MORAY men are being urged to volunteer for the WRVS older people’s charity, which is keen to shed its ‘for women only’ reputation.
With research showing that 190,000 men in UK over the age of 75 suffer from feelings of loneliness to the detriment of their health and wellbeing, the charity needs more male volunteers to help out.
Currently WRVS is served by around 40,000 volunteers, of which less than a fifth (6,342) are men.
Launched 75 years ago this year as the Women’s Voluntary Services, the service initially attracted over one million women volunteers to lend their support on the home front during the war.
Nowadays the WRVS supports older people and recruits male as well as female volunteers. And with over 3 million men in the UK revealing they plan to start voluntary work this year, the charity is asking them to consider supporting them by persuading them to sign up.
A men only, question and answer session is being hosted by WRVS on the Twitter social networking service on February 18 between noon and 2pm, in an effort to gain more volunteers. Men interested in helping out are invited to pose questions to a male volunteer using a dedicated hashtag #manhunt.
Last year’s Olympics and Paralympics were supported a large army of Games Makers, and nearly a quarter of men who took part said the role they played had made them think more favourably about volunteering.
Others recognise the health benefits of volunteering (34 per cent) with 13 per cent saying it will help them gain invaluable new skills.
Margaret Paterson, WRVS head of operations for Scotland, said the charity has had male volunteers since at least 1949, but they now needed more men to provide practical help and companionship to the older people they support.
"It is great to see the Olympic legacy has inspired so many men to want to volunteer," she said. "We urge all of the men planning to volunteer this year to add WRVS to their wish list of charities to approach."
Among the roles carried out by the charity’s volunteers, both men and women, are that of cook, handyman, driver, and companion for its Good Neighbours service.
To register an interest in volunteering visit www.wrvs.org.uk or call 0845 601 4670.
WRVS supports over 100,000 older people each month to stay independent in their own homes for longer with tailor made solutions. As well as its Good Neighbours programme it also operates Meals-on-Wheels and Books-on-Wheels to help alleviate loneliness and support older people.
A charity that receives no direct government funding, it also provides practical support for older people who have been in hospital through its On Ward Befriending and Home from Hospital services.
WRVS supports over 100,000 older people each month to stay independent in their own homes for longer with tailor made solutions. Through its army of 40,000 volunteers, the charity runs services such as Good Neighbours (Companionship), Meals-on-Wheels and Books-on-Wheels that alleviate loneliness and help older people. A charity that receives no direct government funding, it also provides practical support for older people who have been in hospital through its On Ward Befriending and Home from Hospital services.
