As we move through the month of December, we would like to take this time to share the incredible contributions of our Volunteers supporting services across the organisation and say thank you to them all for their contribution this year.

 

This is a great opportunity to highlight the value and impact that Volunteering has, who our Volunteers are and the magic they bring to Oxford Health.

 

Our volunteer numbers are always quite variable however we currently have just over 120 Volunteers in a variety of roles in our organisation.

 

Did you know that NHS England collect data quarterly from all Volunteer Services nationally? 

We are just one organisation sharing numbers of Volunteers and NHSE are starting to collate the hours they contribute. 

 

In the first quarter of this year alone NHS England recorded that Volunteers gave over a million hours to the NHS.

 

The biggest gift of all, is the gift of time

 

Volunteers are much more than the numbers though. They are providing invaluable support to services, they are spending quality time talking with service users, playing games and creating artwork together, they are providing pastoral support, bringing in the most wonderful therapy dogs, supporting with family and carer groups, supporting with admin tasks and making telephone calls, collecting and inputting data such as I want Great Care, meeting and greeting service users attending one of the many sites across Oxford Health, supporting fundraising events, enhancing the trusts green spaces and more.

 

These wonderful people give their time to Volunteering for a number of reasons, some are volunteering here because they have used or know someone that has used services and want to give something back. Some because they are interested in a career pathway in the NHS. Some because they have skills and knowledge they want to share with others. Whatever the reason we welcome Volunteers here at Oxford Health, support them on their journey and we are grateful for everything they do.

 

They are bringing joy all year round

 

Please read our Volunteer stories, take this time to understand more about Volunteering in Oxford Health, have a look at and share our current opportunities, reach out to us for more information on Volunteering or if you would like to consider roles in your service and most importantly join us in thanking all of our wonderful Volunteers.

 

 

Your Volunteer Programme Team

 

Becky Deane

Interim Volunteer Programme Lead

 

Volunteer Programme Administrator

Juliet LeMasurier