• Weeding
• Mulching
• Watering
• Maintaining path ways
• Pruning and shaping
• Planting
• Removal of plants

When and Where

Volunteers meet every Tuesday morning between 9am and 12.30pm at the garden shed on the site. Car parking is available on site. The Gamble Garden is located on the corner of Main and Dorham Roads, Blackwood.

Volunteer Community Bus Drivers and Helpers assist Council to provide a popular and well-utilised bus service for older residents. Volunteers drive the Council's Community Bus on a rostered basis, taking passengers to the libraries, local shopping centres and on social outings. Helpers assist elderly passengers with shopping, boarding and disembarking and just 'having a chat'.

Duties include

• Ensure that passengers are picked up and delivered to their destinations in a safe, comfortable and friendly manner and assist passengers to get on and off the bus
• When needed, assist passengers with their personal belongings or shopping
• On a daily basis record the number of passengers carried and the kilometres travelled, and any mechanical problems or accidents on the relevant sheets provided
• Occasionally distribute information on Council services and special events to bus passengers

Special Requirements

Bus Drivers are required to have a LR or above Class Licence and Accreditation. Assistance with getting driver accreditation can be provided.

Where and When

The Community Bus leaves from the Mitcham Council Operations Depot. Volunteers are rostered on a weekly or fortnightly basis by mutual agreement. Where possible volunteers will be rostered on the same route on a regular basis. Volunteers are expected to commit to a minimum of four hours per fortnight.

Volunteer drivers provide transport, using their own vehicle, for frail aged residents or younger people with a disability to attend medical appointments, local shopping centres, to visit family in Nursing Homes and to attend social programs and community activities. This valuable service enables our older and frailer residents to continue to remain living independently in their own home and to participate in community life.

Duties include

Ensuring passangers are picked up and delivered to their destinations in a safe, comfortable and friendly manner. When needed assist passengers with their personal belongings or shopping bags. At times volunteers may be asked to remain with passengers when at medical appointments and to return them to their home.

Special Requirements

Volunteers use their own vehicle, for which they receive a generous reimbursement based on the capacity of their engine and the number of kilometres travelled. Volunteers need a current Class 1 South Australian Drivers Licence and vehicles must be Comprehensively Insured.

When and Where

Time commitments will vary with the type of job, however there is an expectation of a minimum commitment of half a day per week. Community Services staff contact volunteers by telephone with transport details (name, date, time, address, phone number and destination). Volunteers can be matched with a resident within their local area (ie hills or plains) on a regular basis or be called as needed. Training and support will be provided where necessary.

With the assistance of volunteers, Council provides Lunch Clubs especially for the frail aged and younger people with a disability who, for various reasons, are unable to participate in alternative activities for seniors. The programs aim to address the isolation and loneliness often felt by people who are living alone, as well as enhance their quality of life and encourage community interaction by providing support and friendship.

Duties include

Will vary from week to week, however the main tasks will include:

• kitchen duties, setting tables and doing dishes and tidying up lunch areas
• participate in activities such as art and craft, games including Scrabble, cards and Bingo, discussion topics, relaxation, fitness and guest speakers
• share and discuss ideas for new activities and provide support on organised outings
• support and assist participants when required
• help with the serving of morning tea and lunch, and share lunch and conversation with particiapants
• assist setting up room

When and Where

Volunteers may choose to be involved with one program on a weekly or fortnightly basis and assist with all or some of the above duties:

• Tuesday Club, 10 am to 1.30 pm at Westbourne Park Senior Citizen's Clubrooms, 390 Goodwood Road, Cumberland Park.
• Friday Club, 10 am to 1.30 pm at Over 50's Club, Young Street, Blackwood.

The City of Mitcham provides a Justice of the Peace service at the Council Chambers and the Mitcham and Blackwood Libraries for residents.

