We are the region’s “one-stop shop” charity – supporting thousands of people every year in areas from homelessness to money matters, and community safety to drug and alcohol recovery. We supported more than 7,000 people in the last year alone, many of whom will have used several services under our umbrella.

We couldn’t do this alone – a lot of our work is underpinned by volunteers.  In the past year alone, over 200 volunteers have committed over 30,000 hours, the equivalent of over 15 full time members of staff.  At a time where funding isn’t always certain, organisations like ours are needing to find ways to save money to continue offering the quality of support needed and our amazing volunteers are a huge part of this.

Why Volunteers Matter

At ACT, our volunteers help us deliver essential services that change lives.  Here are some of the roles they fulfil:

• Helping young people and vulnerable adults in custody to understand the process and aid communication as an Appropriate Adult
• Being a consistent and reliable adult to children and young people in the care system by taking them out once a month to do something fun as an Independent Visitor
• Mentoring young people
• Offering guidance to people struggling with housing or financial pressures
• Assisting patients on discharge from hospital and health care services
• Supporting someone feeling isolated to integrate them back into the local community

You Don’t Need Special Skills - Just a Willingness to Help

Many people hesitate to volunteer because they think they don’t have enough time or the right experience. But at ACT, every contribution matters to us and our Volunteer Development Manager does a great job of matching people’s skills to the most suitable role for them.

We offer flexible, bite-sized volunteering sessions from 2-3 hours a month to 2- 3 days a week! We can schedule sessions around your working day so if you would like to contribute to meaningful change in the community, we would love to talk about opportunities that fit your schedule.

We also invite local businesses to join us – we have had organisations gift their time by helping to decorate one of our properties or tidy a garden.  It’s been a great team building exercise as well as having a really positive impact on our tenants.

The Benefits Go Both Ways

Volunteering with ACT isn’t just about supporting others - it’s also a rewarding experience.  Many of our volunteers say they have:

• Gained confidence and new skills
• Built meaningful relationships
• Discovered a renewed sense of purpose
• Become more connected to their community

When you volunteer, you gain the knowledge that you’ve made a real difference.

Jenny has been one of our Appropriate Adults (AA) for 8 years.  She supports vulnerable adults and young people in custody, ensuring they understand the process and that their rights and welfare are being considered.  Jenny finds happiness volunteering and gets a lot of satisfaction from her role.  She told us: 

“Throughout my career, both as a childminder and now an AA, I love working with people and being able to support them. It gives me a sense of purpose and if I can gift a few hours a week to help someone in their time of need, I will. Beyond the doors of my home where I am a wife and mum - volunteering gives me my time to give something back to the community and when I give to other people, I give to myself too.” 

Be Part of Something Meaningful

With funding being reduced and support needs increasing, volunteers are more important than ever and we are currently looking for volunteers in a number of our services. Here is a spotlight on one of them…

Would you be happy to check in on people and make sure they are okay? 

Our Supported Discharge Team needs volunteers like you… 

Assisting patients on discharge from hospital, you could be helping out with light household tasks like making a cup of tea, a little cleaning, prepping a meal or running errands, like collecting a prescription or taking a dog for a walk. 

This is a lovely role for someone that enjoys providing practical support - ensuring people have what they need to manage at home and reconnect with the local community, aiming to reduce hospital readmissions and reducing pressure on the NHS. 

If you’d like an informal chat or to find out more about any of our volunteer roles, contact our Volunteer Development Manager, Lisa  volunteer@angliacaretrust.org.uk or 01473 622888.