A SCHEME to encourage volunteers to look out for elderly or vulnerable neighbours has been hailed a success in a North Yorkshire village.

The Good Neighbour and community buddy scheme is active across North Yorkshire, and their importance in communities is being championed by charity Rural Action Yorkshire (RAY), which is encouraging more villages to get involved and set up their own scheme.

Scorton, near Richmond, has been running its Scorton Community Buddies for the last 12 months, when organisers realised the elderly and vulnerable need support all year round, not just in the winter months.

The buddies have been befriending elderly residents in private homes, as well as residents of the local care home.

Ian Robinson, chairman of Scorton Community Buddies, went on to set up the project with funding from Hambleton, Richmondshire and Whitby Clinical Commissioning Group, and support from organisations such as Age UK, Richmondshire Community and Voluntary Action, the local parish council and Scorton Methodist Chapel.

The scheme has been popular and worthwhile for local people – organisers have run events for older people who live alone, have raised awareness through leaflet drops, and are currently in the stage of planning day trips and tea dances over the coming months.

Mr Robinson said: “In caring communities, good neighbour schemes already exist as people tend to look in on their elderly neighbours for a chat and help them out with shopping and other tasks.

“When you set up a formal village befriending scheme such as ours, it is important to embrace what is already happening and not to work in competition with it.”

“In Scorton I used the help of the people and the good work already taking place. The next stage involved setting up a formal structure with a management committee and guidelines to work to.

“I had a great deal of advice on how to do this, and I would encourage other communities to have a go and keep it simple and avoid too much bureaucracy.”

Martha Holmes, the project coordinator for schemes and who works for RAY, said: “Good Neighbours can provide a framework that a whole village can get behind.

“It is focussed on older people, but everyone can sometimes need a little help – it is a valuable service for people who are lonely or isolated.”

Any community in North Yorkshire can set up a Good Neighbour scheme with Rural Action Yorkshire on 0845-313-0270.