Helping Hands

Name: Highland Hospice
Price range: $

Helping Hands is a volunteer befriending service delivered and supported by Highland Hospice in communities throughout the region.

What services are offered?

Each Helping Hands volunteer and the person they support is unique. The amount of time and activities will vary but every volunteer will provide a friendly ear to listen as well as extra assistance to help reduce anxiety and stress for individuals and carers. Helping Hands volunteers may:

Offer short car trips/outings
Sit with people to enable carers to have a break
Chat about local or national news and sports
Help with a hobby
Help with practical tasks such as writing letters or shopping
Provide emotional support at times of change of difficulty
Accompany to medical appointments or a social group

Volunteers will not become involved in personal care, medical care, counselling, domestic tasks such as cooking or cleaning, nor financial or legal matters.

Here is what one of our service users had to say

‘I act as a carer for my brother who is living with a life limiting illness, which makes it very difficult for me to go out anywhere alone.

Recently, we started using the Helping Hands service. My brother is a very quiet, shy person who doesn’t make friends quickly so of course I was apprehensive about someone who we had never met before coming to the house to spend time with him. I went out to the bingo and came home to find him and his companion chatting away and laughing – getting on so well. What a great thing that was! The next week I came back and they were watching a film together and thoroughly enjoying each other’s company. I now look forward to going to the bingo once a week, while he looks forward to seeing his Helping Hands companion.

I would tell anybody who can make use of this service to do so. It really is a great thing and has changed our lives so much for the better.’

Referrals for Inverness and Ross-shire

Health and social care professionals usually make referrals for support on your behalf . However, we are happy to consider self-referrals or those made on behalf of a family member or carers looking for support.

To make a referral please complete the this form and email it back to us at nhsh.hospicereferrals@nhs.scot

If you would like to enquire whether the service is suitable for you or another person please telephone 01463 423202 or 07874 724878 to discuss the circumstances with a member of our team.

Our partners' Helping Hands services

Highland Hospice supports and promotes a network of Helping Hands Services throughout the Highlands.

Please click on the name of the organisation below to find out more about their service and how you can make a referral to them.

If you cannot find a Helping Hands service in your area but would like to set up such a service either within a local community group or from scratch, we are more than happy to guide you through the process. In the first instance please email your enquiry to communityengagement@highlandhospice.org.uk.

Being a Helping Hands volunteer

We are currently recruiting for volunteers. All volunteers are provided with the appropriate training and support to carry out their role. For more information contact Carol or Heather at helpinghands@highlandhospice.org.uk or click here to learn more and apply to be a Helping Hands volunteer.

In the video below Helping Hands volunteer Alison Stephen and client Anne Munro discuss their personal experiences of this befriending and support service provided by Highland Hospice.