Events

Knit for Purpose 2025

Join us for our 2025 micro-volunteering project, Knit for Purpose!

Microvolunteering is bite-sized, on-demand, no commitment actions that benefit a worthy cause. This year, we once again invite you to get involved and knit or crochet squares or strips of squares for blankets, which will be donated to those in need in our community through local organisations.

All the info, including a pattern, can be found here.

Coffee & Chats Peer Support

Host: Pregnancy Choice
Venue: 445 Colombo Street, Sydenham
Cost: Free event

On the first Thursday of each month, we hold a Coffee & Chats peer support session for those who manage or coordinate a volunteer team, hosted each time by a different community organisation. This is an occasion to network with others from local not-for-profit groups and talk all things volunteering, and includes the opportunity to ask questions, share experiences and support each other as we navigate the ever-changing community sector.

RSVP: Via email - it is essential that you RSVP for these events, please.

Tautoko Workshop: Volunteering and Older Adults

Facilitator: Dr Jurgen Grotz, University of East Anglia
Venue: St Albans Community Centre, 1049 Colombo Street, St Albans
Cost: Free event

Dr Grotz is the Director of the Institute for Volunteering Research and the University of East Anglia, and has been involved with talks and research around the role of volunteering in older people’s lives. Dr Grotz will share insights from the research at this session and looks forward to hearing from volunteer manager about challenges and highlights within their organisation’s volunteering programmes.

RSVP: Via email

Governance Bites: Keeping it Legal

Facilitator: Garth Nowland-Foreman, from LEAD Centre for Not for Profit Governance and Leadership
Venue: Aldersgate Centre, 309 Durham Street North, Christchurch Central (Please enter the Aldersgate Centre from the rear door, via the car park. This can be accessed from Chester Street West. Spaces within the carpark are available to Governance Bites attendees from 5pm onwards.)
Cost: Free event

While staying on the right side of the law is not the end of your work as a non-profit board member, it is a good place to start. In this session we will briefly look at how laws (written and unwritten) impact on your organisation. We will also remind ourselves what being incorporated means, why it is important, and how to avoid losing its crucial protections. Finally, we will uncover why Conflicts of Interest are not a problem, but how we deal with them can be if we don’t follow three simple rules. Sessions will run from 5.30pm to 7.00pm. However, doors open and pizza bites are available from 5.00pm!

RSVP: Registrations essential, via email

Tautoko Workshop: Engaging Youth on our Volunteer Teams

Facilitator: Volunteering Canterbury
Venue: St Albans Community Centre, Colombo Street (on-site parking accessed via Caledonian Road)
Cost: Free event

This workshop will look at why and how to engage youth volunteers, including the benefits and challenges to doing so.

Register: Via email

Webinar: Explore the Latest Volunteering Statistics

Facilitator: Volunteering New Zealand
Venue: Online
Cost: Free event

Volunteering New Zealand has obtained this previously unreleased volunteering data from StatsNZ. Although this data is from the 2023 General Social Survey, it has just been analysed and released in March 2025. Join Volunteering New Zealand’s Research Director Dr Johann Go who will guide us through key insights from this data: Explore the very latest volunteering data; Learn how your organisation can draw on the insights to inform strategy and practice; Provide feedback on what other additional information may be useful. The session will include a Q&A with Johann Go.

RSVP: Online via Humanitix

Coffee & Chats Peer Support

Host: Blind Low Vision NZ
Venue: 96 Bristol Street, St Albans, Christchurch
Cost: Free event

On the second Thursday of each month, we hold a Coffee & Chats peer support session for those who manage or coordinate a volunteer team, hosted each time by a different community organisation. This is an occasion to network with others from local not-for-profit groups and talk all things volunteering, and includes the opportunity to ask questions, share experiences and support each other as we navigate the ever-changing community sector.

RSVP: Via email - it is essential that you RSVP for these events, please.

Knit for Purpose: World Wide Knit in Public Day 2025

Facilitator: Volunteering Canterbury
Venue: Christchurch Community House, 213 Lichfield Street, Christchurch
Cost: Free event

Join us as we wrap up Knit for Purpose in 2025 on World Wide Knit in Public Day! We will come together to finish knitting and sewing as many blankets as we can. Brings your knitting, your needles and your friends!

National Volunteer Week 2025

Te Wiki Tūao ā-Motu National Volunteer Week celebrates the collective contribution of all volunteers who enrich Aotearoa New Zealand. The 2025 theme is ‘Whiria te tangata – weaving the people together’. Volunteering weaves us together, strengthening the fabric of our community.

