National Befriending week 1st - 7th November 2021

National Befriending week 1st - 7th November 2021

Become a Befriender and help reduce the risk of loneliness and social isolation!

It's a terrible thing to be lonely. Did you know that 1.2 million older people are chronically lonely? You can do something to help by becoming a Volunteer Befriender with Age UK Hull.

An hour a week is all it takes to make a huge difference to somebody’s life.
National Befriending Week runs from November 1st – 7th every year.

Age UK Hull are welcoming new volunteers to support more lonely older people living in the community to expand their Befriending Service.

We offer two types of Befriending Service

Telephone Befriending Service

The Telephone Befriending service aims to reduce loneliness for people aged 50 or over, by providing a regular telephone call at a time which is convenient to the person. The regular telephone call allows the person to enjoy general conversation on subjects that interest them. The telephone calls are made from Age UK Hull by Telephone Befriending Volunteers. Each Volunteer receives training on telephone befriending and listening skills.#

The Good Neighbour Scheme

The ‘Good Neighbour Scheme’ is a project that takes place within Hull and the East Riding offering face to face support to older individuals in the comfort of their own home. Our trained volunteers are matched to the service user and provide regular friendship visits with the aim of reducing the feelings of social isolation and loneliness.

What do Befrienders do?

Befrienders get matched with an older person in the community. They visit them or call them on a regular basis to provide companionship.

What you will get out of it

• It's a great way to make a real difference to someone's life
• You'll be giving something to your community
• You get to be part of Age UK Hull's volunteer team
• Volunteers tell us they find befriending really rewarding

What we would hope from our volunteers

We would hope that as a Befriender, you would call or visit your friend regularly. This usually involves a commitment of around 30 minutes to an hour per week, over a long period of time. Volunteers will also need to attend a short training session and provide references.