Borough Mayor Cllr Clare Head is spearheading a volunteer recruitment drive which started in Twickenham on 23 July, to encourage more people to give their time to support others in the community.

Cllr Head donned her robes and launched her ‘Volunteers’ Challenge with an information stand in the town centre near Santander from 10am to midday. Throughout July and August she will be encouraging people to sign up to work with local organisations and charities through Richmond Council for Voluntary Services or to help improve the area where they live through the borough council’s Community Resource Bank.

Cllr Head said: “There are more than 800 voluntary groups in the borough already and thousands of local people give their time, expertise and support to them. These are fantastic organisations and we owe them so much. With a little nudge, even more could be done to help keep them providing the first rate services they run.

“This is the most community-minded borough in London, but it is true that while many of us think volunteering and supporting the community is a good idea, we don’t always get round to doing it. I hope that by chatting to people in the street at weekends and showing them the benefits, they will find the time.

“Whether you have a particular good cause you would like to do more for, or you want to do more for your local area, then there are ways to get involved. RCVS has for years done a tremendous job co-ordinating the charities, groups and support organisations we have here and I hope we shall be able to bolster the number of people on its books significantly. At the same time, the Council’s Community Resource Bank is the new way for people to get more directly involved in improving the area they live in. I’m sure there are many out there who can see the benefits of this.”

Saturday’s display in Twickenham saw Cllr Head and representatives of the Police, CAB and Richmond Council for Voluntary Services giving out flyers asking people to think what they could give in terms of time, knowledge, and resources, like computer work or driving. People will be able to say whether they would like to work with RCVS, the Community Resource Bank or both.

Once they have completed and sent back the form, they will be contacted by representatives of the Council or RCVS to match their time and talents to particular organisations or projects.

Following the Twickenham display, Cllr Head will be running recruitment drives in Richmond and other shopping areas in the borough during July and August.