Volunteer Recognition Awards 2025

Facilitator: Volunteering Canterbury
Venue: Salvation Army, 853 Colombo Street

Our Volunteer Recognition Awards are presented each year during National Volunteer Week. Check our Awards page for more information.

Governance Bites: Confident Oversight of Finances

Facilitator: Garth Nowland-Foreman, from LEAD Centre for Not for Profit Governance and Leadership
Venue: Aldersgate Centre, 309 Durham Street North, Christchurch Central (Please enter the Aldersgate Centre from the rear door, via the car park. This can be accessed from Chester Street West. Spaces within the carpark are available to Governance Bites attendees from 5pm onwards.)
Cost: Free event

What exactly is the board’s role in oversight of the finances? What are Treasurers actually responsible for? How can you properly fulfil your obligations without micro-managing? What should we look for in financial reporting? What are the financial ‘red flags’ we need to keep an eye out for? What does every board member need to know about their finances? Why can’t we just rely on the audit or review? Sessions will run from 5.30pm to 7.00pm. However, doors open and pizza bites are available from 5.00pm!

RSVP: Registrations essential, via email

Tautoko Workshop: Fraud

Facilitator: Community Capacity Accounting
Venue: St Albans Community Centre, Colombo Street (on-site parking accessed via Caledonian Road)
Cost: Free event

So you have two signatories for cheques and online transactions. Is this enough to protect you from fraud? It is a Board/Committee’s responsibility to have processes in place to ensure that money or items do not go walkabout. This workshop covers the key danger areas and way to manage them that are appropriate for an organisation your size.

RSVP: Via email

Tautoko Workshop: Community Emergency Preparedness

Facilitator: Christchurch Civil Defence Emergency Management (CDEM)
Venue: Christchurch Community House, 213 Lichfield Street
Cost: Free event

The Community Resilience Coordinators from Christchurch Civil Defence Emergency Management (CDEM) will provide a talk on emergency management and personal preparedness. This presentation will cover the role of CDEM in an emergency, the CDEM team here in Ōtautahi Christchurch, the hazards that can affect us here in Aotearoa New Zealand, how to keep ourselves safe during an emergency, and where to get information from during an emergency.

RSVP: Via email

Tautoko Workshop: Emergency Preparedness

Facilitator: Christchurch Civil Defence Emergency Management (CDEM)
Venue: St Albans Community Centre, Colombo Street (on-site parking accessed via Caledonian Road)
Cost: Free event

The Community Resilience Coordinators from Christchurch Civil Defence Emergency Management (CDEM) will provide a talk on emergency management and personal preparedness. This presentation will cover the role of CDEM in an emergency, the CDEM team here in Ōtautahi Christchurch, the hazards that can affect us here in Aotearoa New Zealand, how to keep ourselves safe during an emergency, and where to get information from during an emergency.

RSVP: Via email

Coffee & Chats Peer Support

Host: Christchurch City Council Graffiti Programme
Venue: 180 Smith Street, Linwood
Cost: Free event

On the second Thursday of each month, we hold a Coffee & Chats peer support session for those who manage or coordinate a volunteer team, hosted each time by a different community organisation. This is an occasion to network with others from local not-for-profit groups and talk all things volunteering, and includes the opportunity to ask questions, share experiences and support each other as we navigate the ever-changing community sector.

RSVP: Via email - it is essential that you RSVP for these events, please.

Governance Bites: The Board's Role as a Great Employer

Facilitator: Garth Nowland-Foreman, from LEAD Centre for Not for Profit Governance and Leadership
Venue: Aldersgate Centre, 309 Durham Street North, Christchurch Central (Please enter the Aldersgate Centre from the rear door, via the car park. This can be accessed from Chester Street West. Spaces within the carpark are available to Governance Bites attendees from 5pm onwards.)
Cost: Free event

What can the board delegate, and what does it need to stay on top of? How do we balance our role in arms-length, independent supervision, and the need for engaged, collaborative support? How do we effectively balance a culture of checking and of cheer-leading? What are the critical elements of a ‘good employer’, and how does it become great? And what does that look like, when staff and volunteers are remote? Sessions will run from 5.30pm to 7.00pm. However, doors open and pizza bites are available from 5.00pm!

