Voluntary bank in Hameln: Pensioners and neighbors hand in hand for children!

Voluntary bank in Hameln: Pensioners and neighbors hand in hand for children!

A fresh idea was born in Hameln-Pyrmont that aims to improve both childcare and senior care in an innovative way: the volunteer bank. This was announced in May 2024 by Dr. Georg Robra, the First District Councilor. The concept aims to pay voluntary services into a personal account as a time credit, with which the account holder can later receive support - be it neighborhood help with childcare or support with the household and garden. This new initiative shows that community support can be provided on many levels.

Although care itself remains the responsibility of trained specialists, a rethink is necessary. Many retirees and young adults put their own desires first, resulting in a noticeable lack of commitment. The volunteer bank could help here by offering a simple way to support each other with time credits.

Integration and technology

The technical implementation of the volunteer bank represents a challenge, but one that is already being concretely addressed. The plan is to integrate the volunteer bank into the district app that is already in the works. The aim is to create a secure platform that enables both the recording of services and provides concepts such as receipts and account balances. This will not only improve the maintenance and security of the platform, but also provide a link to other digital offerings in the district.

The development of the first version of the app is currently underway intensively. The volunteer bank therefore represents an important part of the roadmap for future versions. Similar to gute-tat.de, where over 700 projects can be found online and almost 30,000 interested parties are registered, low-threshold access to volunteer work could also be created here.

Digital volunteering is trending

The topic of digital volunteering is not only taking hold in Hameln-Pyrmont. More and more organizations are offering electronic platforms where people can sign up for various engagements. An example of this is the Maltese, who appeal to a younger audience through innovative social media work and numerous digital offerings. Anna, who works for the Malteser, regularly invests several hours a week in her volunteer work, without any professional training - an example of how easy it can be to get started in volunteer work.

The digital format means that even people with a small time budget can easily become active without any lack of quality. This may also make it easier for working professionals and young adults to become part of a community that works for good.

The bridge between traditional engagement and digital formats is being built more and more skillfully. It will be exciting to see how the volunteer bank project develops and how many people will get actively involved in the end.