Your Role in the Community

Although Britain is one of the world’s most diverse societies, there is a set of shared values and responsibilities that everyone can agree with. These include: to obey and respect the law; to be aware of the rights of others and respect those rights; to treat others with fairness; to behave responsibly; to help and protect your family; to respect and preserve the environment; to treat everyone equally, regardless of sex, race, religion, age, disability, class or sexual orientation; to work to provide for yourself and your family; to help others; and to vote in local and national government elections.

When you move into a new house or apartment, introduce yourself to the people who live near you. Getting to know your neighbours can help you to become part of the community and make friends, and neighbours are a good source of help — for example, they may feed your pets while you are away. You can help prevent problems by respecting their privacy, limiting how much noise you make, keeping your garden tidy, and only putting refuse on the street when it is due to be collected.

Volunteering is working for good causes without payment. Volunteering and helping your community are an important part of being a good citizen. They enable you to integrate, meet new people and help make your community a better place, and they can help you practise your English or develop work skills. Many people volunteer simply because they want to help other people.

As well as getting the right to vote, people on the electoral register are randomly selected to serve on a jury. Anyone who is on the electoral register and is aged 18 to 70 can be asked to do this. In England and Wales, the upper age limit is 75.

Parents can help at their children’s schools, for example in classrooms or by joining the parent-teacher association (PTA). Many schools organise events such as book sales, toy sales or selling food to raise money for extra equipment or out-of-school activities. School governors are people from the local community who wish to make a positive contribution to children’s education. They must be aged 18 or over at the date of their election or appointment. There is no upper age limit. Governors have three key roles: setting the strategic direction of the school, ensuring accountability, and monitoring and evaluating school performance. In England, parents and other community groups can apply to open a free school in their local area.

Political parties welcome new members. Joining one is a way to demonstrate your support for certain views and to get involved in the democratic process. At election time, members hand out leaflets in the street and knock on people’s doors asking for support. This is called canvassing. You do not have to tell a canvasser how you intend to vote. British citizens aged 18 or over can stand for office as a local councillor or a member of Parliament (or the devolved equivalents). You may also be able to stand for office if you are an Irish citizen or an eligible Commonwealth citizen. Some people cannot stand, including members of the armed forces, civil servants and people found guilty of certain criminal offences.

You can volunteer with local services such as hospitals and youth projects, and universities, housing associations, museums and arts councils may advertise for volunteers to serve on their governing bodies. You can volunteer with the police as a special constable or a lay (non-police) representative, or apply to become a magistrate. Magistrates are members of the local community and usually work unpaid.

Donated blood is used by hospitals to help people with a wide range of injuries and illnesses. Giving blood only takes about an hour. Many people in the UK are waiting for organ transplants. If you register to be an organ donor, it can make it easier for your family to decide whether to donate your organs when you die. Living people can also donate a kidney.

Charities and voluntary organisations need volunteers to help with their activities and to raise money. They include charities working with older people (Age UK), with children (the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, NSPCC) and with homeless people (Crisis and Shelter), medical research charities (Cancer Research UK), environmental charities (the National Trust and Friends of the Earth), animal charities (the People’s Dispensary for Sick Animals, PDSA), and British branches of international organisations (the British Red Cross). Younger people can volunteer through programmes such as the National Citizen Service, which gives 16- and 17-year-olds outdoor activities, skills development and a community project.

It is important to recycle as much of your waste as you can. Using recycled materials to make new products uses less energy and means that we do not need to extract more raw materials from the earth. It also means less rubbish is created, so less goes into landfill. A good way to support your local community is to shop for products locally where you can. This helps businesses and farmers in your area and reduces your carbon footprint, because the products have not had to travel as far. Walking and using public transport when you can is also a good way to protect the environment, because it creates less pollution than using a car.

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