RSVP: Registrations essential, via email

Tautoko Workshop: Dealing with Difficult Conversations

Facilitator: Chris Beardsley, Performance Matters
Venue: St Albans Community Centre, Colombo Street (on-site parking accessed via Caledonian Road)
Cost: Free event

This workshop will provide insights to help participants deal appropriately with difficult conversations and adopt an approachable, open and empathetic communication style so issues are confronted, others are influenced positively and relationships are successfully maintained. The additional benefits are that people learn how to be more authentic, handle stress and anxiety, increase the amount of discretionary energy for the job and generate greater productivity.

Register: Via email

Student Volunteer Expo 2025

Facilitator: Volunteering Canterbury in conjunction with University of Canterbury
Venue: University of Canterbury
Cost: Free event

Our annual Student Volunteering Expo returns for 2025! Join us on campus to find out more about what's involved when you volunteer, and how you can give back to your community while gaining valuable skills - for life and your CV! Meet some of the incredible community organisations and charities we work with, ask your questions and find a place where you can make a difference.

Coffee & Chats Peer Support

Host: Jennifer, Restorative Justice
Venue: To be confirmed
Cost: Free event

On the second Thursday of each month, we hold a Coffee & Chats peer support session for those who manage or coordinate a volunteer team, hosted each time by a different community organisation. This is an occasion to network with others from local not-for-profit groups and talk all things volunteering, and includes the opportunity to ask questions, share experiences and support each other as we navigate the ever-changing community sector.

RSVP: Via email - it is essential that you RSVP for these events, please.

Tautoko Workshop: AI & Data Protection

Facilitator: Inde, in conjunction with Volunteering Canterbury
Venue: TSB Space, Tūranga Central Library, 60 Cathedral Square, Christchurch
Cost: Free event

This workshop brings together not for profit community organisations and local tech experts to explore how AI can streamline routine tasks and improve efficiency, while also addressing information management and security challenges. The workshop will provide practical insights, best practices, and networking opportunities to help charities harness technology for greater impact by integrating AI and secure data management into their operations.

RSVP: Via humanitix

Tautoko Workshop: AI - A Handy Assistant

Facilitator: Inde
Venue: St Albans Community Centre, Colombo Street (on-site parking accessed via Caledonian Road)
Cost: Free event

AI isn’t here to replace you, it’s here to support you. Come along to this 'hands on' session to find out how Artificial Intelligence (AI) can assist your organisation with writing volunteer role descriptions, and streamlining induction processes.

RSVP: Via email

Governance Bites: The Secret of Effective Meetings

Facilitator: Garth Nowland-Foreman, from LEAD Centre for Not for Profit Governance and Leadership
Venue: Aldersgate Centre, 309 Durham Street North, Christchurch Central (Please enter the Aldersgate Centre from the rear door, via the car park. This can be accessed from Chester Street West. Spaces within the carpark are available to Governance Bites attendees from 5pm onwards.)
Cost: Free event

As they say, it’s easy to “take minutes and waste hours”. Typical agendas actually make good meetings more difficult, and who knows the difference between individual decision-making vs the group decision-making needed on boards? Can we be more efficient at our meetings? Maybe even more effective? And perhaps even actually enjoy them? It’s all possible and this participatory workshop will offer several practical tools to help make it happen. Sessions will run from 5.30pm to 7.00pm. However, doors open and pizza bites are available from 5.00pm!

RSVP: Registrations essential, via email

Coffee & Chats Peer Support

Host: Woolston Development Project
Venue: 497 Ferry Road, Woolston
Cost: Free event

On the second Thursday of each month, we hold a Coffee & Chats peer support session for those who manage or coordinate a volunteer team, hosted each time by a different community organisation. This is an occasion to network with others from local not-for-profit groups and talk all things volunteering, and includes the opportunity to ask questions, share experiences and support each other as we navigate the ever-changing community sector.

RSVP: Via email - it is essential that you RSVP for these events, please.

