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Gloucestershire Village and Community Agents
Village and Community Agents support people aged 50+ living in rural areas of Gloucestershire, bridging the gap between the local community and the statutory or voluntary organisations able to offer help or support.
We have a team of 32 part-time Village and Community Agents who:
- provide high quality face-to-face information and support
- offer a facilitated signposting service and put people in direct contact with the appropriate agency
- help individuals make informed choices about their future needs
- identify unmet need in their communities
- primarily support older people, but other disadvantaged and isolated people are also be able to receive Village and Community Agents support
- cover 236 parishes in Gloucestershire, including some of the most rurally isolated in the county; this has grown from 96 since October 2006
- are recruited locally and receive ongoing training
Please click here to read the latest Village and Community Agents quarterly report
Watch our short videos below to learn more about Village and Community Agents in Gloucestershire
The county-wide Village Agents scheme in Gloucestershire has won the praise of a previous Prime Minister and is regularly approached by other rural counties wishing to adopt a similar scheme.
Jointly funded by Gloucestershire County Council and NHS Gloucestershire, Village Agents now have a presence in over 200 of the County's parishes.
The scheme works because Agents live close to the communities in which they work. Consequently, they know the villages and their people well.
Rather than proferring advice, Agents provide an overview of services available in the county and offer help to access them. They help in myriads of other ways too - thus winning the trust of those they help and enabling older people to stay independent for longer.
The service has even attracted interest from Singapore!
The Village and Community Agent website contains useful information and links of relevance to older people, plus much more.
Contact
- Kate Darch (Village Agents Project Manager)
- Village and Community Agents
Gloucestershire Village and Community Agents is funded by Gloucestershire County Council and NHS Gloucestershire, working in partnership with Gloucestershire Rural Community Council.
"Just to know that the Village Agent is there gives those of us who live alone the confidence in our daily lives..." Village Agent Client
"I know that my parents' age-group are fiercely independent and don't like to trouble anyone, it is such a positive experience for them to find someone 'on their side'..... " Village and Community Agent Client