Interested in volunteering at the 2025 Manchester Marathon on Sunday 27th April 2025? That’s great we can’t wait to welcome you to the event delivery team!
Volunteering is a fantastic way to engage with sporting events, develop skills, and make a valuable contribution as part of a team. At our 2024 event, we had over 700 volunteers helping to make the whole event run smoothly.
We’re looking for enthusiastic, proactive and practical volunteers to fulfil a variety of roles across the event; this could include helping direct our arriving participants, handing out medals, helping run the bag drop operation, or supporting activity in the event village – and much more! Whatever your role on the day, you’ll be making a vital contribution to the success of this fantastic event and the money it raises for charity.
We welcome support from individuals, and also from clubs and organisations. You can find out more about how to register below.
Would you like to volunteer in 2025? Please leave your details on the form below and we will get back to you with more information in the lead up to the 2025 event.
Please do not use autofill when filling in the form
Volunteering with others is a really enjoyable way to get involved and we love the support from local clubs and organisations. By volunteering at the event as a reward for their time these organised groups get a monetary donation to their organisation or club.
If you would like to register a group from your club or organisation then please fill in our short Group Registration Form.
This form will automatically be received by our Volunteer Manager, and they will be in touch to confirm the next steps and how to sign up your group members online.
Should you have any queries then please email us at volunteers@humanrace.co.uk.
To find out all about volunteering for us make sure you check out our FAQs below which should answer any queries you may have. You can also view the Volunteer Role Profile.
If you can’t find the answer below and you have any queries before committing, please get in touch via volunteers@humanrace.co.uk
Yes you can and we would love to have you join us as part of the team!
Adult Groups
A Group Leader should register the group's details by completing our short Group Registration Form. This form collects information about the number of persons from your group that you are pledging to volunteer, your preferred location/role if you have one, and the bank details for the group for your post-event donation.
The Volunteer Manager will then send you a link for a short online form that all your Group Members need to register their details on. They must do this so that we can all keep track of numbers, but also so that things like emergency contact details are captured.
Your group members that you recruit should be over 18 years of age.
Children aged 11-15: for some volunteer locations younger children aged 11-15 may be brought along with parents/guardians (if so they will be under their responsibility at all times).
In some roles we allocate you a few of them may be able to count as a headcount towards your numbers, but in other roles (the majority of them) where the positions are more spread out this is not possible or safe to do so, and those you bring will not count.
Children aged 16 & 17: for some volunteer locations children aged 16 & 17 may be able to be in your group without their parent/guardian in attendance (parent/guardian consent is needed to be confirmed pre-event for their attendance).
In general when pledging your numbers who will attend on the form please don’t include those under the age of 18. If your group will include members under the age of 18 then please let our volunteer manager know at volunteers@humanrace.co.uk and can be discussed further as needed, and it may be able to be considered in your groups role allocation.
Group Leaders may be asked to attend a briefing event prior to event day.
Youth Groups
Youth groups are very welcome to volunteer - under 18s should be accompanied by adults on a minimum ratio of 1 adult to 6 children (some exceptions may be made on a case-by-case basis - let us know if your group works to different ratios).
Youth Group Leaders should register the groups details by completing our short Group Registration Form and drop us an email at volunteers@humanrace.co.uk to let us know your interest.
- The Group Leader will need to complete a consent form which will be emailed to you.
- The Group Leader will be fully responsible for the group at the event.
- Group Leaders may be asked to attend a briefing event prior to event day.
Volunteering is a great way to meet new people and we’d love to have you as part of our team. To confirm your place on the delivery team please register as a volunteer online via our short registration form.
Between now and the event you’ll hear from our Volunteer Manager and closer to the event day they will liaise with you directly about your role and send you all the information you need.
Yes, you can and we would love to have you join us as part of the team.
Individuals aged 11 – 15 at the time of the event must either be accompanied at the event by a parent or guardian who is volunteering too or be part of a supervised youth group. Parents/guardians must give consent for their child to attend, and youth group leaders must complete a consent form for the group.
Individuals aged 16 & 17 can volunteer independently but parents/guardians must give consent for them to attend.
Please email volunteers@humanrace.co.uk to let us know and we can send you details of what you need to do/fill in.
Volunteers will receive information around 2-3 weeks before the event date with the details about where and when to arrive and what you will need to bring.
In the meantime, if you are have any specific queries please email volunteers@humanrace.co.uk stating the event you are volunteering at / querying about in the subject line. If you are volunteering as part of a group then please contact your own Group Leader in the first instance.
A member of the event team will contact you before the event to send you all the information that you will need to know about the event and your role. Some roles will entail more responsibility than other roles. Those with more responsibility such as a Group Team Leader may be expected to attend an online briefing a couple of weeks before the event to get key information for the role.
Please note that in the run up to the event, the event team & volunteer manager can be extremely busy and may not be able to respond quickly to detailed requests for information. However, we will endeavour to answer your queries as quickly as we can!
