Lynne Connolly, Helpforce Cymru Manager, reflects on the recent statement from the outgoing CEO of Helpforce UK about the incredible impact that volunteers have on our health and social care services.
HELPFORCE UK
Recently, the former CEO of Helpforce UK, Mark Lever, shone a light on the incredible impact that volunteers have on our health and social care services.
This has inspired me to think about how these lessons resonate with our own experiences in Wales.
VOLUNTEERING IN HEALTH & SOCIAL CARE: LEARNING FROM THE PANDEMIC
As Mark points out, the Coronavirus pandemic highlighted that we can achieve more by working in collaborative partnerships rather than in silos. Volunteers and local organisations rose to the occasion, offering vital assistance, sharing resources, and creating new roles.
A notable example of this collaboration is a volunteering initiative in care homes by the West Glamorgan Regional Partnership. This began during the pandemic and led to a more regional approach to volunteering in these homes.
This experience proves the value of continued collaboration at all levels and the importance of tapping into each other’s expertise.
MAKING THE CASE FOR VOLUNTEERING
Volunteering success isn’t just about counting hours. It’s about the difference volunteers make for patients, service users, staff and communities, not to mention the impact on the volunteers themselves.
Measuring outcomes such as reduced loneliness not only provides a compelling case for funders but also helps volunteers understand the tangible difference they are making.
To learn more about how to measure these outcomes, check out the resources available from Social Value Cymru.
DESIGN MATTERS!
Mark emphasises the benefits of effective volunteer integration, ensuring staff clearly understand volunteer roles. This enables everyone to focus on their strengths.
Sharing successful strategies and learning from each other is essential. Here are some ways you can get involved and learn more:
- National Volunteering Framework for Health & Social Care in Wales: An interactive resource to sustain and integrate volunteering across services.
- Join the Helpforce Cymru Network to connect with like-minded colleagues developing volunteering in Wales’ health and social care. Contact Lynne Connolly, Helpforce Cymru Manager for more information – lconnolly@wcva.cymru.
- Join the Helpforce UK Network and access a free online community of professionals in health and care volunteering, featuring forums, resources and much more.
The Helpforce Cymru project and Bevan Commission have published a paper highlighting how to improve collaboration between voluntary and statutory sectors.
CREATING A SUSTAINABLE FUTURE FOR VOLUNTEERING
It’s absolutely worth celebrating the significant progress in volunteering. But we need to ensure volunteering has a sustainable future. We can do this collaborating with health and social care services in Wales, focusing on:
- strategic integration of volunteering
- measuring and demonstrating the impact of volunteering
- sharing knowledge
- strengthening collaborative partnerships