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How we help

Since the NHS was formed, Royal Voluntary Service has been a key part of the care it provides.

If you or a loved one are receiving hospital care, or have recently been discharged from hospital, our volunteers are here to provide you additional support, addressing a range of needs, including:

  • Transport to and from hospital

  • Trolley services

  • Hospital shops

  • Social support & On Ward visits

Our volunteer care also supports patients and hospital visitors through a difficult time.

By offering a helping hand when patients return home from hospital, our volunteers improve the likelihood that they’ll have a faster and longer-lasting recovery.

Find out about the support available in your area

Home from Hospital services, On Ward services and Patient Transport may be able to support you. Search for a hospital support service near you.

Home from Hospital

Most people are glad when their hospital stay is over, but it can still be difficult to readjust to life back home. There might be new medications to take, or physical therapy to do. And if friends or family can’t be there to help, it can be all too easy for a patient to end up being readmitted.

Working with NHS partners, our volunteers offer a Home from Hospital service for those with health issues coming back home after an illness, accident or surgery. They’ll provide the practical and emotional support patients need to get back on their feet.

Support begins while the patient is still in hospital, and continues with regular contacts for up to six weeks, making sure the client has everything they need to get back to a healthy, independent life as soon as they can.

Search for Home from Hospital services in your area
A Royal Voluntary Service volunteer supporting an older lady home from a stay in hospital

On Ward services

A hospital stay is never easy, but our volunteers work on wards to make a patient’s time a little easier and to help them return home stronger and more quickly.

Our On Ward volunteers may help by offering seated exercise to build strength and stamina, mental exercises to improve cognitive ability and practical advice about eating well and staying hydrated.

Our volunteers also offer company outside visiting hours, chatting, reading or playing games. Hospital visits can bring people of all ages feelings of loneliness. By providing a little bit of mental and physical stimulation, we can help speed up patients’ recovery, and make their stay a more comfortable, less isolating one.

Find On Ward services in your area
Royal Voluntary Service volunteers taking part in Move It or Lose It at Llandough Hospital, Cardiff

Patient Transport

Getting to and from medical appointments can be a challenge for patients who do not drive, may not have access to reliable public transport, or struggle with confidence or mobility issues. We provide volunteer-driven transport services that ensure patients can attend hospital visits, follow-up appointments, and outpatient procedures without the stress of finding a ride.

This service is particularly helpful for older people, those with chronic conditions and patients who live in remote areas.

They offer more than just a lift; they provide company and support along the way and can also be on hand to help patients check in for appointments.

Find Patient Transport services in your area
A volunteer helping an older man out of a car following a visit to hospital

Other ways we support in hospitals

Hospital shops & cafés

If you’ve ever been a hospital patient or visitor, it’s very likely you’ll have visited one of our shops or cafés.

We’re one of the UK’s largest hospital retailers, with volunteers offering hot and cold drinks, healthy meals and treats, a warm welcome and a friendly face from behind counters across the country.

Profits from these shops and cafés help to fund our work in supporting the NHS.

A Royal Voluntary Service hospital volunteer working at a hospital cafe serving customers

Hospital trolley services

For patients who can’t make it to the hospital shop or café, we bring the service to them. Our volunteers are counting up thousands of steps a day, taking refreshments, reading materials, toiletries and healthy treats to wards all over the country.

More than just a retail service, our trolley volunteers are also there to offer a friendly face and a chance to chat, helping to ease some of the worries and loneliness a stay in hospital can create.

Two volunteers pushing a trolley with snacks and refreshments on a hospital ward

Meet & Greet

Royal Voluntary Service volunteers are on hand to welcome both patients and visitors to the hospital and help them find their way around.

The warm smile of a volunteer can take some of the anxiety out of navigating around an unfamiliar environment in what can be a stressful time.

A younger man pushing an older man in a wheelchair into a hospital lift

Other ways we can help

We're here to support with a range of services to make things easier.

Can you support us?

Your donation could mean everything to someone struggling to cope alone.

Make a donation

Interested in volunteering?

With your help, Royal Voluntary Service can continue to be a lifeline in communities and hospitals.

Give your time

Let’s make a bigger difference, together

We work with NHS Trusts, local authorities, businesses and charities to deliver flexible, volunteer-powered services that meet the needs of your community.

Our volunteers work alongside NHS teams to support patients on wards, help them get home sooner and run hospital shops and cafés. Find out how we can support your Trust.

See how we can work together