Madam, I had the real pleasure last week of attending a packed Annual General Meeting of Herefordshire Voluntary Action (HVA). HVA supports the work of the thousands of volunteers, groups and communities active in Herefordshire who are trying to improve people's lives for the better. It is amazing to think that when last counted more than 55,000 people in Herefordshire said they did some kind of volunteering in one year with an economic value of more than £51million!
Volunteering matters on so many levels – for the individual in acquiring new skills and feeling good about themselves and helping friends and neighbours, for the delivery of local services, for the economy and in building strong communities. Being involved in a number of voluntary organisations myself it is wonderful to see that all ages of people are volunteers from school children, those working, to the retired and that it is quite usual for one person to get involved in lots of different volunteer organisations.
The efforts of volunteers in our communities cannot be underestimated. As a result I was so very pleased to hear at the meeting that despite the recession HVA have been able to support more projects in the last year. This was great news. I want to thank all volunteers and celebrate their vital work in our communities.
Sarah Carr,
Liberal Democrat Parliamentary Candidate for Hereford