General Chat

I do transcribing for the census --suppose that is voluntary work, Ros

I guess you have seen some changes in that time Gwyn, but it must have its rewards working with children Clive that sounds like it could be fun, let us know how it goes Martin, I so agree with you about people not appreciating all the behind the scenes work that goes on to ensure things run smoothly. People can, and do, get taken for granted at times, and yes, you need to make it clear from the outset how much time you can offer on a regular basis It’s good to see teenagers volunteering, Susan. As Clive says it gives them valuable experience. My friend’s son helps at a local cub pack, and I have already pointed out to him that when he does his CV he should include details of what he has done with the pack, it may give him the edge over other job applicants, you never know Andrew, it’s good to see people working with the youngsters., most of the sports teams for the younger age group are run by enthusiastic volunteers, and I guess your efforts are not always appreciated by the parents, especially when their little darling doesn’t make the team. Sorry to hear that you are disillusioned Diana, guess some of the bigger organisations don’t always appreciate the efforts at grassroots level Sue, the WRVS do a great job (have they any vacancies?? – men in uniform!! – got me thinking) ;-))) June, you keep busy. I was always told that if you want something done ask a busy person, and I think that is so true. Ann, I had not come across Lifestyles until you mentioned it, it sounds interesting. Now I am older I am not sure I would want to go back to working with children, although I love it when they come round the house I am at, making history come alive for them I came across an exhibition of paintings by disabled people when I was in Bexleyheath the other day Stella, the artists had each done a short piece about themselves, and it was remarkable how beneficial they found art. It’s good to see so many of us are volunteering, perhaps others will grasp the nettle and offer their services at some point Dee xx

Sue in lincs you have my grateful thanks for what you and other WRVS members do. I used to help with the WRVS 30 years ago, in fact I ended up having a part time (paid) job with them as district secretary. before that I helped in a clothes distribution office. We saw it all there. Those who were so very deserving and those who knew just how to 'milk' the system. Before that i used to help at a respite home for mentally handicapped. One night sleeping overnight (I am sure it was not legally allowed but this was in about 1972) looking after about 8 teenagers, one of whom was unable to walk. I also used to go there to help with the ironing and with feeding a little autistic boy. Also in the 70s I used to help with listening to children read (I assume they would now be called children with special needs) at the local comprehensive school. At the same time I was a youth club worker with 11-15 year olds. When I worked full time from 1982 to 2000 I didn't do any voluntary work to speak of. Since I retired I have been a trustee for Gloucestershire Lifestyles. an independant charity that works with and for people with disabilities aged 16-64 living across the whole of Gloucestershire. Its aims are: 1. Advances and improvements in the quality of life of people with a disability 2. Enable our members to take increasing control of their own affairs and personal choices 3. Redress in the balance between disabled and non-disabled people. Principals are; To offer people freedom of choice in what they want to achieve and how and at what speed they want to go about doing it. To promote equality and inclusion To provide opportunities for volunteers (that means including among the disabled) To provide indirect and direct respite for carers. to promote a county wide awareness of Lifestyles To develop services in partnership with other organisations. I am minutes secretary which makes for interesting meetings given that I am hard of hearing. I also help with proof reading the Lifestyles Newsletters and also occasionally sit on interview boards. we do have trained paid staff. I enjoy this 'work', although given the choice I would work with children again. Because we go away such a lot I am able to work with Lifestyles without a problem because their meetings are bi monthly. I can't commit more than that. also they are best placed to cope with my hearing problem. Ann Glos

Hi Dee I work on day a week as a volunteer ambulance officer (trained for a year) and I help run a playgroup at church, every week during term time and I help run a cafe at church one day a week and in my free time...........lol June

Hi Dee I am a member of the WRVS we get called out to people that are flooded etc we feed them also we get called out anytime if there is a fire, we go out and feed the firemen usually if it is a big fire you get about 60 firemen..........just think all those men in uniforms a great job. Sue

Not as much as I did! Bit dis-allusioned with CRUK if I am honest!! Not in what they do but how they treat their volunteers! x

I agree … the young people of today are not always given the credit when due. We had 40 young people on our books and had a waiting list of up to an additional 10 - 15 youngsters. They all had an amazing enthusiasm and were all willing to work their hardest and spent a lot of their own time helping out. They were certainly a credit to the division and great fun to work with. Some have now gone on to pursue a medical career. Martin

as some of you know i run a football under 7 team volutarily, purely because i love the sport and want to give something back...

Susan I liked your contribution. I have to say the young are very often better than the middle or old aged at volunteering I am sure it is not part of their reason for helping in the first place but when it comes to finding apart time job (or even a full time job later on) who would you take on - someone with experience of helping in an RSPCA shop some someone with no experience? (There was a thread yesterday about kids not finding part time summer work) The National Statistics show kids are very good at volunteering. C

Some time ago I ran a local St John Ambulance divsion for a number of years. We had a couple of ambulances and 60 odd members ranging from 11 to 65 years. We had good times, but it took up nearly all my free time. I was coming home from work and then spending several hours a night on administration. We then had two training sessions a week and countless courses, meetings, fund raising events, duties that had to be covered and all sorts. The problem I found that in general there would be only one or two people that would genuinely help with the organisation and most did not appeciate the work that went on ' behind the scenes'. It was, at times, very rewarding and challenging and great fun, but other times things didn't always go to plan and sometimes I wished I could just put your feet and say blow it! My advice is therefore any wanting to do voluntary work is .. great go for it, but make it clear to the organisers exactly how much time you would be prepared to offer and what you can and can't do. This makes the running easier for them to plan and the less likely chance of being taken advantage of. Martin

I am looking forward to starting with one of our local Age Concerns for the Autumn term doing Genealogy and Introduction to Computers. This looks promising as interesting and social. Other voluntary work done tends to be a bit thankless as it has been more providing facilities in one form or another. C

Hi Dee I'm hoping to be able to help out more in the new school term. For the last few weeks I've been in Class 1 of a primary school for one morning a week. They are a mixed class of Reception, Year 1 and Year 2. Sometimes I listen to readers or supervise a group activity. Because I am there it also means that a group can use the outside play area. Perched on an old car tyre, ( also used for roundabouts for scooters) I was served a plastic meal from the little play house. Enabling the young ones to experience 'Pretend' play is very rewarding and hopefully helps their education. I've been involved with the school for over 29 years...wearing many 'hats' and enjoy being involved without the pressure of meeting targets or having to do lots of paperwork. Gwyn

How many of us on here do voluntary work of some kind? What made us get involved? For a time I was a volunteer with an organisation called Homestart. I helped families with young children, who for various reasons were not coping with every day life. Many years ago, when I had an under 5, I found life quite difficult, and didn’t get much help, so when I realised the organisation existed I thought it would be an opportunity to help someone through the difficult times. What are your experiences of voluntary work?? Dee xx

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