The Bucks Volunteer Matching Service has gained 1,000 volunteers to support communities across Bucks during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Volunteer Matching Service is run by Community Impact Bucks in partnership with Buckinghamshire Council and The Clare Foundation, and was set up in Spring 2020.
Cheryl who is a Volunteer Matching Service team member and volunteer herself, told us how hitting this incredible figure has made the tram feel: "Completely blown away by the number of people who have stepped forward to volunteer during the COVID crisis , and they are still doing so! So many of them say, 'I just want to give back', or 'I felt I had to do my bit', but what they give the community makes a huge difference, it's a real testimant to community spirit."
Volunteers have been matched to a wide variety of roles across the county including:
- 128 volunteers to frontline COVID response like delivering PPE and medicine and helping in food banks.
- 180 volunteer telephone befrienders to make calls to elderly and disabled people or those required to shield.
- 85 volunteers to support vital charity and voluntary services e.g. Lindengate, a mental health charity that has been supporting NHS staff, key workers and people who have been bereaved.
- 86 car park marshals for vaccination sites across the county
- 74 COVID Test Distributer volunteers placed with Buckinghamshire Council to help door-to-door COVID-19 testing.
- 56 volunteers to help in our hospitals with Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust.
To find out more or to register with the Volunteer Matching Service, people can visit the https://communityimpactbucks.org.uk/buckinghamshire-volunteer-matching-service/ web page.