Attend Volunteer Charity

Attend Volunteer Charity We support volunteers in healthcare, providing organisations with the help they need to help others. https://linktr.ee/attendvolunteering

We provide a wide range of services to our members, from insurance to training, from face-to-face support to graphic design. Everything we do brings us closer to our goal: to put volunteering at the heart of health and social care. We offer a wide range of benefits, with something for everyone. The diversity of our member groups working in a wide range of health and social care settings gives you

access to a great wealth of experience - if your group is faced with a challenge, you can be sure someone else is facing it too and may have good ideas and resources to share.

Prishali Pun is an international student from Nepal and has been working as an acquired brain injury services intern. He...
18/06/2026

Prishali Pun is an international student from Nepal and has been working as an acquired brain injury services intern. Her responsibilities in this role have been to contact and meet with clients who have been referred to Attend. During these meetings, she helps clients create support plans and follow up on their goals and health.



“My favorite memory is when the clients remember me personally. It’s like my presence has made a change in their life,” Prishali said.



She told the story when a client she was working with told her about the Nepalese restaurant he went to because he remembered she was from Nepal. This was especially touching because this client does not have a great memory, so he told her before they started the meeting, so he would not forget to tell her.



Prishali was able to attend the Stroke Cafe once during her placement at Attend. She said that she was not expecting much at first, but soon realized how impactful the place is to its patrons.



“It really showed me how close these people have gotten over the several times they’d met up. They have formed a really good bond with Nichole, our line manager, and the others from ATTEND who organise and conduct the sessions as well. So that was really cool to see,” Prishali said.



She was also able to join in on one of the coffee mornings. She enjoyed making the tea and coffee for the clients and decorating the biscuits and cakes on the table because she liked making them look presentable and aesthetic. But most of all, she loved getting to talk with the clients and hear about their experiences.



During this internship, Prishali said she has gained so much by giving back to the community, while still being able to work and build herself, focusing on her skills.



“I’ve really developed my presentation skills, communication skills, and other skills that I already had. I’ve just been building them up more and more. It is also helping my psychology background as well,” Prishali said.



Prishali reflected on how during her interview for the placement, she mentioned how her main weakness was presentation and public speaking skills. But now, she has been able to grow her confidence a lot in that area by interning for Attend.



“Often, people see the role as demanding because you’re listening to concerns about other people’s lives after they’ve been through something so traumatic and life-changing. But these interactions are reciprocal transactions, and there is so much I can get to learn when to get to know these people individually as well,” Prishali said.

17/06/2026

The Stroke Cafe hosted a seated exercise activity before their tea and coffee last week. The group loved the movement and the music! 🎶🏋

The Stroke Cafe occurs every Tuesday at the Palmers Green United Reformed Church. Visit our website to learn more about the Stroke Cafe and other services offered! https://abi.attend.org.uk/

WORKPLACE ROCK-PAPER-SCISSORS by Steve MoretonEveryone knows the line about Culture eating Strategy for breakfast.What w...
11/06/2026

WORKPLACE ROCK-PAPER-SCISSORS by Steve Moreton

Everyone knows the line about Culture eating Strategy for breakfast.
What we often overlook is that Structure is already sitting at the table, waiting…

And once you add Structure, you don’t just get one meal — you get six.
It goes like this…

🍳 BREAKFAST – CULTURE vs STRATEGY
The “nice plan, but that’s not how we work” meal.

Strategy arrives with ambition; Culture quietly reminds everyone how things actually get done.
The eternal tension between what we say and what we do.

Outcome: On most days, Culture wins on points.

🥗 LUNCH – STRATEGY vs STRUCTURE
The “we’re reorganising again” meal.

Strategy wants movement; Structure wants order.
Bold ideas meet procurement, governance, compliance and the org chart.
Every sector has lived this collision… and ends up restructuring.

Outcome: Strategy claims victory; procurement requests revisions.

🍛 DINNER – STRUCTURE vs CULTURE
The “that’s not the process” meal.

This is where process confronts habit. Structure asserts control; Culture pushes back.
Rules, roles and reporting lines try to discipline the messy reality of human behaviour.
Universal – from corporates to charities to government.

