OXFORD volunteer Sheila Glazebrook has dedicated an astounding 53 years of voluntary service to charity Contact The Elderly.

She first began volunteering with the charity in 1965.

Contact the Elderly is a national charity – with many volunteers in Oxford – committed to tackling loneliness and social isolation among older people through face-to-face contact.

The charity organises monthly Sunday afternoon tea parties for small groups of older people, aged 75 and over, who live alone – offering a regular and vital friendship link every month.

Mrs Glazebrook hosted her first tea party at her parent’s house in Harrow.

After moving to Oxford in the 1970’s she continued her valuable work with the charity.

Since then, she has volunteered in almost every capacity, acting as a driver, host and area coordinator.

Mrs Glazebrook, who lives on Woodstock Road, said: “It's been exciting watching Contact the Elderly grow into a national charity.

"Today, Contact the Elderly supports more than 6,000 older people with a network of 11,000 volunteers.

“I know that I've gained as much as I have given in my 53 years of volunteering with Contact the Elderly.

"It’s been an amazing journey, and one which I wouldn’t change for the world."

James Hanson, who works for the charity in Oxfordshire, said the difference that her contribution over the years had made was well-recognised.

He said: "Everyone appreciates her work – thank you Shiela."

The charity decided to celebrate Mrs Glazebrook in national Volunteers' Week last week.

Across the country, hundreds of events were held to celebrate the contribution of the huge range of people who offer their time to thousands of valuable causes.

The week was originally established in 1984 by Volunteering England, and now continues under the direction of the National Council for Voluntary Organisations.

In Oxford, the Citizen Advice Bureau on St Aldate's held a party on Wednesday for some of its 80 volunteers to celebrate their unpaid work and say a massive 'thank you'.

Contact the Elderly took the opportunity to praise and celebrate its helpers up and down the UK.

The organisation describes itself as 'the only national charity solely dedicated to tackling loneliness and social isolation among older people through face-to-face contact'.

Supported by its national network of volunteers, the charity organises monthly Sunday afternoon tea parties for small groups of older people, aged 75 and over, who live alone.

Find out more about the charity's local offering at contact-the-elderly.org.uk