The impact of volunteers

Rachel volunteers as a swimming buddy with Milestones Trust, where she helps Paul who has severe anxiety and autism. A keen open water swimmer herself, she initially swam with him but now encourages him to swim independently.

“I really love swimming and believe it can play an important role in helping people with their mental health,” says Rachel.

“It’s so satisfying to see how much comfort Paul gets out of swimming – the difference between how he is before he gets in the water and afterwards is amazing; he’s so much calmer and more relaxed.

“Milestones Trust have been great and provide on-going training and support, so I feel confident working with Paul and I now have practical skills in knowing how to deal with situations he could find challenging. They’ve also been very flexible with me, understanding that it’s not always possible for me to commit to doing this every week, which has encouraged me to continue.

“I wanted to work with a local charity, and I’ve been so impressed with the whole team at Milestones Trust. They way they’ve supported Paul has really helped improve his quality of life and I get great satisfaction from knowing I’ve contributed to that.”