Outcome: Structure wins the battle, then redesigns the battlefield.

---

BUT WAIT! – there are three more meals…

These are the 2‑vs‑1 fusions — the alliances of convenience. Stewardship stays out. It never fights.

🥐 BRUNCH – STRATEGY + STRUCTURE vs CULTURE
The “We’re doing this now, apparently” meal.

Strategy wants change; Structure enforces it; Culture is informed afterwards.
The classic rollout or initiative that lands before anyone has processed it.

Outcome: Culture is ambushed – but never surprised.

🫖 AFTERNOON TEA – CULTURE + STRUCTURE vs STRATEGY
The “lovely idea, but no” meal.

Strategy presents a great new idea. Culture quietly resists; Structure politely blocks; Strategy is sidelined with a smile.
The soft veto. The corridor correction. The immovable “not like that.”

Outcome: Strategy is humbled, with refreshments.

🍲 SUPPER – CULTURE + STRATEGY vs STRUCTURE
The “we can’t keep doing it like this” meal.

Culture is tired; Strategy is humbled; together they negotiate with Structure about what tomorrow can realistically look like.
The reckoning. The reset. The late‑day honesty.

Outcome: Structure is outmanoeuvred… until morning.

⭐ STEWARDSHIP – THE HOST
Stewardship never fights. It hosts the meals and asks the quiet question no one else remembers:
“What survives into tomorrow?”

It’s the only force not trapped in the daily cycle – helping Culture, Strategy and Structure remember the past, live the present, and protect the future.

Rohit Pattni, 60-years-old, experienced a mini stroke back in December 2025 and has been working with Attend throughout ...
10/06/2026

Rohit Pattni, 60-years-old, experienced a mini stroke back in December 2025 and has been working with Attend throughout his recovery.

Rohit was born in Kenya but has lived in England for since he was one and a half years old.

His mini stroke affected the right side of body; his leg and arm was partially responding but his right hand was not responding. Rohit had said that his speech was also very slurred but has slowly been getting better. Through physiotherapy classes, he explains that his hand is able to function better, and he has made a lot of progress in the last six months.

Rohitt has been meeting with the Attend ABI service interns and joined group meetings as well during his recovery. He was referred to Attend by the hospital and has said the organisation has proved a very good service to him.

Part of the service offered by Attend through the ABI service interns, is to help clients make goals and encourage them to follow through. This was appreciated by Rohit.

“It was good to have somebody independent from the family to call back and check up and say, ‘you said you’d do this, have you done it?’” Rohit said.

The presentations provided by the ABI interns helped Rohit be able to reconnect the dots to what had happened to him. Throughout these presentations, Rohit said he benefited from meeting others who had gone through similar experiences.

Reflecting on the past six months after his stroke, Rohit noted how quickly he has been able to bounce back. He told the story about when he went for a long walk with his friends to the Battersea Pier and up to Greenwich. He said, “A long day like that still causes aches and pains, but not at the same level as before. If you had told me to undertake that sort of, say in January or February, I would’ve said no.”

Rohit lives with his wife and two sons; he expressed his gratitude towards them during his recovery, saying they have been tremendous help.

Barbara started her career as a bursar at a local school. During her time there she found herself going above and beyond...
04/06/2026

Barbara started her career as a bursar at a local school. During her time there she found herself going above and beyond for the students. She took that work ethic with her to the Highwood Hospital and then to the Brentwood Community Hospital. She is an integral part of the League of Friends, and an incredibly selfless human.

Click the link to listen to her story! https://friendsvoices.co.uk/the-collection/barbara-wren-brentwood-community-hospital-league-of-friends/

…
Friends' voices tell the stories of volunteers supporting the health service since 1949. Visit the website to explore our collection of recorded experiences.
https://friendsvoices.co.uk/

Sharal Fernandes, 20, has been interning at Attend as a stroke service volunteer for the last year. She is from India an...
03/06/2026

Sharal Fernandes, 20, has been interning at Attend as a stroke service volunteer for the last year. She is from India and is currently a student at the University of Westminster studying BSc. Psychology with counselling.

