Care For Guildford Asks: Could You Be One Of Our Volunteers?

Published on: 16 Jun, 2025
Updated on: 17 Jun, 2025

By David Reading

For most of us, a trip to the doctor, the dentist or the local hospital doesn’t present us with a problem.

But hundreds of people in the Guildford area can’t manage public transport and getting to an important health appointment can be almost impossible. Their neighbours may be unavailable, their relatives live too far away, and they can’t afford a taxi.

That’s where Care for Guildford comes in.

The award-winning charity has a team of around 100 volunteers who provide lifts, using their own cars, to GP surgeries, dentists, hospitals, therapeutic clubs and day centres for people living in Guildford who would otherwise struggle to get to health-related appointments.

The volunteers also offer a shopping service on a weekly or fortnightly basis for housebound clients, or to help people temporarily – for example, when they come out of hospital.

Today, with pressures on the NHS, an ageing population and a cost-of-living crisis, demand for Care for Guildford’s services is at an all-time high. The charity has around 500 Guildford-based clients who often have no-one else to call on, cannot manage public transport or are unable to afford taxis.

The charity was established almost 50 years ago to help people in the local community who were unable to get help from their neighbours or whose relatives lived too far away or were working during the day.

Remarkably, over the last ten years, Care for Guildford’s volunteers have completed more than 33,000 transport or shopping jobs for clients and at present are helping Guildford residents to attend around 300 appointments each month.

The charity has now launched an urgent appeal for more volunteers.

Care for Guildford says: “Clients, who make voluntary donations when using the transport or shopping services, value Care for Guildford for its reliability and, above all, its friendly and helpful volunteers. Volunteers also find it rewarding – meeting interesting people in our local community, making a difference and enriching their lives. Volunteering is flexible with no regular commitment needed.”

Mandy, a long-standing volunteer for the charity, said: “Volunteering with Care for Guildford is such a rewarding experience, providing a valuable community service which can be flexibly fitted around my other activities.”

Esmeralda, a volunteer for over two years, said: “As a volunteer driver, you feel like you are doing something really helpful.”

Joy, a regular client, said, “I don’t have any family living locally and don’t know how I’d manage to get to and from appointments without Care for Guildford.”

Interested in volunteering?

The charity said: “We urgently need more volunteers, including people to help schedule the journeys. If you live in GU1-GU4, have access to a car and can spare an hour or two each month, at a time to suit you, Care for Guildford would love you to join their team.”

For further information, visit www.careforguildford.org.uk or email volunteer@careforguildford.org.uk