Tyne & Wear Archives are developing a dynamic volunteering project for young people (aged 16 - 25). Supported by v, the project will be inspired by Olympic and Paralympic values in order to help young people and communities reap the benefits of hosting London 2012.

In order to achieve the project aims we intend to establish a young person's steering group that will drive this project forward. The project will run until June 2011 and we would hope to work with the group for the duration of the project.

The aims of the steering group are:

-To establish a brand for the project

-To assist with recruitment of a cohort of young people volunteers

-To inform and plan volunteer induction and training

-To define the meaning of Olympic and Paralympics values within the project

-To represent the needs and perspectives of young people and decide how to address them

At this stage we are looking for young people to simply register interest in joining the steering group by 30th June

For more information contact Louise Britton 0191 2772299 louise.britton@twmuseums.org.uk

Tyne & Wear Archives are developing a dynamic volunteering project for young people (aged 16 - 25). Supported by v, the project will be inspired by Olympic and Paralympic values in order to help young people and communities reap the benefits of hosting London 2012.

In order to achieve the project aims we intend to establish a young person's steering group that will drive this project forward. The project will run until June 2011 and we would hope to work with the group for the duration of the project.

The aims of the steering group are:

-To establish a brand for the project

-To assist with recruitment of a cohort of young people volunteers

-To inform and plan volunteer induction and training

-To define the meaning of Olympic and Paralympics values within the project

-To represent the needs and perspectives of young people and decide how to address them

At this stage we are looking for young people to simply register interest in joining the steering group by 30th June

For more information contact Louise Britton 0191 2772299 louise.britton@twmuseums.org.uk

FREE

SKILLS FOR LIFE TRAINING FOR YOUR WORKFORCE & VOLUNTEERS

To the attention of employers and HR departments

What is Skills for Life?

Skills for Life is the national strategy for improving adult literacy and numeracy skills.  All literacy and numeracy are free for employees through the Train to Gain initiative

Who is it for?

All employees! Employees with qualifications and employees without qualifications including supervisors and junior managers who wish to brush up on some aspects of literacy or numeracy.

How do you do it?

Tuition for each test last about 12 hours.

Tuition will be organised to suit the employer and the employee.

Tuition can be in the workplace, in one of our Centres or a local venue.

Skills for Life Certificates are available at levels of learning to suit the learners.

Why get involved?

Skills for Life is a practical approach that offers an effective solution to meeting organisational improvements and business objectives, such as:

•    meeting health and safety requirements
•    increasing productivity and improving quality
•    achievement of mandatory training, e.g. NVQ
•    reducing absenteeism
•    reducing errors/wastage
•    improving customer relations
•    contributing to Investors in People award
•    being seen as a learning organisation.

What are the results?

•    A confident, flexible and skilled workforce, responsive to change, leading to effectiveness and efficiency.
•    An opportunity for employees to modernise, consolidate and maintain skills and acquire new qualifications.
•    Employee confidence to access other training and progression opportunities within the workplace.

Contact Kathryn Lamb for more details on 0191 4956241

Volunteering is the most rewarding thing I could do with my spare time. I get to meet loads of different people, work in a supported environment with a diverse range of fellow boat crew members, learn new stuff every day and as an added bonus I get to stuff my face with biscuits washed down with copious amounts of tea. And if all that wasn’t reason enough, the biggest honour is that as a volunteer for a St John’s Ambulance we get the chance to make a difference.  Instead of donating money, we donate our time, energy and enthusiasm. A big part of us goes into making the boat (Ladybird) a great place to be for crew and passengers alike.

Here’s a typical day in the life....

First things first, once we arrive kitted out in our uniform we open the boat up and get the kettle on. We get there an hour before our passengers who are from many kinds of groups, associations and fellow charities. The idea behind the boat is to provide an enjoyable and memorable experience to those who maybe wouldn’t otherwise get the chance, in fact after safety I’d say our most important aspect is having a good time doing what we do, and this atmosphere turns out to be infectious.