As a stroke service volunteer, Sharal has the opportunity to call clients who have had a stroke and check in on them. During these calls, she sees how they have been doing and if they require any further support or information on benefits or other services such as volunteering, befriending services and whether they want to get back to driving or join hobbies. Since she has joined the Attend team, she has also been able to work with a few ABI clients as well and help them with retuning to work, and signposting them to relevant resources.

As part of her placement, she has been working at the Stroke Cafe once a week. While she’s there, Sharal coordinates activities and helps create a supportive environment for people who have had strokes.

Sharal had even started a quiz activity at the stroke cafe. She creates quizzes about different topics like country flags, music and movies, with the winning group getting a prize at the end. The clients at the cafe will then work together in groups of three or four to discuss answers and fill out the quizzes.

“I’ve had this one person who can’t actually read or write anymore because of aphasia, but he still has fun because everybody joins in and participates,” Sharal said.

In addition to working at the stroke cafe, Sharal said she enjoys talking with people and being someone they can talk with. This is especially because most of the people she works with are older and don’t usually get a lot of phone calls.

“It’s really nice that we get to talk to them and they feel really happy and they share things that they probably would not share with their family because sometimes talking with a stranger is easier. I’ve had a lot of people share a lot of things with me,” Sharal said.

She mentioned how sometimes the ten-minute surveys turn into hour-long phone calls because the clients are happy to talk to her.

“It feels very nice when we send them information, they need help with volunteering, or they just want support groups and things like that, or like they want to take part in therapy. It feels good knowing that you're helping someone. It's been really rewarding working here,” Sharal said.

Simona Jersova, 20 years old, volunteers as an intern for Attend’s Acquired Brain Injury services. Originally from Latvi...
28/05/2026

Simona Jersova, 20 years old, volunteers as an intern for Attend’s Acquired Brain Injury services. Originally from Latvia, she moved to the UK at a young age and currently attends the University of Westminster studying psychology and criminology BSc.

Expanding her experiences, Simona’s role at Attend involves an array of responsibilities. Her daily work includes contacting and connecting with individuals who have sustained acquired brain injuries or strokes, arranging meetings, and holding one-to-one sessions discussing their personalised goals. She also hosts brain injury awareness presentations with other ABI volunteer.

Once a month, Simona travels out to the Stroke Cafe where she helps make coffee and tea for stroke survivors, prepares fun quizzes for them to do, and chats with them as well. Typically speaking to survivors over the phone, Simona describes how refreshing it is to meet people “face to face.”

With all her time as a volunteer, Simona recalls her most memorable experience.

One specific client that she’s worked with had a stroke that left him with severe aphasia. As a result, he was unable to find employment for 13 years and suffered both financial and familial turmoil. “So, I helped him find employment and write up a CV, ” said Simona, “He's currently a dog walker. He's doing it part-time since the fatigue is still really bad, but it helped a lot with the family's morale, and it built respect for him and the family, as well, and that was one of the main goals. It just shows how good it is to help someone.”

After one year of being an intern at Attend, Simona reflects on how the volunteering has impacted her and those around her. Simona was initially worried that her experiences wouldn’t be enough to help the people she needed to. Over time, however, she learned how to serve others in many ways that resulted from her own skills.

“I love to see the progress the people make going from not being confident at all, in terms of work or just in general, to then slowly building the confidence and actually learning more. And I've loved being able to use some of my background in psychology in the work I do,” states Simona.

In the end, Simona’s service has impacted both the lives of ABI and stroke survivors and her own as well. She describes, “it’s quite rewarding work.”

"For almost 54 years of my life, I have worked as a black cab driver. It was a very busy schedule. I would have to wake ...
26/05/2026

"For almost 54 years of my life, I have worked as a black cab driver. It was a very busy schedule. I would have to wake up at 3:30 am and get ready to pick up the cab I had hired for 3 days. Work was very important to me, and it made me feel like I had a purpose, which was to take care of my family and keep the money rolling in, as there are always bills to pay.

