South West
Mentoring and befriending in your region
Mentoring and Befriending activity in the SW is energetic and the sector is expanding rapidly. Amongst English regions, the SW has the highest proportion of its population living in a rural area. Whilst this often brings great rewards it can also mean that services can be expensive and difficult to access with potentially vulnerable groups becoming ‘invisible’ to normal support services. In the SW this can often be older people as the region has the oldest population structure in England. It is these communities in particular that the Foundation aims to reach through its work with charities & voluntary sector bodies.
At present we are working with over 616 mentoring and befriending projects and organisations in the region. At the end of October 2007 125 of these had taken part in our registration and consultation process. 35% of the projects consulted with were befriending, 34% mentoring and 31% peer mentoring (both pre and post16). Most of these projects were in the non profit sector with the majority being run by voluntary organisations and charities. The most popular client group that these projects work with are pupils/students/young people or are individuals that are offenders, ex offenders or at risk of offending.
At present we are working with over 616 mentoring and befriending projects and organisations in the region. At the end of October 2007 125 of these had taken part in our registration and consultation process. 35% of the projects consulted with were befriending, 34% mentoring and 31% peer mentoring (both pre and post16). Most of these projects were in the non profit sector with the majority being run by voluntary organisations and charities. The most popular client group that these projects work with are pupils/students/young people or are individuals that are offenders, ex offenders or at risk of offending.
Penwith Pals is a scheme set up to support the elderly, isolated and frail in Penwith, Cornwall. It provides befriending, shopping, DIY and gardening to those individuals with no family or supportive friends and those living in residential or nursing homes. The scheme has over 40 regular volunteers and in the last 2 years has supported 206 people.
Time2Share is a charity set up to provide short breaks for disabled young people and their families. Volunteer befrienders offer one to one support for social and leisure activities in Bath, Bristol and North East Somerset. The service gives disabled children and young people who may be socially isolated the extra support and stimulation they need to increase their independance and have a fuller participation in social and leisure activities.
More examples of the real impact of Mentoring and Befriending within local communities can be found at our case studies or regional news pages.
We have representatives in all of the nine government regions throughout England, making a direct impact upon the communities that you live in. They can help you with a number of things; either setting up a project, developing an existing programme or achieving Approved Provider Standard (APS) status.
Contact your Regional Co-ordinator
