Harry Cohen
VOLUNTARY AND COMMUNITY ACTIVITIES
During the past few weeks the issue of volunteering has been raised with me by a number of people. Firstly, a constituent from Orford asked me how he could become involved locally with a charity. The next day I visited Warrington Community Transport to congratulate them on their Lottery Grant which will provide them with two new buses. They also made the point that they were seeking volunteer drivers and asked me to assist them in publicising that need. Finally the Citizens Advice Bureaux wrote to me concerning their ‘Help at the heart of your community CAB Advice Week’. This will run from 3 – 10 September and sees the launch of their first volunteer recruitment hotline. They are looking to recruit volunteer advisors, website designers and IT experts, campaigners, administrators, fundraisers and receptionists amongst others. This wide range of skills mirrors the requirements of other organisations
Voluntary and community activity is fundamental to the development of a democratic, socially inclusive society. They make a major and incalculable contribution helping, for example, to alleviate poverty and improve the quality of life. The exact figures are difficult to quantify but estimates suggest that the there is anywhere between 40 and 60 million hours per week given in volunteering. The government wants to increase that and is seeking to involve another million people in their local communities by 2004.
Different organisations are in need of volunteers and people are out there who want to give their time and effort to helping their communities. The trick is bringing those two strands together more effectively.
We all complain when things go wrong in our area but building a better society requires all of us to get involved. Volunteering a little of your time is one way of doing this so if you would like further information about the needs of Warrington Community Transport, the CAB or any other organisation or you are looking for volunteers you can contact me at Suite 9, Gilbert Wakefield House, 67 Bewsey Street, WA2 7JQ, telephone 01925 232 480, fax 01925 232 239 or e-mail jonesh@parliament.uk
