Introduction

The Christmas Day Dinner is entirely run by volunteers. In addition to hosting the event itself on Christmas Day, the preparation of the hall for the guests, receiving produce and packing the provisions bags, and the distribution of any excess produce after the event all require volunteers.

The list of tasks for which volunteers are required is extensive, and we require approximately 300 volunteers each year to run the event efficiently. In the past few years, much of the work is done in the days leading up to Christmas, and we welcome volunteers who may not be able to attend on Christmas Day itself.

Preparation work in the RDS takes place between 10am and 1pm on December 23^rd and 24^th. The distribution of excess materials from the RDS takes place between 10am and 1pm on December 26^th.

Work commences at 7am on Christmas Day morning and finishes at 3pm. Most of the tasks take 3 hours or less to complete, and the tasks start / finish at different times during the day.

The following is a (non-exhaustive) list of the tasks for which we require volunteers:

Pre-Christmas Day (23^rd / 24^th December)

• Setting up the main dining hall (tables, chairs, place settings, decorations)
• Receiving meals and transporting to the RDS cold stores
• Kitchen preparation
• Receiving produce, setting up assembly area for gift bag packing
• Packing 2,500 produce bags
• Setting up the bar, coffee dock, cloakroom

Christmas Day (25^th December)

• Volunteer registration & issuance of aprons, gloves, sanitisers
• Marshalls (guest escorts on buses, traffic management, hazard prevention)
• Guest welcome (escort to tables, provide tea/coffee)
• Cloakroom attendants
• Tea / Coffee dock (provide refreshments to guests and volunteers)
• Takeaway meals / produce bag dispatch for distribution partners
• Meal delivery (drivers) to deliver meals & produce bags to designated drop-off locations
• Drinks bar (pouring, manage stocks)
• Drinks serving
• Hygiene / PPE and waste / recycle management
• Catering and kitchen (meal preparation & plating-up, washing-up)
• Table serving (serving meals to guests)
• Table hosts (socialising with guests, monitoring health & safety)
• Entertainment (setting up stage, liaising with entertainers, assist MC)
• Wrapping-up (remove tables/chairs, collate surplus materials, tidy venue)

St. Stephen’s Day (26^th December)

• Distribution of surplus materials

Registration for Volunteering / Induction Session / Allocation of Tasks

Registration for volunteering is through completion of the online registration form, which is made available on October 1^st each year. Tasks are allocated at a mandatory health and safety induction session, held at the headquarters of the Knights of St. Columbanus in Ely House, Dublin, in early December. 

Access to the RDS is controlled by a Volunteer Access Card (VAC), which will be issued to you at the Induction Session in December.  The VAC provides details of the task to be carried out, the date and time to arrive in the RDS and, most importantly, the time to leave the RDS after your task is completed.