Then we get the boat prepped, using our checklist we work through all safety points and ensure the boat is not only working perfectly but looking good too, sometimes I find myself in the engine room (an advantage of being only 5ft tall) checking  the oil levels and other times I’m teetering along the ledges cleaning windows (complete with life jacket of course). Calls are made to head office of our passenger numbers and planned route and we’re good to go.  The beauty is there is no hierarchy, the crew just want to work together and help one another out and that for me is a big draw. From working in a corporate environment in the past it is an absolute joy to be seen by your boat master and fellow crew as one of the team... yet strangely enough I always seem to be making the tea... apparently I’m very good.. .. hmmm...I wonder .

Our Passengers arrive and we greet them as they board, although we do not care for them directly as our job is the care of the boat and subsequently their safety it is true to say that we get involved and spend time chatting, answering questions and sharing snippets of trivia about the Ladybird and the wonderful riverside we cover.

We tailor the trip according to their needs, and with our new pieces of kit we can offer to moor up at lots of different destinations, giving the passengers a chance to hop off for a picnic and me the chance to put the kettle on... again... we get the opportunity to try out lots of roles from  spotting boats on the front deck, using hand signals to communicate to the stern from the bow, rope work at lochs and moorings and driving Ladybird along the Great Ouse.

Once we’ve meandered along the river and travelled back and forth through lochs we head back to the Marina and say a fond farewell to our guests. Some we see several times over the season and again the next year too, their return visits emphasise that they get as much out of their trip as we do.

Ladybird is put to bed, paperwork completed, lifebuoys are stowed, and the kettle is switched off.  We say our goodbyes until next time, with faces flushed from a day on the river, arms aching from winding loch paddles and sore calf muscles from peeking over the helm (a disadvantage to only being 5ft), and a sense of fulfilment from doing your bit.

I said on my first trip out “I’d pay to do this”, it really is a joy and  I get to be surrounded by a wealth of knowledge and experience from crew and boat masters. Whatever the weather it is utterly awe-inspiring, the great outdoors, the smile on a child’s face when they step on a boat for the first time, beautiful flora and fauna and the abundance of wildlife make each trip unique, you realise how lucky you are to be in such a fortunate position..... not forgetting all the tea and biscuits too.

 Thank you to Kelly for sharing her story of volunteering, Kelly is a student and volunteers in Cambridge, returning home to Newcastle every summer.

We are happy to welcome Kirsten and Michael to the team ,they join us for the next six months and will be contacting you at some point to say hello and learn more about your organisation.

Kirsten will be supporting at community events, helping collate the volunteer newsletters and planning for Volunteers Week and Make A Difference Day 2010.

Michael will be supporting us with our database and will be contacting you to discuss your current roles and roles you would like to develop.

Samantha has also joined the CSV office staff and will be helping with reception and office duties.

ALWAYS WANTED TO RUN A FARM?

Are you sick of the rat race? Wish your life was more “Good Life” than “This Life”?

Is a day on the allotment your idea of heaven? Think you can run your own business?

BBC is looking for ten couples to take part in a new series which will really put your

aptitude for farming to the test. The series we are working on will feature ten couples or pairs (married couples / siblings / friends etc.) who would like to grasp the opportunity to change their lives forever and run a farm/small holding.  The programme will see the ten couples learn all the basics they need before decamping to a farm in the beautiful British countryside where they will be challenged in all areas of farm life, from animal husbandry to coping with the unpredictable summer weather.  The series will culminate in the winning pair getting the opportunity to live and work on their own small farm.

We’re looking for couples of all ages and relationships (married couples / siblings / friends etc.) who are serious about wanting to change their lives and who will relish farm life.  Whether it’s a love of animals, a passion for gardening, an interest in sustainability and food provenance or a general lust for all things outdoors, we want to hear from anyone who thinks they’ve got what it takes to take on this lifestyle-transforming project.  We are really keen to have some city slickers and some urbanites in the series as well though, people who would be keen to make a break from London into the British countryside. 

We are especially looking for people who may already have some experience in working or volunteering with animals, food or nature, just some kind of demonstrated interest that would make them a credible and hopefully successful small holding partnership.  We imagined and hoped there might be many such people using the volunteer centre and involved in self-sufficiency, sustainability, conservation, the environment, animals, food or nature (basically anything outdoors!) now or in the past with you who would jump at the opportunity to take their breeding, growing or craft skills to another level with the assistance of our project.

 If people want to apply they need to send an email with their name to farm@splashmediatv.co.uk and an application form will be emailed out.  The deadline for applications is 28^th April 2010 – You must be available for 6 weeks over the summer 2010