A SOMERSET charity is marking this year’s National Volunteers’ Week to recognise the work carried out by residents across the county.

The County Gazette has spoken to the charity, and to some volunteers, to understand what’s behind their daily work and efforts.

One of these volunteers, Odeta Kaunenaite, has decided to become a mental health peer mentor.

Odeta, who lives in Bridgwater, said she was looking for a part-time job in the Christmas period when she spotted an advert for a volunteering position available in the area.

She applied to be a volunteer and officially became one in the middle of March, once she finished the WATCH training.

She said: “I volunteer as a peer mentor. I was always interested in volunteering but did not know where to start.

“I was looking for an additional part-time job in the Christmas period when I've noticed that peer volunteers were needed, I was interested straight away.

“When I was struggling with mental health, I was feeling alone and isolated, so I wanted to help other people to avoid that, and a peer volunteer role seemed like a good way to do so.

“I am volunteering as a Peer Mentor, meaning that I have lived experience myself and I am supporting people who had similar experiences.

“We sometimes do not understand how important is to just listen to a person, just be there for them- it's a really powerful yet simple thing, so when I volunteer, I am having simple conversations with my peer mentees about what they are going through, and I am trying to help them to build confidence in themselves in order to improve their mental health.

“In a way, you could call my volunteering a talking therapy, however, as I can say from my own experience professionals may not always actually understand what you are going through and sometimes that is what you need so I believe that Peer Mentoring is a vital tool helping others.

“I really enjoyed my training; it was way more interesting than I expected and somewhat challenging in a good way.

“Even though I do not have much experience yet, I already feel that by helping others I am helping myself as well. Peer mentor volunteering is a win-win situation for me, and I am really grateful for this opportunity.”