Befriending Caithness gets helping hand
The Befriending Caithness programme has been awarded a second multi-year award from the Stroupster Wind Farm Community Benefit Fund.
Befriending Caithness is a befriending service offering isolated adults aged 40 and upwards a chance to meet a friendly face on a weekly basis. Referrals to the service can be made from health professionals, social workers, voluntary organisations, families or simply by the person themselves.
New Befriendees are matched with a volunteer who will then visit in the persons home on a weekly basis and, depending on the Befriendees needs, can potentially go on shopping trips with them or accompany them to appointments, or maybe even just going out with them for a coffee. A monthly befriending lunch is held at Lyth Arts Centre in Caithness and this is an opportunity to bring all Befriendees and Befrienders together in a communal space.
There are currently 59 Befriendees and 34 volunteer Befrienders, as well as a further 15 people who are on the waiting list to be matched with a Befriender. People are matched based on mutual interests as well as geography.
The service costs around £70,000 per year to run, with costs rising each year. Volunteers are encouraged to claim their mileage so that cost is not a barrier to potential future Befrienders.
An award was made in early 2023 to contribute £10,000 per year over three years: 2023, 2024 and 2025 which will enable the organisation to continue to recruit new Befrienders and support new Befriendees. Befriendees are encouraged to get back into community life and create new social networks where this is a good fit with the person’s needs.
Recently, two Befriendees met at Lyth Arts Centre on the monthly outing and rekindled an old friendship, having been colleagues at the Glass Factory which closed down 30 years ago. They had lost touch but are now pleased to regularly be able to meet up.
The service had previously been supported with an award of £5,000 for the years 2020, 2021 and 2022. The feedback from the first award was positive and the Panel felt that to support a group making such a constructive impact of local people could only be a positive step, doubling the value of the annual award.
A new Befriender recruited during COVID 19 said:
During this time, there are several people who are feeling lonely, and I have joined Befriending Caithness, to help someone in this situation feel more connected. This was a fantastic way I could do my bit, and feel as though my time in lockdown was worthwhile. The support given to me was great - there was good quality fast track training, requirements for references, and Safeguarding procedures, as I would expect. A group chat allowed me to meet the co-ordinators and the other befrienders. Some were new to this, like me. We all had different motivations, but were all wanting to do our bit.
As soon as the formalities were done, I was given a number to call my befriendee. I was initially nervous, but did not let that come through in my voice. It helps to smile while talking. My first call turned out to be easier than I’d imagined. She was friendly, chatty, and appeared very happy to talk about all sorts of things. We share a few hobbies, which the co-ordinators considered when allocating matches. I have been calling her twice weekly for 30 – 40 minutes for the last 3 weeks. We are getting to know each other, and I have been enjoying the calls.
I have to keep a record of any issues that come up, and of the time and duration of calls. The coordinators continue to encourage me, and they have checked up how the calls are being received. I was pleased to hear that the calls are appreciated, she enjoys the calls, and finds me easy to talk to. That’s encouraging to hear! I would recommend this work to others - it is rewarding, easy, and yet makes such a difference to people’s lives.
The Senior Co-ordinator at Befriending Caithness, Angie House said:
We are just delighted that the Stroupster Committee have awarded us for the next three years, what fantastic news. The economic climate has affected the service due to the increase in transport costs for volunteers and also to deliver the Lyth Group. At the moment the hire of the hall has not risen and the food/lunch has not risen, however, this is something we are expecting to deal with as the economic crisis continues.