Food bank volunteer roster
A food bank roster with the right person on every job
Drivers for the pick-up run, packers for the hampers and a food-safety lead in the kitchen: FairTurns only puts people on the jobs they’re set up for, and shares the turns out among them.
Free, with no limit on people or dates. No card.
The van leaves at 7:30 whether there’s a driver or not
Every Wednesday the pantry’s van collects from the bakery, two supermarkets and the fruit market. Only six volunteers are approved to drive it. Thursday morning, twelve people pack hampers. Thursday night, the community dinner feeds sixty, and the council permit says someone with a food-safety certificate must be in the kitchen.
So the roster isn’t just “who’s on”. It’s who is on that is allowed to do that job. When it lives in the coordinator’s head, the same two drivers do every run, the certificate holders are asked so often they quietly drop out, and packing is either crowded or three people short.
FairTurns lets you set who can do what once, then shares each job out among the people who can do it.
How FairTurns runs food relief shifts
Jobs limited to the right people
Make positions for Driver, Packer and Food-safety lead, and limit each volunteer to the ones they’re approved for. Fill never puts an unlicensed volunteer behind the wheel.
Turns spread among the few
When only six people can drive, Fill gives each run to whichever of them has had the fewest, so it isn’t the same two every week.
Packing day by numbers
Give Hamper packing a headcount of 3 or 12, whatever the room holds, and every Thursday has that many places.
Kitchen all evening
Add prep at 4:30 and the 6:00 sitting as two dates on Thursday and turn on Same person all day, so whoever does prep also covers the sitting, unless they can only do one.
Away weeks
Volunteers mark the days they can’t do, and Fill leaves them off. Organisers can mark away days for people without an account.
One link for the whole crew
Share the public roster so drivers, packers and the kitchen can all check the week from their phone.
Set it up
- 01
Create the pantry
Create an organisation and teams for Pick-up run, Packing and Community dinner.
- 02
Add the positions
Add Driver, Packer and Food-safety lead with how many each shift needs.
- 03
Say who can do what
Add your volunteers and limit drivers and certificate holders to their positions.
- 04
Set the week
Click each day, set the times, and choose Every week.
- 05
Fill and share
Press Fill for the next month, check the drivers, and share the link.
When you want it to run itself
Pro sends a reminder to each volunteer who has accepted an invitation before their shift. If a driver can’t make the run, they say so from the email and FairTurns asks the next approved driver in line. You can also set a newly certified volunteer to Now and then as kitchen lead while they get used to it.
A$1 a month per organisation, paid 1 to 5 years at a time. See Pro and pricing
Good to know
- A packing shift of three hours with a break for a cuppa keeps people coming back. Pair a new packer with someone who knows where things go.
- Volunteers can’t pick their own shifts; you or Fill put them on. They can mark the days they’re away.
- FairTurns doesn’t record licences, certificates or their expiry dates. Keep those on file and update who can drive when they change.
- The roster shows names and times. Client details and hamper numbers belong in your own records, not on the roster.
Questions
How do I make sure only licensed volunteers drive?
Limit those volunteers to the Driver position and leave everyone else off it. Fill and Redistribute only put people into positions they are set up for.
Our dinner has a prep shift and a sitting. Can one person do both?
Yes. Add each as its own date on the night, then turn on Same person all day for the team on the Fill page. The same person covers the position across both times, and if they can only do one, the other goes to someone else.
Can people help at the pantry and the dinner?
Yes. Put them on both teams. Within your organisation, Fill never books a volunteer into two places at overlapping times.
What about public holidays when we’re closed?
Cancel that one date. Everything else stays as it is, and you can bring the date back if plans change.
Is it free for a community food bank?
The roster is free for every group, with no limit on volunteers or dates. Pro, with reminder emails and automatic cover, is A$1 a month for the organisation.
Free templates and guides
Volunteer roster template
A volunteer schedule with shifts, roles, a contact column and a spot to tick in on the day.
How often should volunteers be rostered?
Do the sum, watch for burnout, and set a gap between turns that keeps people coming back.
Positions and headcounts
Name the jobs on each date and how many people each needs. Nobody gets a job they’re not set up for.
Similar rosters
Volunteer roster
A free volunteer roster app: shifts shared out by turns, away days respected, one link for everyone.
Meal roster
Dinners for a family with a new baby, an illness or a loss, shared between friends on one page.
Op shop and charity shop roster
Counter, sorting room and key-holder shifts for an op shop, with long trips away handled.