‘Be the difference’ in your community - Volunteering Campaign
Hackney Council and Volunteer Centre Hackney (VCH) are encouraging residents to ‘be the difference’ in their communities, as part of a campaign to promote volunteering across the borough.
Volunteering offers a realm of opportunities for personal growth and building stronger communities. Roles include teaching English to refugees, helping community gardens grow, supporting people with additional needs to explore activities in London, and managing organisations’ social media channels.
VCH helps residents learn how they can give their time to causes that matter to them, whilst supporting over 400 local not-for-profit groups to successfully host volunteers. They run volunteer fairs every three months, with the next fair set to take place on Thursday 30 January from 5 – 7pm at Hackney Museum. The fair is free and open to everyone, and children are welcome.
Organisations that will be present at the fair include Hackney Museum, Crisis, Virgin Sports, Blind Aid, FoodDrop, Hackney Recovery College, Groundwork, Social Action for Health, Headway East London, who support people affected by brain injuries, and youth education charity City Year, amongst many more. The attending organisations will be offering a wide range of roles, including mentoring, retail, befriending and administration.
I am proud of Hackney’s dynamic voluntary and community sector, which quietly transforms the lives of Hackney residents every day - through tackling social isolation, bringing communities together and supporting and providing a range of services for our residents.
I would encourage people to come to this event to learn more about the excellent work these charities do and how you can get involved.
Volunteering provides an opportunity to be part of shaping our borough for the better. It is also an opportunity to gain new skills, build lasting connections and boost health and wellbeing.
Former VCH volunteer, Victoria, said: “I encourage people to volunteer because it changed my life – this really isn't an overstatement.” Portuia, who also found a volunteer role through VCH said, that the fair “is a great way to speak to organisations directly, and get a feel of what’s involved.”
To find 100s more local volunteering roles, visit Volunteer Centre Hackney’s website: www.vchackney.org/