Duties include

• JP service to the customers, signed and notated
• Record all JP transactions
• Ensure customers understand the nature of their documents prior to signing

When and Where

The City of Mitcham operates a Community Information Service that provides a comprehensive range of information on local activities and services. Volunteers play an important role in ensuring that a wide range of information is accessible to the public.

Duties include

• Clerical tasks including typing, mailing and photocopying as required
• Assisting with special projects
• Edit and read the Mitcham Community News onto audio tape for the visually impaired

When and Where

Ideally, volunteers should be prepared to work one day a week for three hours, however this is negotiable. Volunteers work in the Community Information Service Office located at the City of Mitcham Civic Centre, 131 Belair Road, Torrens Park.

Volunteers working within the Local History Program work together and individually to collate both yesterday's and tomorrow's history. Through their work, the volunteers build up resources to enhance people's knowledge and appreciation of their district.

Duties include

Open the Heritage Research Centre to the public

Index local papers

• Research local and state developments affecting the Mitcham district
• Assist with Memories Afternoons
• Collate community organisations' newsletters
• Research and collate records
• Assist with clerical working bees and bookbinding
• Transcribe oral history
• Assist with mounting, filing and indexing ephemera and photos for the local history collection
• Prepare and provide information for community groups, including local schools and kindergartens
  Copy records on to Microform

When and Where

Volunteers are rostered weekly, fortnightly or monthly, or at a mutually convenient time. The work location is the Local History Research Centre, Mitcham Community Centre, 242 Belair Road, Lower Mitcham. Hours are Tuesdays 9.30am to 3.30pm for focussed researchers, Wednesday 9am to 6pm and Thursdays 9.30am to 3.30pm, open to the public or by arrangement with the Local History Officer.

The Mitcham and Blackwood Volunteers assist the Library staff with the provision of basic library services.

Duties include

• Undertake shelving and shelf tidying of library materials
• Undertake 'one off' special projects, such as shelf reading, labelling shelves and assisting with the Annual Book Sale
• Assist with re-spacing and moving of library collections as necessary
• Reaching for items on the shelves

When and Where

Volunteers are rostered on a regular basis by mutual agreement at the:

The Home Library Service operates to deliver library material to residents who are housebound because of illness, disability or because they are caring full-time for others.

Duties

Volunteers select appropriate books, tapes, magazines etc for people who are housebound with the guidance of the Home Library Service Library Officer. Volunteers go in pairs, with one person using their own vehicle, delivering library materials to nursing homes and individuals who are unable to collect their own items. Approximately 6 to 8 visits are made which takes approximately two hours.

Special Requirements

Volunteers who use their own vehicle for delivery will receive reimbursement based on the capacity of their engine and the number of kilometres travelled. Volunteers must hold a current Class 1 South Australian Drivers Licence and vehicles must be comprehensively insured.

When and Where

Mitcham Library, 154 Belair Road, Hawthorn: Selection is on Wednesday or Thursday with deliveries on Thursday or Friday. Blackwood Library - 215 Main Road, Blackwood: Selection is on Tuesday with deliveries on Friday. Both are either fortnightly or monthly.

The Toy Lending Service loans toys to children aged 0 - 8 yrs, care providers, aged care groups and elderly citizens in the community.

Duties include

• Checking and putting toys away
• Cleaning toys if necessary
• Numbering and covering items
• Tidy shelves
• Basic toy and box repair
• Unpacking and assembling new toys if required
• Assisting parents with taking toys to the car if needed

 When and Where

 Volunteers can work by arrangement, weekly, fortnightly or monthly.

Make a Life-Changing Difference

LifeLinks has an immediate need for volunteers to provide friendship and fun for men and women living in a Supported Residential Facility in the Mitcham area by assisting them to access local recreational and community activities which most of us take for granted.

If you genuinely have something to offer and are seeking experience working with socially isolated and marginalised people then this valued volunteer role could be for you.

People with some community service understanding or life experience are encouraged to apply. You will be well trained, supported and reimbursed for out of pocket expenses.