Above and Beyond Charities - The Charitable Trust for the United Bristol Hospitals

"I wanted to do something that touches people's lives and I am, and I look forward to my time here."

Hilary Hayward, Above & Beyond Volunteer.

Volunteering is a great way to meet people and to help your local community. If you're interested in volunteering for a friendly charity making a real difference to patient care in Bristol, we would love to hear from you! To find out more, please contact the team at Above & Beyond on 0117 927 7120.

Hilary Hayward enjoys supporting a Bristol health charity as she was brought up in Kingswood and has lived in Keynsham for most of her life. Hilary has a busy life with her children and two grandchildren. After her retirement, and having been through breast cancer, Hilary decided to volunteer for Above & Beyond in 2010.

She explains:

"Often people feel nervous about making that first step but I would say, pick up the phone and see... After my first day I loved it and knew I wanted to come back. Everyone here feels like a friend."

Like Hilary you can get involved in a variety of ways as a volunteer for Above & Beyond. You may be helping out on one of the charity's stands at a hospital or at a community event. Alternatively you could be providing support on a specific fundraising project, or helping out with administrative work in our office.

Clair Cusack, Community Fundraising Manager suggests some questions to ask yourself if you are thinking about volunteering:

"Do you like talking to people, or are you a whizz with spreadsheets? Think about what you are good at. Life skills are equally as important as skills gained in the workplace."

Other volunteers supporting the charity include the support group Reach made up of medical students at the University of Bristol. To get involved with this group and find out more please contact organiser Angeline at al9436@bris.ac.uk.

If you would like further information about volunteering and current vacancies click here.