Hundreds of people visited Wokingham Town Hall for the most recent Volunteer Recruitment Fair.
Most of the major local charities were represented, looking for those people with time to spare to help out.
Wokingham Town Mayor Cllr Sally Gurney popped by to lend her support to the event and chatted to all the charities. The variety of organisations meant there would be something to suit everyone.
The event, which was free to attend, featured:
∙Link Visiting Scheme (which provides befrienders for elderly people who have become isolated)
∙The Citizens Advice Bureau (which provides free confidential advice to anyone who needs it)
∙The Wokingham Transport Scheme (which providers volunteers for transport for medical appointments)
∙Homestart Wokingham District (which provides support to families with children going through difficult times)
∙Green ‘n’ Tidy Gardening Scheme (which provides a low-cost gardening service for elderly and vulnerable clients) and
∙ABC to Read (which provides trained volunteers to local schools to read with primary school children.
A spokesman for the event said: “Do you have a couple of hours a week to spare from September? Maybe your children are starting nursery, school or going off to university? Maybe you are coming up to retirement, or just want to find something different to do away from school or work? Maybe you want to meet some new friends and have fun? Volunteering is a fantastic way to give something back to the local community and help
others whilst gaining so much for yourself as well.”
Other organisations attending included those that support children and young people, families, those with–long term or life-threatening health conditions, the elderly, people with mental health issues and other groups.
If you were unable to attend the fair but would like to find out more about volunteering in general, visit
www.volunteerwokinghamborough.org.uk
, call 0118 977 0749 or email
[email protected]![]()
For more pictures, see this month’s My Wokingham newspaper – OUT NOW
WORDS BY JACKY HAYLER PICTURES BY PAUL KING