The NHS has today (6 March) launched the NHS Parliamentary Awards 2023, which recognise staff who have gone above and beyond the call of duty. The awards were created to celebrate NHS staff, carers and volunteers – their hard work, innovative ideas and unwavering efforts to put patients first – and this year they are […]

Over a thousand volunteers have signed up to provide friendly phone calls for patients in England who are vulnerable, isolated or lonely, as the NHS Volunteer Responders programme reintroduces its Check in and Chat service. GPs, pharmacists, and other healthcare workers are being encouraged to request Check in and Chat support for patients who are […]

Over 140,000 people have flocked to take part in the world’s largest trial of a blood test that can detect more than 50 types of cancer, as part of the latest NHS drive to catch the disease when it is generally easiest to treat. NHS chief executive Amanda Pritchard announced the latest milestone in NHS […]

The head of the NHS in England is paying tribute to over 100,000 people who gave up around two million hours of their time to help ramp up the vaccination programme in 2021, as the NHS doubled down on boosting the nation. Working alongside NHS staff, selfless volunteers helped to deliver record-beating numbers of jabs […]

England’s Chief Nurse has today called on young people to become NHS Cadets and gain valuable experience of volunteering in health and care. The programme, launched last year, helps teenagers to develop the skills needed for an NHS career by volunteering in vaccine centres, supporting elderly people in the community and undertaking first aid training. […]

Increased volunteering across the NHS and beyond can be a positive legacy of COVID, England’s top nurse said today, as new research showed that giving up time for the health service or other good causes can significantly boost quality of life. Speaking at the start of Volunteers Week, Chief Nursing Officer for England Ruth May […]

To mark Volunteers’ Week and in recognition of a milestone quarter of a million tasks having been carried out by NHS Volunteer Responders, Royal Voluntary Service President, The Duchess of Cornwall, has thanked volunteers across the country for the many acts of kindness they provide. The first week of June is traditionally Volunteers’ Week, when […]

Millions of vulnerable people and their families will be able to directly call on the army of NHS Volunteer Responders, the NHS and Royal Voluntary Service have announced today. Over 600,000 volunteers have been approved to help those most at risk who are isolating at home from coronavirus, more than double the original target. The […]

Healthcare professionals can now call on local volunteers to help people for support in their community. Hundreds of thousands of volunteers in England are now available for tasks, including collecting shopping and prescribed medicines; driving patients to medical appointments and home from hospital; making regular phone calls to people isolating at home and transporting medical […]

Hundreds of thousands of NHS Volunteer Responders will be able to report for duty today and start helping the NHS in its fight against coronavirus. Over 750,000 people signed up to the NHS’ call for volunteers in just four days when the scheme launched, three times the original target. Royal Voluntary Service, the charity delivering […]