Become a befriender
If you feel you would like to be a befriender and have the skills you need, we would be delighted to discuss this with you. Your friendly voice could make a real difference. Just being able to listen to someone with a macular condition can make them feel like they are understood and supported. If you’d like to become a befriender please call us on 01264 326 622 or visit our volunteering webpage.
If you have a capacity to make relationships, to talk, to bear peoples’ distress, do it. Because you will be talking to people who are shocked and distressed, and also lonely.”
Norma
The role of a befriender
As a befriender, you’ll be asked to commit to making regular calls to your match. You will usually start with just one person to call, but you can have more than one person if you’d like to make that commitment.
We will ask you to commit to being a befriender for at least one year. You will receive training on safeguarding, data protection and key information on your role as a befriender. You will also be invited to a group call before you start befriending to learn more about the service and your role.
Your phone number will never be shared with your befriendee – you will use our telephone service, Togetherly, to place your calls. Your calls will also never be recorded, as they are always confidential between you and your befriendee.
Benefits of being a befriender
Becoming a befriender can mean you make a real difference to someone’s life. You will learn new skills and build your own confidence.
Volunteering as a befriender can also be great experience to put on your CV to use as part of applying for a new role.
Through being a befriending volunteer, I’ve made two very good friends myself. It really does go beyond just being a voice on the other end of the phone. I can support others, but it helps my personal journey too. It’s a two-way street. I think it’s a wonderful service, and the role is so rewarding."
Veronica
Qualities of a befriender
The best befrienders have a number of qualities. They are able to:
- Listen without judging and be open-minded
- Offer encouragement
- Reduce people’s feelings of loneliness
- Share their interests
- Be patient, reliable, kind and use great listening skills
Befriender tips
If you’re already a good listener, you will likely have the skills you need to be a successful and helpful befriender. The following tips may help:
- Listen more than you talk
- Be curious and ask open questions rather than questions that could be answered with just ‘yes’ or ‘no’
- Respect and value your differences
- Set boundaries – you cannot provide counselling or medical advice
- Keep your promises and always call when you say you will
- Let people know if you need to cancel
- Look after yourself and check in regularly with your befriending management team
Marilyn Lee
The telephone befriending service has been generously funded by the Hearn Foundation in memory of Marilyn Lee. Marilyn lived with wet AMD, and despite the fear and apprehension she felt, she learned to live with the condition rather than be defined by it. She found support and courage from her connections with other people, and you can offer that to someone by becoming a befriender. Read Marilyn’s story.