OLDER PEOPLE WHO LIVE ALONE URGED TO ACCEPT LIFELINE OF FRIENDSHIP IN RENFREWSHIRE
A charity which offers tea, cake and company to older people who lives alone in Renfrewshire is hoping to increase the numbers benefitting from its free monthly Sunday afternoon tea parties.
Contact the Elderly, which launched in Renfrewshire almost a decade ago, has revealed it may have to close the group due to a lack of numbers.
There are potentially thousands of older people in the region who would benefit and the charity fears that by missing out on this vital lifeline of friendship, people are suffering from social isolation unnecessarily.
The Renefrewshire group operates in the Houston, Kilmacolm and Bridge of Weir areas.
Caroline McGinlay, Support Officer at Contact the Elderly, said:
“We have had a presence in Renfrewshire for almost a decade but we have a real concern that if we cannot increase numbers soon then it may cease to exist.
“There are more than 20,000 older people in the Renfrewshire region, a large proportion of whom will live alone. Of that figure, many would really benefit from enjoying an afternoon out of the house enjoying baking and a blether with other older people and our lovely volunteers who come from all walks of life.
“We understand it may feel daunting to pick up the phone and put yourself out there as it were but we hear every week from our guests that they are truly glad that they did. We would also appeal for everyone in the community to think if they know someone who would enjoy a nice cup of tea and conversation once a month.
“The lifeline of friendship our parties offer makes an immeasurable difference.”
Contact the Elderly tea parties take place once a month in a volunteer host’s home. A volunteer driver collects one or two guests and accompanies them to the tea party where there are usually between six and eight people in total.
Contact the Elderly has more than 120 groups throughout Scotland, supporting almost 900 older people.
To find out more about becoming guests of Contact the Elderly, please contact Caroline McGinlay on caroline.mcginlay@contact-the-elderly.org.uk or 0141 812 1555. Contact the Elderly can email or post a leaflet if someone would like to share it with an older person who would benefit.
Contact the Elderly:
For further media information, please contact Suzanne Mackie on 0774385948 or Suzanne@hummingbird-comms.com.
Contact the Elderly is the winner of The Older People’s Project Award at The Herald Society Awards 2016 and The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Volunteering Award 2012
Having recently celebrated its Golden Jubilee, Contact the Elderly is the only national charity, which since inception, has focussed solely on relieving the acute loneliness and isolation of older people who live alone, without family, friends or other support networks nearby
The Contact the Elderly model is based on a simple yet very effective model: free, monthly tea parties for small groups of older people and volunteers within their community – which bring all ages together, develop fulfilling friendships and support networks, and give everyone something to look forward to
Contact the Elderly currently has over 750 groups throughout England, Scotland and Wales, providing a regular, consistent and vital friendship link every month to over 6,000 older people
There are currently over 10,000 volunteers supporting the groups: volunteer drivers collect the older guests from their homes and accompany them to tea parties, while volunteer hosts hold the tea parties in their homes
As part of its continuing Power of Contact campaign to recruit more volunteers, Contact the Elderly aims by 2020 to double the number of isolated older people it supports
www.contact-the-elderly.org.uk
AUTHOR: Suzanne Mackie
AUTHOR EMAIL: suzanne@hummingbird-comms.com
AUTHOR URL:
SUBJECT: [Renfrewshire News] CONTACT US
IP: 141.101.98.205
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A charity which offers tea, cake and company to older people who lives alone in Renfrewshire is hoping to increase the numbers benefitting from its free monthly Sunday afternoon tea parties.
Contact the Elderly, which launched in Renfrewshire almost a decade ago, has revealed it may have to close the group due to a lack of numbers.
There are potentially thousands of older people in the region who would benefit and the charity fears that by missing out on this vital lifeline of friendship, people are suffering from social isolation unnecessarily.
The Renefrewshire group operates in the Houston, Kilmacolm and Bridge of Weir areas.
Caroline McGinlay, Support Officer at Contact the Elderly, said:
“We have had a presence in Renfrewshire for almost a decade but we have a real concern that if we cannot increase numbers soon then it may cease to exist.
“There are more than 20,000 older people in the Renfrewshire region, a large proportion of whom will live alone. Of that figure, many would really benefit from enjoying an afternoon out of the house enjoying baking and a blether with other older people and our lovely volunteers who come from all walks of life.
“We understand it may feel daunting to pick up the phone and put yourself out there as it were but we hear every week from our guests that they are truly glad that they did. We would also appeal for everyone in the community to think if they know someone who would enjoy a nice cup of tea and conversation once a month.
“The lifeline of friendship our parties offer makes an immeasurable difference.”
Contact the Elderly tea parties take place once a month in a volunteer host’s home. A volunteer driver collects one or two guests and accompanies them to the tea party where there are usually between six and eight people in total.
Contact the Elderly has more than 120 groups throughout Scotland, supporting almost 900 older people.
To find out more about becoming guests of Contact the Elderly, please contact Caroline McGinlay on caroline.mcginlay@contact-the-elderly.org.uk or 0141 812 1555. Contact the Elderly can email or post a leaflet if someone would like to share it with an older person who would benefit.
Contact the Elderly:
For further media information, please contact Suzanne Mackie on 0774385948 or Suzanne@hummingbird-comms.com.
Contact the Elderly is the winner of The Older People’s Project Award at The Herald Society Awards 2016 and The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Volunteering Award 2012
Having recently celebrated its Golden Jubilee, Contact the Elderly is the only national charity, which since inception, has focussed solely on relieving the acute loneliness and isolation of older people who live alone, without family, friends or other support networks nearby
The Contact the Elderly model is based on a simple yet very effective model: free, monthly tea parties for small groups of older people and volunteers within their community – which bring all ages together, develop fulfilling friendships and support networks, and give everyone something to look forward to
Contact the Elderly currently has over 750 groups throughout England, Scotland and Wales, providing a regular, consistent and vital friendship link every month to over 6,000 older people
There are currently over 10,000 volunteers supporting the groups: volunteer drivers collect the older guests from their homes and accompany them to tea parties, while volunteer hosts hold the tea parties in their homes
As part of its continuing Power of Contact campaign to recruit more volunteers, Contact the Elderly aims by 2020 to double the number of isolated older people it supports
www.contact-the-elderly.org.uk
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