We have lots of exciting volunteering related events coming up! Be sure to get involved and don’t miss out on a great opportunity to network and meet new people.

Volunteers thank you event, Monday 3^rd June:


This event is for both Wandsworth Care Alliance and Healthwatch Wandsworth volunteers to come and celebrate all their fantastic contributions.

Join us for activities and games to encourage reflection on volunteering and to connect with fellow volunteers. There will also be a raffle for tickets to exhibitions and events in London!

Feel free to drop in for part of the event or join us from start to finish. If you require any accessibility adjustments, please let us know.

Sign up here.

Voluntary Sector Forum, Wednesday 5^th June:



This event is for both volunteers and organisations to join in on our discussion of all things volunteering.

Join us for a forum meeting with special guests to discuss all things volunteering. We’ll be inviting local experts to host discussions about all aspects of volunteering from:

– Engaging businesses

– Working with funders

– Hearing from volunteers themselves

You’ll get to learn new skills and meet other organisations over refreshments to talk about challenges, opportunities, and new ways of working to engage people in our causes.

Save your spot here.

Volunteer involving organisations, Wednesday 3^rd July:


This event is for organisations who would like to learn more about how best to engage volunteers in their organisation.

Join us to learn useful tools and tips for engaging volunteers with benefits, find out where to get more support and resources, and meet other people working on volunteering.

Save your spot.

Stress is something we all feel sometimes, and some stress is normal. However, when it becomes regular and makes day-to-day tasks feel impossible to handle, that’s when we need to take appropriate actions to help us better manage it.

Here are a few tips that may help in managing your stress levels.

• Exercise regularly: Engage in physical activity like walking, jogging, yoga, or dancing to release endorphins, which are natural stress relievers.
  

• Healthy lifestyle: Maintain a balanced diet, get enough sleep, and avoid lots of caffeine and alcohol, as they can increase stress.
  
  
• Time management: set tasks in order and set realistic goals to avoid feeling overwhelmed. Break tasks into smaller, simple steps.
  
  
• Practice mindfulness or meditation: Take a few minutes each day to practice mindfulness or meditation to create a sense of calmness and focus.
  
  
• Connecting with others: Share your feelings with friends, family, a support group, or anyone you trust. Social connections can provide emotional support and comfort during stressful times.
  
  
• Setting boundaries: Learn to say no to additional responsibilities if you’re feeling overloaded. Setting boundaries helps prevent burnout.
  
  
• Taking regular breaks: Include short breaks in your day to rest and recharge. Even a few minutes of relaxation can help reduce stress levels.
  
  
• Hobbies: Give time to activities you enjoy, whether it’s reading, painting, gardening, playing music, dancing, or other sports. Hobbies can provide a much-needed escape from stress.
  
  
• Seek professional help: If stress becomes overwhelming or persistent, consider seeking support from a therapist or counsellor who can provide coping methods and support tailored to your needs.

Remember that managing stress is an ongoing process, and it’s important to find techniques that work best for you.

Resources:

Wandsworth wellbeing hub – This is a great resource sharing various health and wellbeing services in the Wandsworth Borough. Learn more.

Events:

Walk Wandsworth: An event hosted by Enable offering a free walk led by volunteers, guiding, and encouraging people to build up their physical activity at a pace that suits them. Learn more here.

Women’s dance class: A Women’s Dance Class is taking place at Roehampton Holy Trinity Church on Friday evenings from 19th April. It’s suitable for all levels and is a mix of jazz, contemporary and ballet.
To learn more and to book your place contact: verenanash@hotmail.com

Free guys get active programme: A free 12-week health programme for men of all abilities who live or work in Wandsworth.
Learn more.

Live karma yoga: A range of different yoga classes adults and children.
Learn more.

Deaba’s Lunch: On the first Friday of every month, open to all members of the community to come along and talk, meet new people and eat food. Contact: 02072283488 or 07931234776 or email deaba@deabascatering.co.uk.

Free salsa dance classes: Free weekly beginners and improvers level salsa classes for anyone looking to learn the basics, scrub up their salsa skills, get active and meet new people. 
Learn more and get your tickets.

Do you have more resources to share on this article? Please email us on communications@wandcareall.org.uk to share resources.

Mark recently spoke to us about his volunteering story with Deafblind UK and Learn to Love to Read. We spoke about his experience with volunteering and how he found using the Wandsworth Care Alliance Volunteering Wandsworth website.

Mark found the volunteer Wandsworth website in one of our newsletters. Later, he went back to the website looking for interesting volunteering opportunities. He found the website easy to use and was interested in face-to face volunteering and found he could easily navigate through the website to find what he was interested in doing in the local area.

He was first inspired to volunteer during lockdown, where he had more free time available. He also found inspiration from seeing his friend who has dementia, after seeing his isolation it made him think if he could just give some of his time back to someone it would make a difference even if it was an hour or so, it would be better than not doing it at all.

