Voluntary Action South West Surrey

About the British Red Cross

The British Red Cross helps people in crisis, whoever and wherever they are. We are part of a global voluntary network, responding to conflicts, natural disasters and individual emergencies.

We enable vulnerable people in theUKand abroad to prepare for and withstand emergencies in their own communities. And when the crisis is over, we help them to recover and move on with their lives.

The object of the charity is to relieve the needs and promote the rehabilitation, treatment, education and care of persons who have committed, or who are likely to commit offences, particularly sexual offenses, against others, and the families of such persons and others affected by such offences.

Citizens Advice Bureaux in Surrey have been exploring ways to coordinate our activities and enhance our service delivery and performance. It was agreed that forming a company limited by guarantee would be the best way forward. So, Citizens Advice Surrey, made up of twelve bureaux, was registered as a charity in June 2011.

Our new structure builds on an already strong relationship among Surrey CAB managers. Through a managers’ forum, Surrey CAB managers have for many years shared information and mutual support to enable them to develop services that address local and county needs, and to develop effective partnerships with other voluntary and statutory organisations.

We help people resolve their legal, money and other problems by providing free, independent and confidential advice, and by influencing policymakers.

We operate from bureaux in Cranleigh, Farnham, Godalming and Haslemere, offering a five days-a-week telephone, drop-in and appointment service.  We have over 160 volunteers across our offices, undertaking many roles.  These include fundraisers, trustees, administrators, receptionists, social policy campaigners, advisers and assessors.

We use the information we gather carrying out this work to campaign for social justice, so that individuals do not suffer through a lack of knowledge or an inability to express themselves effectively.

Crossroads Care is Surrey's leading charity providing respite care support to Carers. We've been working across Surrey for over 30 years, with our core purpose being to improve the quality of life of unpaid carers and those they are caring for. 

COVID-19 Emergency Response

As a result of Coronavirus, Crossroads swiftly implemented a response by providing essential shopping and prescription collection services to carers and to other vulnerable people that were isolated at home. We provided regular wellbeing calls to check in on people to see how they were coping and to offer support with shopping. We're now developing a volunteer based Outreach Support and Telephone Befriending with Digital Tech project largely in response to Covid, but which enable us to continue to support people who need it with shopping and prescription collections, and also with support in learning and using digital technology.  We are seeking new volunteers who are interested in providing Outreach Support and / or Telephone or Digital Befriending.

As an Outreach Support Volunteer you would support people living in the same borough as yourself with shopping and prescription collections. We would provide you with appropriate PPE and pay any related fuel costs.  

As a Befriender you would support carers and other older people, or those being cared for, who are feeling isolated and alone and who would benefit from having someone to speak to simply to chat about life, the weather, local services and events etc. We're interested in hearing from volunteers who are relatively IT savvy and would be able to connect to our Cloud based phone system to make telephone or virtual calls to clients. We'd also like volunteers to get involved with an exciting new Befriending with digital tech project, through which you would be able to support people in learning to use, or building confidence in using laptops, smart phones and tablets. Even if you're not computer savvy, but would benefit from being a befriender yourself, please get in touch.

We're also looking for new Trustee's to join us now, so if you're interested in supporting us in leading the development of respite services for carers in Surrey, please enquire through our website www.crossroadscaresurrey.org.uk

We are also always looking for people that are interested in other volunteering roles, including by offering support in care or club settings, in the community or in the head office.

If you are interested in becoming part of our Surrey wide team and being involved in providing support to your community, please email us at enquiries@crossroadscaresurrey.org.uk to request a volunteer pack.

We'd love to hear from you... if you have a good understanding of what it's like to be a carer and are looking to give something back through volunteering.

Somewhere to turn when someone dies

Cruse is a national charity that provides advice, information and support to anyone who has been bereaved (children, young people and adults), whenever or however the death occurred. The service is provided by trained, experienced volunteers and is confidential and free.

Girlguiding is the largest organisation for girls and young women in the UK.  The aim is to sustain and promote a stimulating and enjoyable programme of activities.  These will help girls and young women develop their potential and enable them to play an active role in their community.

Guildford Club for Disabled provides social support for the physically disabled which results in additional needs and requirements.  The Club strives to provide wide ranging entertainment that caters for most age groups and their tastes.

The Walking for Health national programme is run by the Ramblers and their goal is that everyone will have access to a short, free and friendly health walk within easy reach of where they live, to help them become and stay active, and we couldn't do this without all the amazing volunteers that make our health walks possible. 

From volunteer walk leaders and assistants, volunteers do a fantastic job in supporting and developing the Walking for Health initiative. I'd love for you to be a part of that too!

Guildford Walking for Health currently has five walk groups in Guildford. The groups are: Boxgrove, Mondays from Boxgrove Park shops; Worplesdon, Tuesdays from Worplesdon Place; Shalford, Wednesdays from the Seahorse Inn Shalford; Shere, Thursdays from the Shere Recreation car park; Whitmoor, Fridays from the Jolly Farmer car-park, Whitmoor Common. 

The health walks are aimed at people recovering from illness, or people wanting to get a bit more active. Aug 2020: We are hoping to start walks for people with disabilities, in wheelchairs or using disability scooters, and we need another 10 volunteers to help with this.

Leading walks is a fun way of giving something back to your local community. You will make new friends and discover lovely outdoor places. 

