St John's Winchester

St John’s Hand in Hand is the charity’s social prescribing initiative that seeks to assist local older people in the community through friendship and support. The scheme points people in the right direction towards social events that they can benefit from and enjoy, as well as towards groups, people and organisations who are best placed to help.

We believe that everybody should lead their life with enjoyment, friendship, fulfillment and choice. Sometimes in later life these things can become a little more difficult to achieve. Our Hand in Hand service is designed to help.

Our aim is to make a real difference by improving the wellbeing of local older people, offering access and gateways to new social opportunities and helping our scheme members to live full and independent lives for as long as possible.

There are three core elements to the Hand in Hand scheme:

Signposting Services – Our dedicated staff and volunteers will identify appropriate services or activities taking place in the local area and ‘signpost’ scheme members to them. With the help of the community, we have created a database of services, activities, clubs and events in the Winchester area to support this. It is our intention to liaise with third parties and other organisations to keep the database up to date for the benefit of local older people (coming soon).
Living Well Plans – This involves us chatting with the member using the St John’s Hand in Hand service about what support they may need and what they want to achieve. This conversation will allow us to get to know our scheme member a bit better and will help us to gain a clear understanding of how we can help.
Befriending – A key part of the initiative includes offering companionship, especially in circumstances where help and support is needed. It will involve volunteers and staff spending time with people using the service in ways that will make a positive impact and a real difference!

Information for volunteers

Friendship: Volunteering is the perfect way to make new friends and to meet new people in the Winchester community. St John’s Winchester arrange social events for everyone to get together and celebrate. You are more than a volunteer, but an integral part of the St John’s Winchester family.

Connections: You can make lots of new connections for yourself whilst also opening new doors for your scheme member. With the help of the Hand in Hand team and the Volunteer Co-Ordinator, the charity organises networking events and regular meetings to ensure you feel supported and connected.

New Skills and Training: As a volunteer, you will receive a helpful induction and ongoing training and support. This is the chance to enhance existing skills or to learn something new! Volunteering is great for your CV, keeping your skills fresh and your mind active. To maintain our high standards, all of our volunteers and staff are requires to undergo a series of checks. These checks include DBS, which we will support you to complete.

Feel-good Factor: Our volunteers receive regular recognition and appreciation for all that they do.