Thank you!
During this Volunteers’ Week, we send a grateful thank you to all of our volunteers, both past and present. The differences you made, not only to Carers Trust Solihull but to our unpaid carers, are irreplaceable. You enabled us all to work more efficiently and effectively, combining our skills and passions to ensure unpaid carers receive the best support and care. Without you, we wouldn’t be able to do all we do.
Who are we?
According to census data there are almost 30,000 unpaid carers in Solihull — around 10% of the population — but this is widely considered to be a lower representation than the actual figure.
Unpaid carers are all around us and a lot of the time, they are unaware they are even providing unpaid care. They are supporting family members: spouse and children, looking after neighbours, friends, family, and span across all age brackets. We support carers from as young as six years old who are missing out on a childhood and an education. Then there are carers who are 80 and older, who should be enjoying retirement but are more busy and exhausted now than they’ve ever known.
Carers are hidden in plain sight and vast amount of them don’t even know they are carers. To them, it is normal to wake up at the crack of dawn to administer medicine to someone else. They will spend more time in the GP’s waiting room than they do their own bed, yet it is always someone else’s health they are worried about, while they burn themselves out. That is why Carers Trust Solihull exists: to dedicate ourselves to care for those who care for others.
Volunteers are vital
We rely on volunteers to help look after those carers and keep our services moving, reaching people who may never otherwise ask for support, and make sure carers in our community feel a little less alone.
The range of ways to get involved is wider than most people expect. Some of our volunteers work directly with young carers, supporting activities during evenings, weekends, and school holidays as part of our Young Carers service. Others take on admin and outreach work: managing phone calls, maintaining databases, preparing welcome packs, helping with community engagement. We have grant research volunteers who support our fundraising, we have befriending volunteers, both telephone befrienders and community befrienders, who show up consistently for people who do not have much of that in their lives. Our telephone befrienders call carers to make sure they are not sat at home worrying about things on their own. One thing people don’t always expect about caring is that it can quietly erode your confidence and that’s where our community befrienders come in, out in the community helping carers restore a little of that, whether it is showing someone which bus to catch or helping them join a local group.
There is no single type of person who volunteers with us either. Some are retired and want structure or purpose again. Some are students. Some have cared for someone themselves and understand from the inside how hard it gets. Others simply want to do something useful with a few hours a week.
Small contributions genuinely matter. An admin volunteer who keeps accurate records helps ensure carers receive the right support at the right time. A befriending volunteer making a regular phone call might become the one conversation someone looks forward to that week. Charity work can look modest from the outside, but the knock-on effect tends not to be.
Hear from one of our amazing volunteers
Kay, a long-time volunteer with us, has written a short piece about her experiences, not only with volunteering but also the life challenges she has faced being an unpaid carer.
My name is Kay and I live in Solihull with my husband Keith.
I am Solihull born and bred and before retiring almost 10 years ago, I worked at a large international Bank for over 40 years and was lucky enough to experience a variety of roles all over the Midlands region. There were many challenges over the years but the one constant in every office was the support and friendship of the people that I worked with.
It was the company of my colleagues that I missed most when I retired, but also the feeling of “having a purpose” in my day and making use of the skills and experience I gained over 40 years. I decided that I would investigate a volunteering role.
Carers Trust Solihull were looking for additional volunteer help at that time and, having researched their background and hearing about the fantastic support that the charity provides to so many carers, I felt that this was an organisation that makes a real difference to people’s lives when they need it most.
Having witnessed my Mum nurse my Dad through the debilitating stages of dementia, I saw first-hand how much strain is felt by carers who need support and regular breaks to be able to keep going. Carers Trust Solihull is there to help families overcome their most difficult times, and I wanted to join the team to help them achieve this.
I have been volunteering at Carers Trust Solihull for 9 years, undertaking different roles before moving on to support the Parent Carers Team where I undertake a lot of the admin work so that the staff have more of their valuable time available for face-to-face meetings with Parents.
This role is perfect for me as it uses my organisational skills and I enjoy maintaining accurate data records.
I get a great deal of satisfaction from knowing that I have contributed towards helping a Carer who has so many challenges to deal with, and I believe that the service provided by Carers Trust Solihull guides them towards the various sources of support available to help them deal with their situation.
The team at Carers Trust Solihull are truly dedicated to their clients and provide them with the best possible support through the most testing times. Through volunteering I have made some wonderful new friends and gained a sense of pride and achievement that I am giving something back to the community and contributing to such a deserving charity.
Volunteer opportunities in Solihull
We also invest in our volunteers. We want to give back. Every role comes with induction, training, safeguarding support, and a team around you, because making sure people feel prepared matters as much for the volunteer as it does for the carers they support. People often find routine, new friendships, and a stronger connection to their local community. Some stay for years. Some move into employment. Some discover skills they did not know they had.
If any of this sounds like something you would want to be part of, we would love to hear from you!
Find out more at solihullcarers.org/careers or contact us at centre@solihullcarers.org