Him and his son carried out door to door volunteering activities during the COVID period and this led Mark wanting to do more. He realised that not many people know about support services available and he wanted to help, so people can find the support that’s out there for them.

Mark now volunteers with Deafblind UK where he does telephone befriending. He started speaking to two people and now has been speaking to one person for almost 3 and a half years. He also volunteers with Learn to Love to Read and does online reading sessions with them. He really enjoys it as it is also remote which means he can fit it into his day easily.

Mark noticed that doing online reading with children was interesting as he reads to children where English may not be their first language at home. He says it’s challenging but he enjoys it and says the charity provide him with so much fantastic support.

Mark says “giving an hour to a kid in a week where they normally wouldn’t be doing any other reading or wouldn’t be engaged in the thought of reading is great as watching the kids learn is amazing and seeing their progression each session in addition to the work in school they are doing is good to watch them grow.”

Mark described his experience with both charities as really great in terms of the way they made sure he was really supported in his volunteering and they were always available if he ever needed guidance, advice or tips.

Mark found both the charities supportive, flexible, and found they gave fantastic guidance for the volunteers. They made volunteers feel valued and appreciated by the work they are carrying out and it was nice.

We asked Mark “what encouragement would he give to somebody that’s never considered volunteering in the borough?”

Mark said: “I would say from my experience I would wholeheartedly recommend people getting involved even if they didn’t think that they can do much or spend much time on volunteering, that will be precious and valuable to not only the charity but whichever group of people or type of person they’re supporting, it ultimately adds up and makes a difference. If you as a person can lend your support even to a small degree, it will all add up and it’s going to be better than doing nothing.”

We asked Mark:

What are the three rewards you get from volunteering?

1. An opportunity to do something positive
2. Allows you to show compassion and care
3. Broaden your horizons and knowledge

Would you like to volunteer locally? Explore on Volunteering Wandsworth.

Take advantage of the South West London (SWL) NHS race and ethnicity in the work place research and get free access to the innovative online tools from Flair. The SWL Integrated Care Board (ICB) has commissioned 15,000 responses to a Flair questionnaire to really understand what staff’s experiences around racism are within health and social care work places in South West London. 

They want to open that up to voluntary sector organisations for free. You only need to submit an Expression of interest (form attached below) to susan.emina@swlondon.nhs.uk by 17th May 2024 and identify a lead person within your group who will follow up on any findings. 

By taking part, you will be able to receive a personalised report on what is happening within your own organisation, have the opportunity to discuss the findings with the local SWL ICB lead and decide on an action if needed. You will also be able to compare your findings with the data from the wider system.

The data collected across the system is anonymised before being given to the ICS for the wider report.

A webinar will be organised for all the organisations that expressed interest in taking part to provide more details and answer any questions you might have. 

Mental health is an incredibly important topic. Encouraging children and young people to think about their mental health and wellbeing are vital skills you can teach them from a young age. As parents and carers, there are ways you can support children to give them the best chance to stay mentally healthy. It’s important to learn how to spot the signs when children are struggling and learn how to help them have good mental health. It is equally important to have good self-care tools as a parent/carer to look after your own mental health while caring for others.

Signs to look out for:

-Significant changes in behaviour, attitude, and mood

-Withdrawal from social situations and not wanting to do things they usually like

-Self-harm or neglecting themselves

-Ongoing difficulty with sleeping

Kooth is a great organisation that offers digital mental health support. They believe every young person has the right to thrive and access high quality mental health care. Their platform addresses various mental health issues such as anxiety, depression, and stress, offering a safe space for young individuals to seek help and guidance. Kooth PLC also offers self-help ideas and tools to empower young people to manage their mental well-being.
Learn more.

Resources:

Keeping Families Together –Free night line service for parents and carers to support parents and carers who may need guidance or feel overwhelmed and need someone to talk to.

Youth social prescribing clinic – Discover how this clinic empowers young people to take control of their well-being.
Learn more.

Young Minds – They support the mental health and well-being of children and young people. They provide a wide range of services and resources, including online information and advice, helplines for both young people and parents. Their goal is to ensure that every young person gets the support they need to thrive mentally and emotionally.
Learn more.

Black Minds Matter – They work with young people and their communities across the London Borough of Wandsworth to improve Mental Health awareness, access and action.
Learn more.
 
Events:

Children and Young People’s Network Event – Come along to discuss, connect, collaborate, and champion the well-being of youngest community members. The topic of discussion will be violence and abuse against children and young people.
Get your free ticket and sign up today.

WCA Community Events – Keep an eye out for any events happening in the local area.
Find out more.

If you have any questions or resources to include in this article please contact communications@wandcareall.org.uk.