A Day in the Life of...

Helen, Sharing Time Co-ordinator

Hello, my name is Helen Lancaster, and I am a Sharing Time co-ordinator. Sharing Time is a volunteer visiting service.  My role is to match our Sharing Time volunteers to our service users (anyone over the age of 65 who is living alone and experiencing loneliness or isolation).  The volunteer visits their service user once a week, offering company and a chat over a cup of tea, for about an hour.  It’s a chance for them to get to know one another and to build a friendship.  Some of our volunteer-service user matches have lasted several years.  It is a job that I honestly love!  I get to meet people, hear about their lives and bring people together. When a volunteer is introduced to a service user, and you can instantly see that they ‘click’ it is a very rewarding feeling.

My Day: Tuesday

 9:00am  I start with an online volunteer induction.  Today, I’ve got three new volunteers joining me on zoom.  It’s always nice for volunteers to get to meet each other, so we start by introducing ourselves and sharing a bit of our lives.  Today’s volunteers are all at different stages of life – one is a student, one a mum of young children, and one is retired.  They all want to give their time to helping someone who might benefit from regular company and a listening ear.   

We talk about what the role will entail – focussing particularly on safeguarding and on boundaries.  There is time for questions and discussion, and hopefully we all end the zoom session feeling excited about what lies ahead!

 10:00  Time to check the emails…. Always plenty to read!  Many of them are from volunteers whom I have matched to a service user.  They might be telling me about a recent visit or asking for advice.  I take time to answer them, and also log any important information which has been shared with me on our computer database. 

 11:30  I’m still not done on the admin-front!  Once emails have been dealt with, I turn my attention to Charity Log, our online database.  I’m able to set myself tasks via the database, so it’s now time to look at all the things I have lined up to do today.  Much of these will be phone calls to service users and volunteers, to check in on them, or update them with where I am in terms of finding them a match.

Charity Log also tells me when I have a new service user referral.  Today I have 4 new referrals.  So, I make four phone calls to the people I’ve had referred to me.  I explain what the service is and check that this is something they are keen to explore further.  Sometimes, a service user can be a bit hesitant about having a volunteer visitor, so I try to gently encourage them to try the service and see how they find it.  My next step is to meet with them, so I will also try and find a date to visit them at home. 

 1:00pm  Lunch!  Time to move away from my desk, breathe in some fresh air standing at my back door, eat a sandwich and enjoy a break from the screen.

 1:30  Now I need to gather my paperwork and grab my car keys, as I’m off on a couple of visits. 

 2:00  First stop – Angela and Anke.  This will be a fun visit.  I am introducing new volunteer Anke to service user Angela.  I’ve known Angela a while, as she used to have a volunteer linked to her who has since moved away.  Anke is a new volunteer, and I am hopeful they will get on.  Thankfully, yes they do!  Anke looks very comfortable with Angela’s cat curled up on her knee, and Angela is entertaining us both with stories of growing up as an Italian immigrant in New York.  I leave them engrossed in conversation.

 3:00  Next stop Bryan, who lives the other side of Cambridge.  Bryan has recently been referred to us, and I spend about an hour with him.  We go through some paperwork – GDPR documents, and also a general assessment of health and environment.  Bryan worked as a plasterer, and proudly points out to me work he completed on his own house. On showing me his garden, I notice very steep steps from his kitchen to patio and ask Bryan how he manages this.  It turns out that to get down the steps, he twists his body to the right and clings on to the frame of his windowsill.  I’m worried this puts him at risk of a fall, and so ask if I can have his permission to make a referral to the Occupation Therapy team, requesting rails next to his garden steps.                                     

                              4:00   Head home, log back onto Charity Log and add notes from the two visits I made. 

 4:30 That’s my day done.  To end on a high note, I receive text messages from Anke and Angela – both thrilled to have met each other and looking forward to the next visit!  

See the links below to find out more about the service and volunteering.