There are lots of ways you can help us.

Support us/ donate

We welcome donations through our charity backer Bold Vision, or you can donate books to us which we will sell online or in our bookshop. Also you can come to one of our regular fundraisers: follow us on twitter @newxlearning or sign up for email updates here.

Volunteer

We have a fantastic group of valued volunteers, and we always need more. If you want to volunteer, please come into the library in person – and if you want to save time, bring this volunteer application with you. You can volunteer specific skills, eg. computer, publicity, painting, plumbing etc. If you want to volunteer in the library checking out books/ shelving, we will need you to apply for a CRB check (which we can pay for). Our policies are at the bottom of this page.

Here are some testimonials from a recent group of volunteers from the law firm CMS Cameron McKenna who helped out with IT skills training:

“I met Jean who wanted to learn how to use her new iPad, and also how to use Word 2010 on her laptop. I showed Jean various functions on the iPad, including (i) how to edit, save, organise and email photos; (ii) how to download apps (and how to use them); and how to use Google Maps to search for a driving route between two locations. Following that, we switched to the laptop and went through the tools on the different tabs/ribbons. Finally, we created a template letter for Jean to use when writing official letters.” Ruth

“I spent almost three hours with Tu, a Chinese lady, who lives nearby the centre. We set up her first email account, went through the basic steps of navigating a computer/internet, receiving and sending emails, including with attachments. We also set up a job alert for her and created a CV for a job hunting website.” Csaba

“I spent the afternoon with Lara, a lady from the area who had been desperate for some IT skills training. I started by looking at Lara’s mobile phone and showed Lara how to send a text message. She was delighted when she was able to send her first text to her son, who phoned her back in disbelief. I then spent some time with Lara working on the computer, showing her how to send emails and how to use a Word document. Lara was able to type up her first letter which she has been desperate to do in relation to issues regarding the care she is receiving for her disabled husband. We printed off the letter so that Lara is able to send this to the authorities.” Leanne

“I spent the afternoon with Robbie, who had been struggling to find employment for some time.  I spent roughly two hours updating and improving his CV, and also produced some example covering letters for him to use for future job applications.  Finally, I helped Robbie submit an application for a job as a warehouse assistant.” Robbie 

Our policies for volunteers and for the library are below:

NXPL Volunteer Agreement and Policy NXL006y

Health and Safety Policy NXL004

New Cross Learning Risk Assessment NXL001

Confidentiallity and Data Protection Policy NXL005

New Cross LearningDisability StatementNXL003

New Cross Learning Volunteer and User Complaints and Appeals Procedure NXL002