NHS and Care Volunteer Responders Service

Chris Vince Excerpts

Monday 19th May 2025 Commons Chamber

[Karin Smyth]

We are learning so much about each other this afternoon, are we not? I am pleased to hear that that is how my hon. Friend started her journey, and I am so impressed that she is continuing to do that. I was out with the ambulance service last week talking to staff, who highly praised those community first responders. The work that she and others are doing is valuable, and I know she will continue to use that knowledge to feed into the work we want to do in the future.

[Chris Vince (Harlow) (Lab/Co-op)]

I thank the Minister for answering the urgent question.

May I pay tribute to the many volunteers in Harlow, both those who supported people during the pandemic and, in particular, the Butterfly Volunteers who support people receiving end of life care at Princess Alexandra hospital? I feel emotional just thinking about that they do. We found that it was best to seek volunteers locally in Harlow, both through Rainbow Services and through the volunteer co-ordinator Della Nash, who is wonderful but who, sadly, was made redundant by the last Government. How can local charities and other organisations feed into the Government portal once it is up and running?

[Karin Smyth]

I thank my hon. Friend for what he has said, and I thank the Butterfly Volunteers. Supporting people at that really important end of life stage is hard and critical work, and I commend them for it. The local link is also critical: we need to ensure that people can be directed from the national system to local systems, through NHS England and perhaps—if it is appropriate, Mr Speaker—through the House. It is in the interests of local Members of Parliament for us to ensure that what we have learnt from the national scheme is continued into the local scheme, and, as my hon. Friend says, we need the local co-ordination and infrastructure about which we have heard this afternoon.