Volunteers are the life and blood of CHSS

The main aim of Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland ( CHSS) is to provide support, advice and rehabilitation services but they wouldn’t be able to do any of that without the income from their retail outlets.

There are 50 of the charity shops across Scotland and they rely heavily on a small army of volunteers.

The CHSS shop in Wishaw is run by manager Catherine Costello, 37, from Cambusnethan and a team of volunteers.

“I started working with CHSS in mid-february”, she said.

“I love it in here as everybody is so friendly and the volunteers are all amazing.

“People who work as volunteers often give more for nothing than paid staff do.

“But I wouldn’t say there is nothing in return. Some are here for confidence and others to get back into the job market.”

David Gault, 52, from Wishaw had been struggling to get out of the house some days.

Volunteering with CHSS has given him a new lease of life.

He said: “I’ve been here about four months now. I was suffering badly from depression and anxiety and didn’t even realise it.

“I couldn’t even go out the door before but I love it in here. You meet people and it’s helped my confidence. Everyone is friendly

“I’m in six days a week and it’s a pleasure to come in. And it’s for a good cause.”

Fellow volunteer Gary Evans, 45, from Motherwell, had been paid off from his job following health issues of his own.

He said: “I was just looking for something to do and wanted to keep busy.

“I went to the job centre and they mentioned CHSS. I’m really enjoying helping out here.”

James Robb, 76, is a veteran volunteer and has previously helped out at a number of charity organisations.

“I’ve done a lot of volunteer work and came to help with the set-up of this shop”, the Motherwell man revealed.

“I was just looking to keep busy and I’ve been helping out CHSS for about nine months now.”

Tracey Groom is Community Hub Engagement co-ordinator for Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland.

She said: “We couldn’t run these retail shops without our volunteers, they are a vital part of what we do.

“There are benefits on both sides though as it helps them to get back out and about and engage with other people. They are a great team in Wishaw. The manager Catherine works really hard and they all work well together.”