The role of Voluntary Organisations in the local community and their impact on citizens in Europe

Description

Volunteering is an essential element of active citizenship.  The community benefits from the time and enthusiasm given by volunteers in a large number of organisations.  The volunteer benefits by developing a sense of belonging to their community and ownership of issues within their control.  The possibility of developing existing skills and learning new ones is as important as the networking opportunities available. In a time of recession the role of volunteers is vital to support groups where funding is limited.  It is also provides opportunities for unemployed citizens to make a valuable contribution to the community as a volunteer while at the same time searching for paid employment. For senior citizens, becoming a volunteer or increasing the time spent volunteering enables them to remain as active citizens in their community for many years after retirement.  The benefits to physical and mental wellbeing cannot be underestimated. The meeting compared and contrasted the role of the volunteer across Europe in order to learn from the best practices and discussed the changing role of volunteering in the future of the European Union.

Project Activities

Visit to The Living Rainforest.  This is a wildlife and educational charity that teaches conservation and an understanding of the Rainforest fauna and wildlife. Volunteers are used as guides for visitors and to maintain the Rainforest gardens.

Visit to the Newbury Community Furniture Project. This is a local organisation that collects unwanted furniture and household goods and sells them for profit or donates them to families on low incomes.

Presentation on the role of the Voluntary Sector in the UK and West Berkshire given by the Director of the Volunteer Centre WestBerkshire. This was followed by a question and answer session and discussion among the participants from the Twin Towns, local Councillors, local MP and MEP for the South East Region. A number of the Twin Town visitors gave brief presentations on the role of the Voluntary Sector in their communities. The following topics were discussed during the meeting; Publicity, the cost of recruiting and training volunteers, Health and Safety Issues for volunteers, How volunteers can be protected from exploitation, Reasons why people volunteer, The importance of local organisations understanding local need without central Government involvement, The importance of local initiatives, The demographics of volunteering across Europe.

Copies of the presentations can be found here: British, Italian, Belgium, Spanish, German, Hungarian