Parents Supporting Other Parents - a simple idea that really works!

Home-Start Guildford has been supporting families for more than 20 years.  We are a charity and voluntary organisation that aims to prevent family crisis or breakdown by offering regular volunteer support to parents who are under stress with at least one child under the age of 5, usually referred to us by Health Visitors.

We recruit and train volunteers who are parents themselves, to visit the families at home for a few hours once a week and offer them informal, friendly and confidential support, as well as practical help.

This support is aimed to help parents grow in confidence, strengthen their relationships with their children and widen their links with the local community.  Ultimately this support helps the children have the best possible start in life.

Please see the volunteer role for more detail.

What we do

Home-Start helps families with young children deal with whatever life throws at them. We support parents as they learn to cope, improve their confidence and build better lives for their children. The benefits of our support include improved health and well being and better family relationships.

We provide one-to-one support for parents
Our volunteers visit the family’s home for a couple of hours every week.  They tailor-make their support to the needs of the parents and children. Volunteers are very committed and will keep visiting until the youngest child turns five or starts school, or until the parents feel they can stand on their own two feet.  Parents and volunteers often develop a deeply trusting relationship which can lead to powerful change within the family.

We also run social events for families.

Our values

- We offer families choice
- We work in partnership - with each other, with families and with other agencies,
- We work in a spirit of openness, encouragement and enjoyment
- We are flexible and responsive to the needs of families.

Why it matters

The five years between birth and school are vital for a child’s development. What goes on inside a family during these years strongly determines the opportunities and life chances children have. Children who are raised in a stable, loving, family environment are more likely to have a positive and healthy future. But being a parent isn’t easy and sometimes life can get in the way. Circumstances throw you off course and everything else can take a back seat. A young child caught up in this can miss out on the love, routine and stimulation that are so vital for their future.  Home-Start works because our volunteers are parents. They understand how hard it can be.  They work alongside parents, in their own homes, to help them cope with the stresses and strains of life and make sure they have the skills, time and strength they need to nurture their children.

Our vision

Home-Start wants to see a society in which every parent has the support they need to give their children the best possible start in life.

Home-Start in Waverley  is a voluntary organisation that helps families with at least one child under 5 years who are finding life difficult.  We believe that a little help early on, is more valuable than a lot of help later, when things are going seriously wrong.

By helping early on with a word of advice or help to find independence, young children will have a better start in life, and have a better chance to turn out as productive and responsible citizens. We know that parenting is not easy.

Home-Start is a non-judgemental organisation, and helps any parent who is struggling, for any reason. Some of those reasons may include; multiple births, an abusive partner, isolation, mental or physical handicap, or the pressure that loss of employment brings to a family.

To work with partners to ensure that those, in Surrey and beyond, who have missed out on learning in the past, have opportunities to learn and to reach their full potential.

Send Family Link exists to meet the needs of adults and children visiting relatives or friends in HMP Send. We aim to offer a safe, pleasant environment where all visitors are met with dignity and respect,provided with the facilities they need and offered information, support and the opportunity to discuss any difficulties they have in confidence.

Our mission is to relieve the distress of people who have suffered rape and/or sexual abuse or assault, and to educate the public.

We are working to deliver exceptional care in a welcoming and safe environment for patients at Royal Surrey County Hospital.

From providing state of the art equipment and redeveloping wards, to investing in staff development and funding innovative research, our patients are at the heart of everything we do.

Working collaboratively with medical and support staff, we fund projects that make the biggest impact on the 260,000 people we treat each year – from babies, to children and young adults, to older people.

Sensory Services by Sight for Surrey is a charitable organisation that delivers specialist services to people who are Deaf, Hard of Hearing, have a vision impairment or combined sight and hearing loss. We provide services across Surrey so people may lead fuller, more independent lives.

SSAFA provides lifelong support to anyone who is currently serving or has ever served in the Royal Navy, British Army or Royal Air Force.

We're ready to help you and your family, whenever and wherever you need us.

Streetlight UK provides specialist support services for women involved in prostitution across Surrey, Sussex and London. We support women and help them overcome the challenges that limit their choices: such as lack of education and training, lack of employment opportunities, as well as the physical and emotional barriers before them.

Our aims are:

• to seek womens emotional, physical, spiritual, mental and economic well-being,
• to promote social inclusion; breaking the cycle of crisis and reducing loneliness,
• to raise public awareness and promote an understanding of the issues surrounding sexual exploitation in the wider community,
• to respect a personal choices, leading to an individual approach for all support given,
• and above all else, 
• to empower women to exit prostitution where they wish to do so and support them in sustaining a new life.

Streetlight UK is, at its heart, an organization motivated by its Christian faith. However, no one is excluded from any part of the organisation based on any faith and beliefs they may or may not hold. What truly matters to us is a compassionate approach and a desire to help those stuck in this cycle of abuse.

The Royal British Legion (the Legion) is the UK's leading Armed Forces charity, providing practical, emotional and financial support to all members of the British Armed Forces past and present, and their families. Our mission is to provide welfare, comradeship, representation and Remembrance for the Armed Forces Community.

yourSanctuary works to prevent domestic abuse and undo the damage it causes to individuals, families and communities.  We provide direct services to women, men and children affected by domestic abuse as well as prevention, advocacy and education programmes.  Our clients come from diverse communities, sexual orientations, religions, ethnicities, socio-economic and age groups.