Most of our event volunteer roles do not require you to have any specialist experience or skills, and we will provide all the information and training you need to fulfil your volunteer role on the day of the event.
Any skills that we’d ideally like you to have as a volunteer are clearly stated in the Role Profile. If you feel you have a particular set of skills or knowledge that you think may be relevant please do let us know by noting this in answer to the question on the volunteer registration form.
Whatever volunteer role you take on, we will give you all the information and support you need to feel comfortable in your role at the event. This includes information being sent out pre-event.
Group Leaders will be invited to attend an online briefing (around 2 weeks before the event) at which point information will be distributed and questions can be asked.
At the event, all volunteers will have a Team Leader who they can go to for help and support.
Human Race does allow the involvement of volunteers who have previous criminal records, at the discretion of the recruiting member of staff, providing that it is reasonable to do so. We will not decline any applications from volunteers on the grounds of spent criminal convictions. Volunteers with unspent or pending convictions may be declined if the relevance, nature and severity of the crimes concerned warrant that course of action.
The safety of our volunteers is very important to us therefore all volunteers will be looked after by a Team Leader throughout the event. A full health and safety assessment of the event areas will be carried out.
Yes you can, and we would love to have you join us as part of the team!
However, to allow the Volunteer Manager to have enough time to contact all the volunteers it is unlikely that you will be unable to sign up via the website if the event is less than 7 days away. If this is the case then please email volunteers@humanrace.co.uk stating the event that you would like to work at and let us know your name and contact details. Your information will be collated, and you will be provided with a form to register with before or at the event.
Yes, please! We particularly love having groups volunteer with us so if you recruit a group of colleagues/friends /work colleagues that would be great!
Please see the Volunteer Role Profile for more information about volunteering at the event.
Please note that all volunteers need to register with us before the event, either as individuals (or a group of individuals), or as part of an organised group.
Unfortunately, spectators are not allowed to run the route with participants due to capacity issues. We have lots of cheering points on route so supporters will be easy to spot and ready to cheer on runners.
However, if there is a medical support need for you to assist/guide a friend or family member around the course, please email us at info@manchestermarathon.co.uk
On the day, please ensure you wear comfortable sports or outdoor walking footwear.
Given the time of year it will likely be cool in the morning when you start. We recommend wearing a few layers of clothing for this outdoor event as you can always remove them later if you get warm. Also as the British weather is so unpredictable please do come prepared for rain with waterproofs etc just in case.
You will be provided with a volunteer bib to identify you during the event – these will need to be given back at the end of your shift. So when planning your outfit please remember that you will need to put on a volunteer bib over the top of your clothes etc and that it will need to be visible at all times so you are identifiable as part of the event crew.
The following are not essential, but are very useful to bring along if you have them:
- A cap, sun-cream, and waterproofs
- A small bag to carry with you with a drink and snacks to eat
- Small torch or head torch as it may be dark when you set off or get to site!
- If in a route role a packed lunch
For volunteers positioned in or near the event village, you will be provided with a packed lunch. If your role is marshalling out on the route, you will receive a contribution after the event towards the cost of your lunch. You may not be positioned close to a shop or café so we recommend you bring a packed lunch with you.
Please note that there will be nowhere to store your bag or items so please only bring with you what you need and leave valuables at home. Please bring a small rucksack or other suitable bag that you can keep on you whilst you do your role.
Please read all the information that will be sent to you so that you know where you need to be and when.
Please arrive in plenty of time for your shift and please plan your journey to the event well in advance.
Don’t forget to also check in advance for any TFGM engineering works or closures etc that may be in place across Manchester that may affect your journey.
Please plan your journey well in advance to make sure that you are able to arrive and check-in in good time.
Your role start time, sign-in and briefing locations will be communicated nearer to the event but please be aware that the volunteer check-in time could be from around 7:00 on the morning of the event.
Please avoid driving as it will be difficult due to the multiple road closures for the event, as well as it being a central Manchester location so parking will be limited.
Please refer to the TFGM website to plan your journey. Please also refer to our road closures webpage if needed here.
Yes you can, and we would love to have you join us as part of the team. We believe that having a physical or learning disability shouldn’t prevent anyone from volunteering.
Please get in touch so we can talk about what roles might suit your skills and any adjustments or support you may need – email us at volunteers@humanrace.co.uk
You should be ok to volunteer while you are receiving benefits as long as the work you do is unpaid, and you meet the rules of your benefit. However, always check with your benefits advisor before you sign up to volunteer
Please email volunteers@humanrace.co.uk with the event that you have signed up for, your full name and the change of details required.
We organise the adidas Manchester Marathon, the Manchester Half , the London Winter Run and some other events throughout the year and we would welcome your support!
Please visit our website humanrace.co.uk to see what events we do and if you are interested let us know via volunteers@humanrace.co.uk.