It was a typical morning for me, and I was on a call with a friend. It was around 6 am when my friend told me that my voice didn’t sound right. Worried, I called for my wife, who said the left side of my face was down. She quickly dialled for the ambulance, and they arrived within 12 minutes.

I was discharged from the hospital (Queen Square) overnight, and I am very grateful that the stroke didn’t do much damage to me.

During the initial days of recovery, I felt impatient and wanted to return to my normal, everyday routine. I also felt that I was losing my place in the world cause I lost my job. I didn’t feel as strong as I was before. Throughout my recovery, I am deeply grateful to my wife, who has been a tremendous source of support for me.

The most important thing to me was work, and since I didn’t have that anymore because of the stroke, it was a challenge I had to overcome. Along with the loss of my job, I struggled with simple tasks like putting on clothes, as I would quite often lose my balance, with the left side of my body feeling weaker.

Even though I have had these challenges, I still feel grateful that the stroke didn’t affect me to a great extent. I still do gardening, which I really enjoy doing.
I learned about the Stroke Café through St. Michael's Hospital. They handed me a list of support groups that I could join, and I chose to join the stroke café in Palmers Green. I'm glad I did that.

When I was a little boy, I used to stutter, but as I grew, it went away. But one of the effects the stroke had on me was the stutter; it was back, and I took speech therapy to help me with that. I genuinely feel that speech therapy helped me, and I still attend physiotherapy because it aids my balance and coordination.
Since having the stroke, I found myself isolating, and it took me a while, but I had learned by now that acceptance is the only good way to get ahead with this. That is what I did: I accepted my new life and moved on with the new things.

After my stroke, I am unable to feel my emotions or cry, and I haven’t cried since 1986, which is when I lost my brother. I can easily express how I feel, but I don't feel emotions well.

I have learnt to be more honest with people and value the people and the relationships I have. I am also going to church more often, which provides me with a sense of comfort.

Something to remember along the way is not to lose your faith if you’ve got it and live each day like it is very precious; live for today. Accept what life gives you and always listen to the people who care for you."

- Bruno Manfredi

Pauline Hayes-Windle, aged 61, works as a part-time chaplain in a hospice in Welwyn Garden City Her love of volunteering...
21/05/2026

Pauline Hayes-Windle, aged 61, works as a part-time chaplain in a hospice in Welwyn Garden City

Her love of volunteering stems from an early age.

Pauline spent 24 years working in the finance office of a German company before changing direction and pursuing chaplaincy training. But the seeds of her vocation were planted much earlier. Growing up in Ireland, she remembers her mother sending her out with tea and sandwiches for neighbours who were lonely or struggling. “That’s where it all started,” she reflects. “Helping people was just part of everyday life.”

For the past 17 years, Pauline has volunteered in various roles, mainly in the St. Vincent de Paul Society, supporting vulnerable and isolated people in the local area. Along with her husband of three years, she shares a deep love of community service. She has also spent several years volunteering with Friends of Acacia Mews, where she helps run the monthly coffee mornings at Acacia Mews Care Home.

These coffee mornings are simple but meaningful. "People go back down memory lane", Pauline says. "We share small treats - biscuits, little cakes- and it brings residents together. Sometimes it sparks memories from their early life, family or career." Each month brings different faces and different stories. "You never know what will bring someone into a conversation or help them remember something. The impact is seeing them smile, liven up, have a little laugh, and interact more. It reminds them- and us- that their stories matter.

One moment that stayed with her involved an Irish resident who suddenly began singing old Irish songs. “A few others joined in, and soon everyone was talking about their favourite songs. It was beautiful.”

Volunteering, Pauline says, has shaped her life in profound ways. “It’s a privilege to hear people’s life stories. It’s like opening a book—you discover all these beautiful things they’ve done. It reminds me that every moment is special, and that we should keep making memories with our own families. Volunteering keeps me grounded, grateful, and inspired to continue.”

19/05/2026

Attend and friends worked together to spruce up the garden at the Aspen Court Care home yesterday! 🌷🌻🌹

Address

11-13 Cavendish Square
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W1G0AN

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Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 5pm

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+442073072570

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