Shipley-based charity, Volunteering Bradford, has engaged more unemployed people in volunteering sessions, than any other city in England.
The charity has been delivering a volunteering brokerage scheme in the City since August 2009. It has become extremely successful with community organisations from across Bradford and, to date, over 800 unemployed people have been referred through the three Bradford Job Centres to the scheme.
Andy Stephenson, 22, was referred from the Job Centre and has undertaken voluntary work at the Shipley Youth Café, helping to set up a new social enterprise. Andy has now gained valuable transferable skills to re-enter the employment sector and develop a career pattern.
Andy said, “volunteering has given me the opportunity to apply my existing skills. I have gained valuable key skills from volunteering, completed National Awards such as v50, enhanced my CV and improved my chance of returning to the employment sector.”
The volunteering brokerage scheme was recently launched by the Department for Work and Pensions and is aimed at providing 34,000 volunteering placements in the UK over two years. The scheme hopes to help the long term unemployed to develop work based skills through volunteering.
From April the scheme will be extended to include young people aged under 25. These young people will volunteer through the National Young Volunteers Service, V Involved, which aims to inspire a new generation of volunteers and provides an accredited qualification. The scheme is also supported by Bradford Council.
Dave Forrest, Director of Volunteering Bradford said, “Volunteering provides a fantastic opportunity to develop skills, fill in gaps in a CV and provide up to date references. Community organisations benefit greatly from having additional support too. Recent surveys show Bradford has more volunteers than other Yorkshire city and activities such as this provide a real step change for unemployed people”
Visit: www.volunteeringbradford.org for more information.
10th March 2010
