THE volunteer bureau run by Craven Voluntary Action has been forced to close down.

A lack of funding has been blamed for the demise of the bureau which opened in 1991.

The Volunteer Bureau, run as an arm of Craven Voluntary Action, had at least 50 people on its books who did voluntary work across the district.

Staff matched volunteers with voluntary positions, which suited their interests and the time they had available.

Some worked as volunteer drivers taking the elderly to hospital and shopping, others befriended people living on their own and spent time talking to them. The volunteers assisted in many ways.

Chairman of CVA Maureen Moody said: "Craven Voluntary Action and the Volunteer Bureau do not have the funding to carry out all the work they had planned for the current financial year.

"Having considered all the options available CVA believe they can continue to provide information support and advice to other organisations, to help them develop services in the community where there is a need but will close the Volunteer Bureau.

"CVA has not taken this decision easily as they appreciate all the hard work that has been carried out by the staff members and the volunteers within the Volunteer Bureau.

"The management board extends its thanks to everyone who has been involved with the Volunteer Bureau for their valuable contribution to this service and the people of Craven."

Half the funding for the service came from social services and the rest from a variety of other sources. But the money available was not enough to ensure the service was viable.

CVA will continue to run its information and advice service from its premises on Coach Street, Skipton, but the bureau will close on September 14.

Mrs Moody hopes that everyone doing voluntary work at the moment will be able to continue with other organisations.

For example Craven Community Transport will be able to assist volunteer drivers throughout the district.

Mrs Moody said those people who benefited from the hard work of volunteers should not suffer. All volunteers will receive a letter from the CVA and will receive advice on how to keep up their work.

CVA suffered another blow recently when it lost its appeal to build a one-stop community resource centre in Bay Horse Yard, Skipton.

The group wanted to build a centre to house many different voluntary organisations under one roof so that they could share expertise and resources.

However, the plan prompted many objections from local residents and was eventually rejected.