Governance Bites: Getting the Right People on Board and the Wrong People Overboard

Facilitator: Garth Nowland-Foreman, from LEAD Centre for Not for Profit Governance and Leadership
Venue: Aldersgate Centre, 309 Durham Street North, Christchurch Central (Please enter the Aldersgate Centre from the rear door, via the car park. This can be accessed from Chester Street West. Spaces within the carpark are available to Governance Bites attendees from 5pm onwards.)
Cost: Free event

All you need to know about recruiting non-profit and community board members. What makes a good board member, where do you find them, and how do you get them interested in your organisation? What are the three biggest traps in recruitment? And how do you get the most of new board members after they are on-board? And then … this is the tough stuff … despite our best intentions and event efforts, we can still end up with the wrong people on board for various reasons. How do you tackle the difficult tasks of ‘sacking’ board member? After all, board members are ‘just volunteers’. How do you actually get the result you need, but also still act with some grace? How can succession planning actually happen in practice in small organisations, and how do you deal with ‘founder syndrome’ when founders have out-lasted their value for the organisation and may even be holding it back? Sessions will run from 5.30pm to 7.00pm. However, doors open and pizza bites are available from 5.00pm!

RSVP: Registrations essential, via email

Tautoko Workshop: Cultural Capacity

Facilitator: Aotearoa Refugee and Migrant Support
Venue: St Albans Community Centre, Colombo Street (on-site parking accessed via Caledonian Road)
Cost: Free event

RSVP: Via email

Coffee & Chats Peer Support

Host: Delta Community Support Trust
Venue: North Avon Community Centre, 101 North Avon Road, Richmond
Cost: Free event

On the second Thursday of each month, we hold a Coffee & Chats peer support session for those who manage or coordinate a volunteer team, hosted each time by a different community organisation. This is an occasion to network with others from local not-for-profit groups and talk all things volunteering, and includes the opportunity to ask questions, share experiences and support each other as we navigate the ever-changing community sector.

RSVP: Via email - it is essential that you RSVP for these events, please.

Governance Bites: Not-for-Profits Getting Real about Strategy

Facilitator: Garth Nowland-Foreman, from LEAD Centre for Not for Profit Governance and Leadership
Venue: Aldersgate Centre, 309 Durham Street North, Christchurch Central (Please enter the Aldersgate Centre from the rear door, via the car park. This can be accessed from Chester Street West. Spaces within the carpark are available to Governance Bites attendees from 5pm onwards.)
Cost: Free event

Everyone wants to be strategic these days. It is used to refer to deceit and trickery in reality TV shows. As an adjective it makes any object or activity sound very important. But does it actually have any practical meaning left? What is a strategy and how is it different from a plan? Where does mot strategy come from, and what is a realistic approach to developing a strategy for your organisation? And what really is the Board’s role in strategy (especially where there also is staff)? Participation in non-profit boards provides individuals with an opportunity to influence impact in our city. This workshop offers practical tools and approaches to help a board lead organisation strategy. Sessions will run from 5.30pm to 7.00pm. However, doors open and pizza bites are available from 5.00pm!

RSVP: Registrations essential, via email

Tautoko Workshop: Storytelling

Facilitator: Sharon Moreham
Venue: St Albans Community Centre, Colombo Street (on-site parking accessed via Caledonian Road)
Cost: Free event

Learn how to tell a compelling story about what your organisation does, and the difference it makes.

RSVP: Via email

International Volunteer Managers' Day 2025

International Volunteer Managers Day is an international event held annually on 5 November as a day to recognise those who lead, support, train and mentor volunteers in the community. A huge thank you to our volunteers leaders who make an impact in our communities across Aotearoa!

Governance Bites: Keeping Board Members Engaged and the Role of the Chair

Facilitator: Garth Nowland-Foreman, from LEAD Centre for Not for Profit Governance and Leadership
Venue: Aldersgate Centre, 309 Durham Street North, Christchurch Central (Please enter the Aldersgate Centre from the rear door, via the car park. This can be accessed from Chester Street West. Spaces within the carpark are available to Governance Bites attendees from 5pm onwards.)
Cost: Free event

Chairs have one of the most demanding jobs in a non-profit. What is realistic and what are the essentials? Can we look again at sharing roles around the board table? One of the key roles of a chair is to facilitate the board as a group – especially in its core role as group decision-makers. And given participation is the purpose if you are going to bother calling a meeting, how can a chair best facilitate real participation that will energise and enthuse board members, and get the best possible decisions from a diverse group? We will look at some practical tools and frameworks to help make this happen in real world non-profit boards. Sessions will run from 5.30pm to 7.00pm. However, doors open and pizza bites are available from 5.00pm!

RSVP: Registrations essential, via email

International Volunteer Day 2025

International Volunteer Day (IVD) is an international event run by UN Volunteers and celebrated every year on 5 December. The purpose of IVD is to recognize and support the spirit of volunteerism to help create a better future. It champions the impact volunteers have in communities, nationally and globally.