I’m delighted to deliver February’s Re-engage Matters to you, and as the days grow longer and a hint of spring is in the air, I hope you’ll join me in feeling excited about what the year ahead holds for us as a charity dedicated to reducing loneliness and social isolation for older people 

This issue’s volunteer training focuses on supporting older people who’ve experienced a stroke. As a Re-engage volunteer you may encounter stroke survivors and the people who support them, so we’ve gathered information and links to resources to help you volunteer with confidence. 

Later this month we’re launching a brand-new fundraising initiative in the shape of the Re-engage Lottery! We’re excited to offer this as a way for anyone to support us to raise vital funds to help us continue to deliver and increase the availability of the services we offer. If any older people you support have questions or concerns about the Re-engage Lottery, we hope you’ll feel comfortable answering them using the information provided in this issue or asking them to give one of the friendly Re-engage team a call on 0800 716 543. 

The spring 2024 issue of Time Together will arrive with older people towards the end of February and a digital version will be available to read online; I'll share a link in next month’s email.

It’s nearly time for our annual survey, and I encourage everyone to take a few moments to complete the short questionnaire when it arrives by email in early March. Please do share your thoughts, suggestions and insights with us; the information you provide is invaluable in helping shape and improve all that we do at Re-engage. For volunteers who were here last year, you may have noticed that your feedback changed the way we support volunteers, so now when you contact us, you’re connected with a member of the Re-engage team who supports the older people and volunteers where you live.

If you’ve any feedback, questions or comments please drop us a line.

With very best wishes, 

Sally  
head of service delivery 

Welcome to our new volunteers!

Volunteers enable us to reach more socially isolated and lonely older people, and as we continue to grow, it’s vital that we recruit more volunteers to help us in our mission. Discover why December 2023 was a bumper month for volunteer applications. 

Shaping tomorrow together: it’s annual survey time!

In early March, we'll send our annual survey to all Re-engage volunteers and older people. You'll receive an email with a link to the survey, which should take you approximately five to 10 minutes to complete. The older people you support will receive their survey in the post. We're eager to hear from as many people as possible – your experience as a volunteer during the past year will help us to improve, allow us to measure the impact that we have, and ensure that every volunteer has the support they need.

Volunteers take centre stage

A huge thank you to everyone who agreed to take part in the upcoming volunteer training project. From a tea party in Scotland to a rainbow call companion in London and flicks and friends in the north west, we can’t wait to shine a spotlight across the UK and to capture footage which highlights what volunteering with Re-engage is all about.

Stroke awareness

Out of the 18 different topics suggested, Stroke awareness training was requested by 47% of volunteers who responded to the spring 2023 survey. If you’d like to refresh your knowledge of how you can support someone who has experienced a stroke, please check out our training.

Brand new lottery ready for lift off!

We’re excited to launch the Re-engage Lottery this month to help fund our work across the country. Ticket holders will have the chance to win fantastic cash prizes and, by taking part, will make a valuable contribution to help reach even more older people and reduce loneliness. Everyone is welcome to play for the chance to win up to £25,000. The lottery will be featured in the next issue of Time Together magazine, which will be sent to older people at the end of this month.

Re-engage Volunteer Awards 2024

We’re delighted to announce that once again, you could be in with the chance of winning the prize of a fantastic overnight stay in this year’s Re-engage volunteer awards. Following the success of last year’s awards, we can’t wait to say a huge thank you to volunteers who go over and above. We’ll be in touch soon with all the information you need.

You make a difference

We regularly ask older people what Re-engage means to them. Each month, we’ll share some feedback so you can see the impact your time, energy, and generosity have on older people’s lives all year round.