Good Neighbours
Some Practical Details

Introduction

Local Friends was set up to address the increasing problem of social isolation. Right now – March 2020 – the nature of that problem is changing rapidly as a result of Covid-19, the coronavirus pandemic.

The key difference is that Local Friends aimed to provide isolated people with face-to-face contact, but this is generally not possible, and certainly not recommended even if it could be arranged. So we need to avoid face-to-face contact, and use other approaches instead.

Contact

The two obvious options are telephone and email. More technologically advanced people may be able to use their computer or phone to make a video call.

The primary need is simply to make contact. The frequency of this contact is agreed between the two people involved, but we generally expect some form of contact every two or three days. The content of the contact obviously depends on the people: some find it easy to just start chatting, while others need some help to get the conversation going.

Questions

But, whether the conversation flows or not, there are a few questions which should be asked. Many people find it hard to admit to a serious need, so we cannot assume that, because there was a conversation, we must have been told about any practical problems. We have to ask – tactfully and sensitively, of course, but actually ask about the key areas, and be sure to get a reply.

Of course, we might be told that everything is fine when it's not, but it is one thing to be misled, and quite another thing to realize that we didn't actually ask the important question. To help with getting to know the other person, and to check the nature of their needs, our volunteers are given a reasonably comprehensive set of questions to ask.

Recruitment and Training

The nature of the contact through the Good Neighbours scheme makes it less vulnerable to misuse than the main Local Friends scheme, but that does not mean we can ignore the potential dangers.

There is a simple recruitment process.

• People volunteer to help.
• We obtain some basic background and contact details.
• There is a quick conversation.
• They commit to follow our Volunteering Principles.
• We check that a trusted third party knows them, and knows they are volunteering.

The training is a cut-down version of the full Local Friends training. We briefly touch on the following areas.

• Aims. What we aim to do (provide human contact and possibly a little practical support), and not do (tell them what to do or solve their problems).
• Boundaries. Making healthy judgements about how much to do and share, retaining responsibility for our own actions.
• Confidentiality. Understanding that we don't pass on what we have been told, unless we must.
• Reporting. We need to know that contact is actually being made and support being given.
• Care. Being cared for as a volunteer, getting the support you need.

 

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