Could you lend a helping hand this year?

Age UK Norfolk is appealing for more voluntary help. Laura Hawkie-Chapman, the charity’s volunteer co-ordinator, explains why.

 Age UK Norfolk is again appealing for volunteers – why is this?

We, as a society, are living longer and Norfolk has one of the larger populations of older people; north Norfolk in particular, has the oldest proportion of older people in England and Wales. Around a third of older people live alone but did you know loneliness can be just as harmful to health as smoking 15 cigarettes a day?

Now with the colder weather here, more older people tend to stay inside - which only enhances that feeling of being lonely and isolated.

Age UK Norfolk works hard to provide many services to support older people; including our companionship services which help ease those feelings of loneliness. We provide further support for people with money worries due to the rising costs of groceries and utility bills; the recent changes to the winter fuel payment have directly impacted the rise in demand for our services.

Volunteers are the backbone of our organisation. We currently have 185 volunteers but desperately need a lot more to help us meet this rising demand.

What kind of roles are available for volunteers?

We have a variety of different and flexible volunteer roles available which can be done face-to-face, over the phone, or in our office which is based in Norwich. Depending on the role, our volunteers can do as little as 30 minutes a week or giving up a morning or afternoon once a week.

The type of volunteering can involve befriending a lonely person over the phone, or in person, helping older people organise their finances, support them filling out forms, claiming benefits, or to use a device that makes them better connected plus there’s so much more.

Volunteer roles are currently available within these services: befriending, travelling companionship, advocacy, money matters, information & advice, benefits, lasting power of attorney and digital inclusion.

Is training available?

The amount of training provided depends on the volunteer role, as some roles require more training than others. All volunteers are required to read Age UK Norfolk’s Policies and Procedures along with our volunteer handbook.

Some voluntary work requires the completion of learning modules, and volunteers are always kept up to date with useful training opportunities that we think will help them in their volunteer role - such as a free safeguarding course which can be done remotely, or face-to-face.

Particular roles will include shadowing staff in the office or during home visits. Volunteers receive ongoing support and advice from our service coordinators/management team.

Is there an age limit?

Our volunteers occasionally deal with some difficult situations - people who are living in poor conditions, with very few resources, or who are lonely, vulnerable, and isolated. We feel, from experience, that it is best if the volunteers are at least 18 years old and understand that the priority is supporting the older person.

Currently our oldest volunteer is 93 years old: So, it’s never too late to volunteer!

Any special qualifications needed? 

Qualifications are not essential to be a volunteer with Age UK Norfolk. What we require from our volunteers are good communication skills, a desire to help people, an ability to relate and empathise with older people, to be open-minded and have a non-judgemental attitude. Ideally they should be computer literate, or have access to the internet and an email address.

Some roles may require relevant experience to that particular service and specific volunteer roles could lead to further training and development and can enhance your CV.

Has the need for volunteers increased since the announcement about winter fuel allowance?

We always need help from volunteers with identifying support with benefits for older people. This includes benefit checks and form filling for areas such as disability benefits and means-tested benefits like pension credit - now linked to the winter fuel payment.