A big thank you to all our volunteers this Volunteers’ Week
Thursday 1 June 2017
To celebrate Volunteers’ Week (1 – 7 June) we’re saying a huge thank you to our amazing volunteers and highlighting the huge difference they make in educating the public about the disease and to the work we do as a charity.
Our fabulous health promotion volunteers, all with a personal experience of bowel cancer, give talks week in week out across the UK spreading the word about symptoms, risk factors and screening, as part of our award-winning health promotion volunteer programme. They reach different audiences including care homes, construction sites, garages and a whole range of community and religious groups.
Since Volunteers’ Week in 2016:
- Our volunteers have driven up and down the country delivering nearly 250 talks across the UK from the Isle of Barra to Belfast and to Portsmouth.
- They have clocked up a whopping 450 hours of raising awareness of the disease to their local community (since January 2017)
- Reached over 8,000 people from across the UK
Robin Johnston, who started volunteering with us last year, says: “I find volunteering with the charity really rewarding. Having been through stage 3 bowel cancer myself I feel that I can add value to awareness talks, and having worked in sales and marketing I am very happy to talk to groups of any size. I always think that my talk might make someone do the bowel cancer screening test, change their diet or go to the doctor with symptoms they had been ignoring, so it’s nice to know you might be saving a life! Above all, Bowel Cancer UK is a small charity with a really nice team who make you feel very appreciated.”
If you’re feeling inspired to join our team, there are plenty of ways to get involved:
- If you’ve been affected by bowel cancer, why not become one of our awareness volunteers and give talks about the disease to community groups and workplaces. We have training days in Scotland and Northern Ireland coming up so sign up now to get started soon.
- Book a bowel cancer awareness talk in your workplace or community group. Our 30 minute free awareness talk has been recognised with a prestigious award from the Royal Society of Public Health.
- Share your experience of bowel cancer with us. Whether you have personal experience of bowel cancer yourself or through a family member or friend, we use personal stories in the media, on our website, on social media and in our publications.
- Sign up as a campaign supporter and help us to improve early diagnosis and access to best treatment and care for everyone affected by bowel cancer across the UK.
- From cheering on fundraisers at running events to marshalling our walks or taking part in a street collection. Being a fundraising volunteer is fun and rewarding.
