Spotlight on: Be A Good Neighbour
This week is Small Charity Week (22–29 June 2026) and we’re taking the opportunity to shine a light on the amazing work being done by some of Gloucestershire’s small charities.
Today we’re taking a look at Be a Good Neighbour (https://www.beagoodneighbour.org/)
Tell us a bit about Be a Good Neighbour
Be a Good Neighbour is a registered charity (1216953). At our heart is a simple but powerful message: “Love your neighbour as yourself.”
It is this that inspires the work of Be a Good Neighbour, a charity committed to serving communities through compassion, practical support, encouragement, and hope.
Inspired by the parable of the Good Samaritan, Be a Good Neighbour exists to demonstrate love in action. The charity believes that the work we do, should be lived out through kindness, generosity, justice, and care for those who are vulnerable, isolated, struggling, or overlooked. At present, we work with people who have mental health issues, isolated, lonely people or anyone needing help through a crisis. Through community outreach, mentoring, wellbeing support, and partnership work, Be a Good Neighbour supports adults, young people, and families through one-to-one support and groups across Cheltenham and beyond. The charity’s mission reflects the principle of helping one another and serving others with humility and compassion. We offer practical support with forms, appointments, referrals, CVs, job interviews, training opportunities, mentoring, volunteering, and connecting people with services, resources, and others who can help. We also provide guidance on personal and family matters, support for charities and community groups, and assistance with any other challenges you may be facing—just ask. In a world where many people face loneliness, mental health struggles, hardship, and uncertainty, we have an important opportunity to be visible and active within local communities.
Be a Good Neighbour also seeks to work alongside organisations to strengthen outreach, build lasting relationships, and create meaningful support for people who need it most. Through tailored, community-focused initiatives, we work collaboratively with partner organisations to identify local needs and develop practical solutions that make a real difference. By combining resources, knowledge, and expertise, Be a Good Neighbour can help organisations extend their reach, engage more effectively with residents, and provide targeted support to individuals and families who may otherwise go unnoticed. Our partnership approach is flexible and responsive, enabling us to design programmes and activities that reflect the unique challenges and opportunities within each community. Together, we can foster stronger connections, reduce isolation, promote wellbeing, and create positive, lasting outcomes for local people. Through partnership working, we aim not only to address immediate needs but also to help build resilient, connected communities where everyone feels valued, supported, and included.
What are your main challenges at present?
One of our main challenges is increasing awareness of Be a Good Neighbour and the support we provide within the community. Many people who could benefit from our services, volunteer with us, or support our work are simply unaware that we exist or do not fully understand the impact we have. We are therefore focused on raising our profile, sharing more of our success stories, strengthening our community presence, and building partnerships that help us have a wider reach. Greater awareness will enable us to support more people, attract more volunteers, and secure the funding needed to sustain and grow our services.
What are your plans for the future?
Be a Good Neighbour's vision for the future is to expand its reach and increase its impact within local communities, ensuring that more people can access the support, companionship, and practical help they need. We aim to raise awareness of our services so that individuals experiencing isolation, loneliness, hardship, or other challenges know where to turn for support. We plan to strengthen our network of volunteers, develop new partnerships with community organisations, and create additional opportunities for people to connect and support one another. By building on existing services and responding to emerging community needs, we hope to deliver a wider range of activities and initiatives that promote wellbeing, inclusion, and resilience. It goes without saying that a key priority for the future is securing sustainable funding to support our growth and ensure the long-term delivery of our work.
Be a Good Neighbour plans to develop training on social justice, community inclusion, and practical befriending. We want to teach organisations that help individuals, organisations, and community groups understand local social challenges and respond effectively.
We also would like to begin to share stories of people whose lives have been positively impacted through friendship, support, and community connection. By highlighting these real-life experiences, we hope to inspire hope, encourage others to get involved, and demonstrate the difference that simple acts of kindness can make. Through teaching, training, storytelling, and shared learning, we aim to equip others with the skills and confidence to put Befriending into practice and help build stronger, more connected communities.
Please take a look at our website to see some of the work we do: www.beagoodneighbour.org
You can find out more about Be A Good Neighbour by visiting their website (https://www.beagoodneighbour.org/) or e-mailing Beagoodneighbour@outlook.com
If you’d like to make a donation, visit https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/beagoodneighbour-start-up-costs