Volunteer at the Big Church Festival 2024

The Big Church Festival (BCF) is the UK’s largest annual gathering of the wider church. The event creates space for all denominations and ages to gather for two exciting days of worship and celebration.

Wiston House, Steyning, West Sussex, BN44 3DZ

As a Tearfund café volunteer you will be doing anything from making tea and clearing tables, to working on the tills and serving cream teas. You can read more about the role here.

As an audience and stand team volunteer, you will be engaging with festival-goers, telling them about Tearfund, answering questions and giving people an opportunity to support our work. You can read about the roles here and here.

You will be put on a shift rota for each day of the event. The rotas will allow for plenty of time off where you can enjoy the festival. You can expect to do up to 6 hours volunteering a day.

We have volunteers from ages 18 to 80! All we ask is that you are fit and able, as there will be some physical work involved in each role.

If you are 16 or 17 then we may accept you on to the team if you have a guardian or parent who is also a Tearfund volunteer at that event. Please get in touch with the team before signing up by emailing [email protected].

If you can, we suggest you arrive in the afternoon or evening before the festivals kick off, on Thursday 23 May 2024. This will give you time to settle in, meet your fellow volunteers and go through any training.

In a tent! Tearfund will have a section of the campsite reserved and tents will be provided. You are likely to be sharing with at least one other volunteer,  in your own private pods.

You will need to bring your own sleeping bag, air bed and pillows. However, if this is an issue for you, please let us know.

You can bring your own tent, but you must take responsibility for it.

If camping isn’t your thing, then you are welcome to book accommodation nearby, or book a glamping spot on site, but you will need to cover these costs yourself.

When you volunteer with Tearfund, we don’t want you to be out of pocket. Your entry to the event and camping will be free. Your food will either be provided or the cost covered. You can also claim up to £60 to help towards the cost of travel to and from the event.

Yes! We love it when people sign up to volunteer with friends or with a group – it can make the experience extra fun. There is always a great team spirit at an event, so if you do choose to come by yourself then there will be plenty of opportunities to make new friends.

Yes, you can bring your family. But while you are on shift, we ask that you ensure there is a suitable adult available to be responsible for your children (under 18). Families of volunteers are also entitled to discounted entry to BCF. Food and accommodation can be provided for your family, but a donation to Tearfund to help cover these costs is suggested. Please contact us at [email protected] for more information.

T-shirts will be provided. If you are working in one of the cafés, aprons will be available, and we recommend you wear trousers or shorts/skirts no shorter than knee length, as well as covering feet, to avoid the risk of injury (e.g. scalding). Please avoid wearing any jewellery or false nails which might fall into food.

Volunteers are an essential, unique and invaluable part of Tearfund – complementing and supporting the work of staff and partners around the world. This charter outlines what we believe about volunteers, what you can expect from us and what we can expect from you.

We’re passionate about doing all we can to support and address people’s material and spiritual needs as we follow Jesus where the need is greatest. If you are part of the audience/stand team, you will be inspiring people to join us in giving their prayers, actions...and finances! If the idea of those kinds of conversations scares you, don’t worry, you will be fully trained and are not alone!

No. You will receive training for the role you have volunteered for, and as long as you have a positive attitude and are willing to get stuck in, you should be fine.

We’d love you to still apply. We will need to plan rotas, so we will discuss with you your availability over the phone.

We’d encourage you to come by public transport if possible, but there is parking available on site (free for volunteers) if you need to drive. If arriving by train, there is a shuttle bus from Shoreham-by-Sea station, and a timetable will be posted on the BCF website.

If you have any other questions, please don’t hesitate to contact us at [email protected].