NHS and VCSE leaders meet to unlock the power of volunteering
6th December 2024
A gathering of over 80 leaders from across government, the NHS and voluntary and community sectors, marked a milestone in pushing to “unlock the power of volunteering to support our NHS” in response to the service’s current crisis. The event was hosted by Helpforce's Chair, MP Anna Dixon at the House of Commons.
The event considered how to optimise the role of volunteering and the voluntary sector, as part of the call in Lord Darzi’s review for a “collective endeavour” to respond to the crisis in the NHS.
Helpforce launched a new report at the event, calling for the contribution of volunteering to be recognised in the NHS 10-year plan. The charity urged the NHS leaders and local authorities to commit to a step-change in integrating volunteering into health and care through:
- Engaging with the voluntary and community sector on the NHS’s biggest challenges.
- Learning from existing effective models, foster meaningful partnerships between the NHS, local authorities and the voluntary and community sector to create strong networks of health and care support within local communities.
- Involving the voluntary and community sector in the design and delivery of support to people before and after their hospital stays.
- Providing consistent and long-term funding to allow the voluntary and community sector to plan and deliver their services more effectively.
We already have ample proof of the impact of well-designed volunteering services. For instance in an initial pilot, the Back to Health Pathway at George Eliot Hospital NHS Trust in North Warwickshire saw volunteers help over 40,000 patients and significantly reduce the level of missed appointments. This work is now being extended, including using an AI tool to target the people most at risk of missing their appointment – getting them diagnosed or into treatment more quickly.
A keynote speakers at the event, Samantha Allen (see photo below), Chief Executive of the Integrated Care Board (ICB) for the North East and North Cumbria and NHS England National Director for Management and Leadership, said:
“I was pleased to join colleagues from across the health and voluntary and community sector to discuss the importance of optimising the role of volunteers and the voluntary sector in our NHS.
“The event shone a spotlight on services where volunteers are making an impact at scale to support the NHS in tackling challenges such as long waiting lists, hospital readmissions, and supporting NHS staff.
“A new ‘Settle at Home’ service in North Tyneside is one such service. The local hospital is working with the voluntary sector to support patients when they head home, aiming to keep them well and prevent unnecessary readmissions. If successful, we will extend the service across the North East and North Cumbria integrated care system.
“We need to build on great examples like this to bring about systemic national change and ensure volunteering can play its full and most effective role in supporting our NHS.”
Paul Farmer, CEO at Age UK, also spoke:
“It was encouraging to be part of so many dynamic conversations between colleagues from the health and the voluntary and community sectors.
“This event demonstrates the willingness to work together to use the resources that we already have – millions of fantastic community-based volunteers – to help people stay healthy and alleviate pressures on our NHS.
“The key to creating a new affordable health service is addressing three key opportunities:
- Prevention and healthy support to reduce health system demand
- Early intervention to reduce hospital admissions
- Effective discharge and rehabilitation
“I know from many great examples – like the Age UK Cornwall Community Gateway project highlighted in Helpforce’s report – that the voluntary sector and volunteers have the expertise, effectiveness and the heart to create that essential bridge between support in the community and our NHS.
“It’s clear we must put volunteers and the voluntary sector at the heart of the current reforms – not on the periphery, or as a bolt-on, but at the heart.
“The crossroads moment is here. The choice is simple. Embed volunteers and the voluntary system from the start or waste a once in a generation opportunity for change.”
Anna Dixon, Helpforce Chair, concluded:
“Helpforce has demonstrated that volunteering can have a positive and measurable impact on health and care. Now is the time to scale and spread the power of volunteering.
“Helpforce is calling for volunteering and the voluntary sector to be fully recognised in the 10-year plan for health and for NHS leaders and local authorities to commit to a step-change in integrating volunteering into health and care.
“Volunteers can help bring about the changes we need to see in our NHS: bringing care closer to home, getting people off long waiting lists, driving productivity in hospitals, and re-engaging staff.”
Report – Unlocking the power of volunteering to support our NHS
Find our more about our calls to action and download the report here.