The tenth and final episode of this Yorkshire Calendar series presented by Marylyn Webb and Richard Madeley that this week a look at the important work done by volunteers and what both they and the organisations they work for get out of the experience. Title: Yorkshire Television Colour Production Calendar At Your Service Sitting in a window at Leeds General Infirmary is Jimmy Saville who talks about the thousands of voluntary workers, like himself, who have discovered the secret of a full...

The tenth and final episode of this Yorkshire Calendar series presented by Marylyn Webb and Richard Madeley that this week a look at the important work done by volunteers and what both they and the organisations they work for get out of the experience. Title: Yorkshire Television Colour Production Calendar At Your Service Sitting in a window at Leeds General Infirmary is Jimmy Saville who talks about the thousands of voluntary workers, like himself, who have discovered the secret of a full and good life. Title: Lending a Hand Credit: with Marylyn Webb and Richard Madeley Presenter Marylyn Webb introduces this episode by talking about Jimmy Savile’s 15 years’ service as a volunteer and about the thousands of other around the country have devoted much of their spare time to the service of others. As Jimmy Savile arrives at Leeds General Infirmary to start his shift as a voluntary porter and walks along a corridor with a colleague, co-presenter Richard Madeley talks about him being the most celebrated voluntary worker in the land. Richard interviews Jimmy asking him how he got into volunteering and what should people do if the want to become a volunteer themselves? Jimmy talks about how he started volunteering during the ‘I’m Backing Britian’ campaign and what he gets out of it. He encourages others to try volunteering as it will enrich their lives immeasurably. Back in the studio Marylyn provides details on how someone can start volunteering and the work of the Councils of Voluntary Service (CVS). Sitting next to her is Hilary Whorrall from the Sheffield Volunteer Bureau who provides details on how someone goes about becoming a volunteer and what centres like hers can provide. She also provides details on how valuable volunteers are and what someone gets out of doing voluntary work. Richard provides details on other organisation who specialise in recruiting young volunteer workers such as Community Service Volunteers (CSV). A clip follows from the Yorkshire Television documentary ‘Making a Living’ in which 24-year-old Cecily Duff is filmed working with disabled children in the pool at Ian Tetley Memorial School at Killinghall near Harrogate. In voiceover she talks about why and how she joined the CSV and what she gets out of being a volunteer working with disabled children. Back in the studio Richard speaks with Richard Jackson from Youth Action who is a local organiser and representative for Yorkshire and Humberside based in Barnsley. He provides details to Richard about how Youth Action works and how it recruits its 30,000 volunteers aged over 14 in a wide variety of community project. Richard asks about how much commitment volunteers need to give and can the scheme help troubled youths. Following Marylyn explaining that the biggest users of volunteers are in hospitals, on Margaret Ward at Westwood Hospital in Bradford volunteers sing seasonal songs with the mentally disabled children in their care. One unidentified woman, Alex McDonald a retired Army Staff Sargent and housewife Janet Sutcliffe talk with Richard about what motivates them to work with these children and what do they and the children get out of the experience. They all encourage other to take part in such activities as they all see it as being very rewarding. Back in the studio Marylyn speaks with Sue Lemass who is Hospital Voluntary Service Officer for St James Hospital in Leeds. She provides details on some of the wide range of services offered by the hospitals 700 volunteers, what advantages volunteers bring to the hospital and how volunteers are selected. She explains that for them the importance is that volunteers give a regular commitment of their time, she also confirms that none of the volunteers don’t take away jobs from paid members of staff. Moving onto the care of the elderly Richard introduces 80-year-old Mary Thomson who featured in a previous edition of the series ‘Old and Alone,’ In the kitchens of the Women’s Royal Volunteer Service (WRVS) in Bradford Mary inspects some of the hot meals and packed lunched that are being prepared there. As the meals are loaded into a WRVS van Richard talks in voiceover about Mary’s long service in volunteering going back more than 40 years. In the home of one pensioner, she helps plate up a meal and chats with her about her day. She speaks with Richard about how she started volunteering while working at the Braford Royal Infirmary during World War Two and why she is still doing it more than 40 years later. She explains how much pleasure she gets out of the work; she describes it as being like a wage packet helping people who are helpless. Back in the studio Richard provides a brief history with regards Yorkshire’s most famous volunteer Sue Ryder and about the 70 homes run by the Sue Ryder Foundation around the world. Following a photomontage of volunteers working at Wheatfields Hospice in Leeds Richard speaks with Mrs Laura Hampton Organiser of Voluntary Helpers at Sue Ryder Home’s. She talks about sympathy and understanding being the main quality required in volunteers and about time being the most important need for the terminally ill. She provides details of other homes run by the foundation including one at Sheffield which offers rehabilitation for those coming out of a long-term stay in hospital back into the community. For those who are not able to commit the time or effort featured above, Marylyn provides an alternative form of volunteer work run by Amnesty International. Speaking with Robin Boyes the organisation’s Northeast Regional Representative details are given of a letter writing campaign in which a volunteer adopting someone from around the world who has been unlawfully detailed demanding their release. Robin explains why Amnesty believes such campaigns work as they provide moral pressure that he feels counties can’t ignore. Amnesty is looking for anyone who is strong enough to put pen to paper and write maybe two-to-three letters a month. Richard brings the programme to a close by providing contact names and addresses for some of the voluntary organisation featured in this programme as well as other. Marylyn ends by saying that she hopes that this series has helped or encouraged you to help others. Title: Calendar At Your Service Credit: was presented by Marylyn Webb, Richard Madeley Production Team Petrina Rance, Fiona Greig Film Editor Gordon Hopps Director David St. David-Smith Producer David Lowen Editor Graham Ironside End title: Yorkshire Television Colour Production. © Trident Television Ltd. MCMLXXX