©InfoSince graduating from university a few years ago, 25-year-old Lizzie Laessing has helped several people in her community cope at home after they were discharged from hospital.
As a care in the home volunteer, Lizzie regularly visits people who have little other support to help them with simple everyday tasks at home.
She explains: "Generally people suffer from low confidence levels, particularly about being alone and doing things by themselves. Often walking outside can be a bit scary, particularly if they've fallen or collapsed recently, so they can feel quite worried.
“We give them practical support. We go out and walk with them and help them feel more confident again. Sometimes we can refer them to other Red Cross services, such as our medical equipment service, or to other agencies for services like occupational therapy.
"Towards the end of my time supporting someone they often say how helpful it's been and sometimes they say they don't know how they would have coped without it.”
Unexpected benefits
Though Lizzie began volunteering with the Red Cross for practical reasons, she’s since found benefits she never expected.
She says: "I started volunteering for the care in the home service because it fit in really well with my work commitments at the time and also because I'd like to work in healthcare in the future. I'm hopefully going to go back to university and train to become a nurse.
"Volunteering gives me a sense of being part of my local community. I help people and get to know people I perhaps wouldn't meet through my normal social circles. It gives me a feeling that I'm helping people who otherwise don't really have any help available.
“Many of the people we support are older people. They often have lots of stories and are very switched on. One thing I've learned is that people have interesting lives."
Find out more about our care in the home service
Become a care in the home volunteer