HIVE Directory: Volunteering

Welcome to the natural history museum of Portsmouth
You can take a walk through the A-Z of Natural History, get up close with a huge dinosaur, and visit our wonderful Butterfly House.

Cumberland House Natural History Museum is free to visit.

The idea behind Gig Buddies is that we enable people with a learning disability and / or autism to enjoy everything great within their community.

To enable and support people to do this, we recruit volunteers from within the community who are then paired with individuals based on their likes and interests so they can attend events, socialise and enjoy a number of activities together.

By matching people with the same interests and passions this in turn develops into a genuine friendship and begins to diminish social isolation.

Each participant is matched with a volunteer and then plan to meet once a month to go to a gig, concert, theatre, football, cinema or a catch up in the local park or down the local pub. Group activities are planned monthly whereby everyone can get together and share their stories and make new friends.

By being paired with a gig buddy, not only are real friendships made but the experience increases self-confidence, teaches new skills, increases independent travel, expands social networks and enables people to have lots of fun.

Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust is one of 46 Wildlife Trusts, all standing up for the natural world. Together we are the nation’s most active and influential nature conservation partnership, protecting wildlife in every part of the British Isles. Each Trust works within its local community to inspire people and bring about change.

HIVE volunteering matches volunteers skills to volunteering opportunities across the city. Volunteering gives the opportunity to develop new skills, new relationships and to give something back.