You will visit Astley Ainslie Hospital to chat to patients and provide social stimulation. This really helps to relieve some of the boredom and frustration patients sometimes feel whilst in hospital. You will also have an opportunity to serve patients teas and coffees, serve meals (evening shift only), and complete other ad-hoc tasks as directed by the ward staff. With additional training, you may also have opportunities to take patients outside for walks during spells of nice weather.

Family friends work directly with families, coming alongside and giving support to parents and children when they need it most, making sure they feel less isolated. Safe Families is a charity that works with 35+ local authorities around the UK. Safe Families offer hope, belonging and support to children, families and care leavers; they do this primarily, but not exclusively, with and through local churches. No one should feel alone. Safe Families exist to create relationship and connection because everyone deserves to belong. Volunteers will undergo training before matching with a family, to help them feel best equipped and prepared. They will receive support throughout the entire process. Family friend support can range from a couple hours every few weeks, to once a week support - meeting for coffee, being a listening ear, going out to the park etc. Contact Caitlin at caitlinfrew@safefamilies.uk or 07393462300 for more information about volunteering.

Would you like to support someone through their cancer journey? Tayside Cancer Support offers a free, confidential, one-to-one befriending service for those affected by cancer in the Tayside and the surrounding area. This service is provided by volunteer befrienders who have received relevant and professional training prior to working with clients. Although the charity is a voluntary organisation, the commitment of our volunteers is essential, as we pride ourselves in offering sensitive, yet professional support. Referrals for the befriending service are generally received from local hospital wards, doctors, nurses and other health professionals, but we also welcome referrals from individuals who feel that a family member or indeed, they themselves would benefit from this support. We’d love to hear from you if you’d like to become a befriender, here’s what’s involved: • No experience necessary, all training and supervision is provided • You can communicate with your client either on the phone or in person • The commitment is a minimum 1 hour a month • A good listening ear! We ask that all new befrienders attend our befriending course. This lasts for around 18 hours and includes the following sessions:- • Introduction to Tayside Cancer Support Policies Procedures and Boundaries • Working with People • Listening & Communication Skills • Different types of cancer and its treatment • Handling Grief • Working with other charities and partner agencies Once the course is completed successfully, you will be matched with a client to begin the befriending journey. From there you and the client decide what is the best way for you to communicate and how often. This might be in their home, in a coffee shop, online or on the phone. Whatever is suitable for them. If you think this is for you, we’d love to hear from you. Contact us for a further discussion by clicking on the button below.

The Butterfly Trust are a Scottish registered charity that offer direct one to one support to people living with Cystic Fibrosis. We are helping to empower people with Cystic Fibrosis in Scotland. Cystic Fibrosis is a progressive, life-limiting, genetically inherited condition with no cure. We are the leading provider of social support to the Cystic Fibrosis community of Scotland, providing face-to-face services for individuals and families, and access to the support needed to ensure they benefit from optimum homecare and enjoy the best quality of life. Volunteering is a fantastic way to make a difference to the life of someone else, and an opportunity to enhance your own life and build new skills. The support worker undertakes tasks that make a real difference to the quality of life for the young people we support. He/she is our first point of contact with clients responding to requests that are often for practical help but also just someone to talk to. Support workers receive training to develop skills in understanding and completing official forms, and can be trained to provide advocacy if they wish to be more challenged. A great opportunity to make a real difference for people. Excellent support and relevant training is provided to all volunteers. For more details please contact Dr Miles Tew, Volunteer Manager at E Mail: miles@butterflytrust.org.uk or tel: 07712 606891.