Celebrating Hackney’s volunteering heroes - share your story
Volunteers and charities who’ve been making a difference in their communities are encouraged to share their stories, as part of a campaign to recognise the work that they’ve been doing throughout the pandemic to support vulnerable residents.
Since the start of the pandemic, over 1,000 volunteers have been deployed by Volunteer Centre Hackney to areas where they’re most needed. Hackney’s established voluntary and community sector - one of the strongest in the country - and the mutual aid groups who’ve been self-coordinating to deliver support have also been working tirelessly over the past year to respond to the needs of their communities.
To recognise this community effort, the Council and Volunteer Centre Hackney (VCH) are launching a campaign which will spotlight the borough’s volunteering heroes and the impact of the work that they’ve been doing throughout the pandemic. This includes people offering support through established voluntary and community organisations, recently formed mutual aid groups and newly-established charities, alongside residents who’ve been helping their neighbours at this difficult time. These stories will be shared across the Council’s and VCH’s platforms.
If you - or someone you know - would be interested in sharing your experience and stories for this campaign, please contact emma.wynne@hackney.gov.uk or 020 8356 8444.
Despite the challenges that volunteers and organisations have faced as a result of the pandemic, their first thought has been about how they can help others. This is testament to the wonderful, inclusive spirit of Hackney, and there’s no doubt that their selfless and dedicated work will have saved lives and helped protect our NHS.
We’re pleased to be working with Volunteer Centre Hackney and other partners to ensure that these unsung heroes receive recognition for their tireless work. Please do get in touch with us if you - or someone you know - would like to be part of this effort.
Over the last year, VCH has been fortunate to support hundreds of Hackney residents who have tirelessly given their time to supporting others. Not only do we want to say a huge thank you to those amazing volunteers who have been helping people in Hackney throughout the crisis, but also to recognise the many people providing much needed support long before the pandemic hit.
More than 1000 residents have found and started a volunteer role via VCH since March 2020. We’ve heard stories of entire families delivering vital medicines to their neighbours, volunteers bringing a smile to those that they call once a week and people going above and beyond to make sure that other locals have the vital support that they need. All of you help to make Hackney the brilliant place it is, and we want to encourage you to share your experience and inspire others to support Hackney.