How to Start a Mutual Aid Group

Last updated November 4, 2026 · 6 minute read

To start a mutual aid group, begin small. Find a few people you trust, choose the area or community to serve, and set up one simple way for people to say what they need and what they can offer. Write down a few shared agreements, collect as little personal information as you can, and share the work so no one person carries it all. Money and legal rules depend on where you live, so check them locally before you collect funds.

What is mutual aid, and how is it different from charity?

Mutual aid is people organizing to meet each other's needs as equals. A 2021 study in Frontiers in Psychology notes that social movements use a slogan to erase the line between helpers and the people helped: solidarity, not charity. In practice, nobody is only a giver or only a receiver.

Charity and mutual aid can sit side by side; the difference is how the help is organized. A 2022 study in Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers describes pandemic-era mutual aid groups that ranged from charity-style to radical. It also notes that some governments have taken advantage of mutual aid to avoid fully funding social welfare, so it helps to see a group as working alongside public services, not in place of them.

Step 1: Start small and choose an area

Shareable, a US non-profit that publishes mutual aid guides, says you do not need a grand plan. Shareable's 2024 guide suggests a core team of trusted people who will show up, then a small group of about five to 20, and advises clearly identifying the area to support, then making connections there.

An area can be a building, a street, a club, or people who share a language or workplace. Pick something you can cover reliably: a few things done every time beat many done unevenly. Look for groups already working nearby first; joining one may help more than starting another.

Step 2: Find your first members

Start with people you already know and trust, and ask each to bring one more. Be specific: say you are starting a small neighborhood group to share rides, groceries and skills, and ask for a few minutes to talk.

Some neighbors have no smartphone or speak another first language, so use more than one way to reach people. Shareable (2024) suggests phone trees, where a few people each call a few others, and one-to-one conversations, which work better than broad posts for learning what people need. University of Sussex researchers (2021) add that everyone nearby should know how to join and ask for help.

Step 3: Set up a simple needs-and-offers process

Keep it light enough to run from a phone. Pick one place to ask for help, such as a number, a short form or a chat, and have two coordinators check it, rotating weekly. For each request, note only what is needed, roughly when, and how to reach the person. A volunteer takes it and confirms by message; the coordinator marks it done.

Make each task small. One organizer interviewed in a University of Sussex study (2021) gave volunteers a shopping list and the person's phone number: they called ahead, shopped and sent the receipt. Also ask every member what they can offer, what they might need and when they are free.

A University of Sussex newsletter (2021) notes that asking for help can feel hard, and that it is easier to accept when people can also contribute something. So invite everyone to offer, however small. Example: a neighbor asks for a lift to a clinic, a volunteer replies, and the coordinator confirms the time. Next month that neighbor helps another member with a form.

Step 4: Write a few shared agreements

Put a one-page agreement in writing before problems appear. The Sustainable Economies Law Center (2020), a US non-profit legal organization, recommends written agreements, even for groups that never become a formal organization. The center suggests they cover the group's purpose, how members treat each other, how decisions are made, how money is handled and who may speak for the group.

Say what the group will not do, for example: no medical, legal or financial advice; anyone can say no to any task; names stay inside the group. Say what the group is for, too, since University of Sussex researchers (2021) note that people arrive with different expectations. Keep roles flexible: organizers in the same research valued informal leadership.

Step 5: Protect privacy, safety and money

People who ask for help may share something private, such as a health problem or a debt. The Electronic Frontier Foundation (2023) suggests a security plan built on plain questions, including what you want to protect and who you want to protect it from. For a mutual aid group, that is often the list of who asked for what.

Keep as little personal data as you can, share only what a volunteer needs, and ask before adding anyone to a chat. The Sustainable Economies Law Center (2020) advises keeping personal data to a minimum, with the example of a fund whose application states the fund's purpose and does not ask about immigration status. The Resource Centre, a UK charity (2026), says to delete data once the job it was collected for is done.

Hold money only if you need to. The Sustainable Economies Law Center (2020) also describes peer-to-peer giving, where the group connects people who want to give with people who need money, so it never holds the funds. If you do hold money, keep it apart from personal accounts, write down who has access and who approves spending, and keep records. This is general information, not legal advice.

For safety, decide how volunteers meet people, such as a first phone call before any visit and drop-offs at the door. Ask them to pass worries to a named person rather than handle them alone. A University of Sussex and NAVCA guide (2022) lists volunteers trying to deal with a worry themselves as a common challenge, and suggests a written policy that says what to do, when and who is responsible.

Step 6: Keep it going, and mistakes to avoid

A 2021 study in Frontiers in Psychology, based on interviews with 32 UK mutual aid organizers, reports that groups used a culture of care and regular group meetings to help keep people involved. The same study notes that organizers stressed avoiding burnout and mentioned delegating work.

Rotate the coordinator role, open meetings with a short check-in, celebrate wins, and let anyone step back without explaining. University of Sussex research (2021) lists teamwork, an even spread of work, emotional support and practical help as care strategies that can reduce burnout.

Mistakes worth avoiding:

• Doing too much at the start.
• Letting one person hold every task, password and contact.
• Collecting more personal details than the task needs.
• Handling medical or legal problems yourselves.
• Waiting for a conflict before deciding how to handle one.

When to get help, and what to do next

Some situations are beyond a volunteer group: a medical problem, a legal or immigration question, abuse, or someone at risk of harm. Agree in advance who to contact, and list local services. For money, insurance, food handling or forming a legal organization, ask a local legal advice service, community organization or health department.

If someone is in immediate danger, call 911 (US) or your local emergency number; in the US, call or text 988 for a mental health crisis, or text HOME to 741741 to reach the Crisis Text Line.

In the UK, volunteer-support organizations such as a Council for Voluntary Service offer groups training and advice (University of Sussex and NAVCA, 2022). Elsewhere, ask your library or local government.

This week, tell two or three people you trust what you have in mind, and check for groups already nearby. Draft a one-page agreement, hold a short first meeting, and start with one small thing to do every week. In the app, the Mutual Aid screen has a ten-step outline for starting a network and a needs-and-offers list that stays on your own device.

Sources

1. How to start a mutual aid network (Shareable, 2024)
2. Solidarity, not charity: Learning the lessons of the COVID-19 pandemic to reconceptualise the radicality of mutual aid (Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers, 2022)
3. More Than a COVID-19 Response: Sustaining Mutual Aid Groups During and Beyond the Pandemic (Frontiers in Psychology, 2021)
4. Mutual Aid Groups & COVID-19 Newsletter, Issue 1 (University of Sussex, Groups and COVID project, 2021)
5. Mutual Aid Groups & COVID-19 Newsletter, Issue 2 (University of Sussex, Groups and COVID project, 2021)
6. The Mutual Aid Toolbox: Safeguarding Skills and Resources (University of Sussex, Groups and COVID project, with the National Association for Voluntary and Community Action, 2022)
7. Mutual Aid Toolkit (Sustainable Economies Law Center, 2020)
8. Your Security Plan (Surveillance Self-Defense) (Electronic Frontier Foundation, 2023)
9. Data protection for community groups (Resource Centre, 2026)