Winchester Friends of the Family looking for volunteers

Friends of the Family has been supporting children and families across the city and the surrounding villages for more than 30 years.

This includes the charity’s founding project, the ‘Mums and Young Children’ group, as well as its befriending service and individual counselling. Friends in the Family reported that, in 2023, it helped support 76 local families.

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But, with the demand for these services being higher than ever before, the charity is desperate for more volunteers.

Friends of the Family is looking for new volunteer befrienders (Image: Friends of the Family Winchester)Organisers are especially looking to recruit more volunteer befrienders to help support children aged 5 to 13 years. Anyone who could spare two hours a week to help make a difference to a young person’s confidence and wellbeing would be welcomed by the charity.

Someone who did this recently is Ben, one of the charity’s newest volunteers. He was looking for an opportunity to volunteer with children and the local nature of the charity appealed to him, feeling he could give something back to the area which had supported his development.

Having completed his comprehensive training course in November, Ben has now been matched to his focus child and they have started their year-long befriending journey together.

When asked how he feels about the year ahead, Ben said: “I feel really excited about what is to come, confident to work with my young friend, and also secure in knowing that support is always only a phone call away. I’m most looking forward to building a great relationship with my friend and their family and having lots of fun along the way!”

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Ben’s role will be to build a reliable, supportive relationship with the young person. He is looking forward to exploring new experiences with them and becoming that trusted and supportive figure.

As well as Befrienders, Friends of the Family are also seeking applications for volunteer Playworkers to support the young children and babies who attend their Mums’ and Young Children’s group.

Anyone who would like to know more about volunteering with Friends of the Family can contact volunteer@fotfwinchester.org or call 01962 864466 for more information. The next two-day training course for Befrienders will take place on March 7 and March 9.