Celebrating and promoting Volunteers’ Week in Bucks – June 1 – 12
Volunteers’ Week 1-12 June 2016
Celebrating and promoting volunteering in Bucks
– Local fairs to help address national shortage of volunteers –
Community Events
This year, Volunteers Week has been extended to run from 1-12 June. Community Impact Bucks (CIB) will be holding a Volunteer Fair on 9th June from 10am – 2pm at St. Michael & All Angels Church, Amersham. This is an opportunity to meet volunteers and charities working in the local community, learn about services that are available, and maybe even find out about a volunteering opportunity that would suit you! A specific Befriending Fair will be held on 7th June from 10am – 12pm in Market Square, Buckingham, as there is a real need for befrienders in Buckinghamshire, and a service that is desperately required by many people experiencing isolation.
Helen Cavill, Volunteer Hub Co-ordinator, said: “Volunteering is a highly rewarding activity with far reaching benefits for the volunteer. For an isolated person, receiving a volunteer befriender can be their salvation. This vital service provides a link to the outside world and often acts as a gateway for other services and valuable support.”
Volunteer Shortage
The Cabinet Office’s 2014-15 Community Life Survey indicated that overall volunteering rates have significantly decreased compared to 2013-14, and Nick Phillips, Group Chief Executive at Community Impact Bucks, said:
“Volunteering is alive and well in the county. But many organisationsstill urgently need more volunteer support!
There are in excess of 300 volunteer vacancies at charities in Buckinghamshire.”
CIB is more determined than ever to promote the value of volunteering to Buckinghamshire residents, and to celebrate the fantastic role played by all the volunteers who dedicate their time, skills, energy and enthusiasm to the 2,500 registered charities, and more unregistered “groups” in the county.
Discovering A New Experience
Volunteering can present life changing opportunities – taking individuals way outside their comfort zones, or enabling them to utilise existing skills in a new area. All contributions are valued, and roles are very flexible. CIB’s online recruitment portal www.volunteeringbucks.org.uk is a gateway to a wide variety of volunteering opportunities in Buckinghamshire, ranging from using business expertise, to befriending, to practical countryside skills.