BOURNEMOUTH and Poole residents are being urged to give up their time to support local charities as part of a volunteer drive led by the bank Nationwide.

As part of its new scheme Side-by-Side, Nationwide Building Society is calling upon members of the public to help at four projects in need of man hours.

A spokesman from the bank said: “The potential here for encouraging people to support charities in their area is immense, and we hope to demonstrate that working in partnership with local business can provide even more opportunities.”

Bournemouth will be the first town to trial the initiative, which will run during the last two weeks of May.

The charities involved with the project are the Victoria Education Centre, BCHA Employability Project, James Burns House and Autism Wessex’s Portfield School.

Anyone wishing to sign up to the scheme is asked to pop into their local Nationwide bank.

Alternatively, you can call 01793 658787 or go to your.nationwide.co.uk/side-by-side.

Where to volunteer in Dorset

THE Victoria Education Centre in Poole, a residential and day school for disabled children, is looking for volunteers to help create a pets corner in the centre’s gardens between Monday May 26 and Friday, May 30.

The BCHA employability project, which helps young people develop new skills and improve their chances of finding employment in Bournemouth, needs people to help design and deliver an employability workshop to unemployed youngsters on Monday, May 19.

On Tuesday, May 20, James Burns House, a care home for disabled adults in Bournemouth, is looking for volunteers to renovate the gardens of the house.

And Portfield School in Christchurch, which provides specialist education for autistic children, is looking for a group of helpers to repaint areas of the school between May 27 and May 30.