Enquiries to RU Volunteering Centre have increased in Tamworth, still more help needed

"We can't get younger people to come in and take over," News on Wheels coordinator Suzanne Turner said.

"People just don't want to do it anymore," she said.

News on Wheels is an organisation which reads and records local news articles for clients across the region.

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The organisation has been bringing CDs packed with news to people in Tamworth 48 weeks per year for more than 30 years.

Ms Turner recently won Tamworth Senior of the Year for community service.

"When you get older, you move into senior years, you really are forced ... to become separated and you lose contact with the community, so what we're doing is trying to keep people in touch ... and keep them interested in part of what happens," she said.

Now, they are struggling to recruit new volunteers.

"It's a big challenge and I [volunteer] for four or five other things and it's all the same problem - getting others to follow on," Ms Turner said.

"You get to an age where if you can do it, people will just keep you doing it," she said.

New statistics from the RU Volunteering Centre show relief could hopefully be on the horizon for some citizen-run groups in the region.

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"It's been really successful ... in terms of an increase in the level of participation," Tamworth Regional Council volunteering coordinator Veronica Filby said.

Participation enquiries to the RU Volunteering Centre show 45 per cent came from people under the age of 35 since the company launched in June last year.

"Tamworth has a fantastic spirit of helping others," Ms Filby said.

However, every charity needs more volunteers, she said.

It's important people do something they are interested in when giving their time to an organisation, Ms Filby said.

Younger volunteers tend to be keen on things like helping out environmental protection groups, parks and gardens, disability services and mental health providers, she said.

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