Getting in shape, drinking less and stopping smoking are some of the top New Year’s resolutions, but many people struggle to keep up with these resolutions through the dark, rainy days of January.

What if you could take up an activity which can benefit your health, make a difference in your local community and improve your confidence? So why not make volunteering your New Year’s Resolution and experience some of these benefits for yourself. The health benefits from being a volunteer can range from improved self-esteem to a healthier lifestyle, and can even extend your life expectancy!

Volunteering can also make you happier –  a study done by the London School of Economics found that the more people volunteered, the happier they were. Compared to people who weren’t involved in volunteering, people who volunteered monthly were 7% more likely to describe themselves as ‘very happy’. Weekly volunteers were 16%…