THIS week is National Volunteers Week, which will see organisations appeal to people with time to spare to get involved and help others.

National Volunteers’ Week celebrates the vital work of volunteers, thanks them for their contributions, and encourages people who might be thinking about supporting a local charity or organisation to find out how they can do that.

The NSPCC relies on its volunteers as much as its employees, because we know they make an enormous and genuine difference to the lives of children and young people across the country. Whether they’re supporting schools and helping to deliver our Speak Out Stay Safe assemblies to primary age children, or a volunteer counsellor at our Childline base in Leeds, they’re supporting children whenever they need us.

Sally has been volunteering as a Childline counsellor at our Yorkshire hub for over 17 years, hearing many contacts ranging from bullying, sexual and physical abuse, to mental health concerns and loneliness. She’s seen many changes over the years, not least with the introduction of online chats, which now make up nearly three-quarters of our counselling sessions. Sally said: “Sometimes, just listening and letting them know we believe them can be enough to be a huge help. The number of contacts we get from young people saying there’s nothing they can do and they just want to die, there are too many. Some children just don’t want to worry people, but don’t want to live anymore.

“Offering that kind of support makes me proud of the amazing work our volunteers do, but perhaps you don’t have four hours per week to spare with our Childline service. If that’s the case, there are still plenty of other ways you can support us and help children and young people. Maybe you could share our messages online as a social media champion? Or volunteer to help our Schools Service deliver vital messaging to primary schools, or join our team of fundraisers who help keep our services going through their incredible work.”

Next week, schools and nurseries across the UK will be putting the fun into fundraising with The Big Breaktime, part of our flagship fundraising event, Childhood Day, celebrating the importance of play in the lives of children and bringing together families, friends and colleagues for a fundraising play event of their choice. Whether you set up a sponsored kickabout, sports day or a simple obstacle course in the garden, every pound you raise will support the NSPCC. Find out more at nspcc.org.uk

* Debra Radford is NSPCC Assistant Director for Yorkshire and the North East