COMMUNITY groups in Waverley and Guildford have struck lucky with one of the biggest Lottery grants in the area awarded to a new organisation set up specifically to support them – Voluntary Action South West Surrey. The £500,000 award from the Big Lottery Fund was announced this week, and it will fund a broad new support base to help the 1,600 or more voluntary groups providing vital services to disabled people, families, youth and the elderly throughout the two boroughs. As well as bringing together existing volunteer centres including those in Farnham and Haslemere, Voluntary Action South West Surrey will open new ones in Cranleigh, Ash and Godalming. Sandra McHugh, manager of Haslemere's Volunteer Bureau was delighted with the news. "It's really going to help a huge number of organisations in this area, and it means we are going to have a lot more support." she said. "At the moment, this Volunteer Bureau covers Haslemere and district, but we are also trying to cover Godalming, Cranleigh, Fernhurst, Liphook and beyond – to try and match volunteers with opportunities in those areas. "There are more than 300 organisations in the area and at least 100 opportunities that we need volunteers for," she added. Opportunities for volunteers are vast, ranging from driving, community policing, to finding school governors, conservation volunteers and even web developers. The grant itself will be used to fill a large gap in volunteer support and to ensure that all voluntary and community groups, throughout the boroughs, have access to the expertise of trained development workers for vital advice, information and support. The aim is to take the burden of bureaucracy off the many thousands of volunteers in South West Surrey so they can get on with their real work. It should also make it easier for people to come forward and volunteer within their communities. The money is set to be spread over four years, with the existing centres merging in April, 2008, with an official launch in July. The new umbrella organisation will be based in the Guildford Association of Voluntary Service (GAVS) offices in Castle Street, Guildford. Haslemere and Farnham's existing centres will be given a boost and the plan is for new centres to open in Cranleigh next year, in Ash by October 2010 and in Godalming by April 2011. Carol Dunnett, spokesman for Voluntary Action, said: "This was a multi agency project and Waverley and Guildford Borough Councils, Surrey County Council and the Surrey Primary Care Trust have all been very supportive and contributed funding to get it off the ground. "This project will make a real difference to the amount of support we can give to local voluntary and community groups. They often plug gaps left by the statutory services and without them, the community would really notice the difference. "Small groups often struggle to make sure they are run properly and comply with legislation; reinventing the wheel when it comes to writing policies; and struggling to find enough volunteers to run services. "All these things are important for a well run organisation but they take time away from actually delivering their service. Voluntary Action helps provide this infrastructure and lets the charity get on with what they were set up to do effectively." For information about volunteering in the Haslemere area, call the Volunteer Bureau on 01428 661166 or visit http://www.do-it.org.uk">www.do-it.org.uk
