YMCA Volunteer Case study

For the last week, the team at VANEL’s Volunteer Centre have been working hard to dispel some of the many myths surrounding the subject of volunteering on our Facebook page. Such myths include, volunteering is limited to “working in charity shops”,  “volunteering will affect my benefits”, and most commonly, “there’s no point working for free”.

First off, whilst some volunteer opportunities are retail focused, there’s no rule that says that as a volunteer you have to work in a charity shop (which, by the way, many people do quite happily!) Hundreds of other volunteer roles exist, both at home, and even abroad – so there’s bound to be something out there that you can do, either in your spare time as a hobby, or in order to brush up your CV. Furthermore, people who are out of work are actually encouraged to volunteer alongside job searching in order to sharpen their skills and close any gaps in their CV (talk to your jobcentre adviser and find out the rules to ensure you don’t encounter any problems). This brings us to our third myth, which I think we can say, we’ve pretty much dispelled – “there’s no point working for free”.  Aside from being a great way to give back to your community and make new friends, volunteering opens you up to a whole host of training and employment opportunities that you may not have otherwise known about, or had the experience to apply for. Whilst it’s easy to reel off a list saying what the personal benefits of volunteering are, we feel it’s also important to provide examples of when and how this has worked in practice. The story of former YMCA Volunteer, Leanne Kennedy, who now works as the charity’s Events and Marketing Assistant, is just one such example. Read her story below.

Leanne’s Story
After obtaining a degree in Criminology at the University of Grimsby Leanne was looking for opportunities to volunteer so that she could gain more experience towards a future career path.

Interested in services offering support to vulnerable young people in the area, through a friend Leanne approached YMCA Humber enquiring about any voluntary positions they had available.

Leanne started off volunteering supporting client enriching activities that YMCA provides for the young people in its housing projects, helping out with arts and crafts sessions at the Peaks Lane Hostel in Grimsby.

Leanne realised through her volunteering how much these sessions helped young people with their progression and eventual move into independent living.

Leanne explained: “The nature of the activities means the young people were relaxed and easily opened up to key workers about issues that are affecting them – it is quite subtle.

She was also involved with the cooking activities, which were a great way to provide young people with vital life skills that they will need for after YMCA.”

And it was obtaining the first-hand experience of the work of YMCA through these sessions that led to Leanne being supported to become becoming further involved with the charity’s work by volunteering as a Customer Service Officer and a key worker, joining the charity’s relief bank of support staff soon after.

Leanne continued: “Straight away I enjoyed working with the young people but it was the dedication of the staff that struck me the most.

“She knows that from my very first few sessions that she wanted to get more involved.”

So she decided to take part in YMCA’s annual homelessness fundraiser Sleep Easy, bedding down in a cardboard box on a cold, January night.

She recalled: “I thought it was a good fundraising event because it doesn’t just raise money for charity but it also educates people about the work that charities do in this area and how people become homeless.

“It was very cold but it was only for one night, other people, unfortunately, have it much worse.“It was good to be able to think I was doing something that would be benefiting the young people we support at YMCA.”

In December 2016 Leanne applied for and secured full-time employment with YMCA Humber and their Events & Marketing Assistant.

Leanne would recommend volunteering as a route into a career in the charitable sector.

She concluded: “I would definitely recommend volunteering at YMCA if you have an interest in helping others, supporting people and making a positive impact on people’s lives.”

For more information on volunteering at YMCA Humber, please visit their website or call Alan Burley, Funding and Volunteer Coordinator on 01472 608 303.