A big welcome to our new member of staff, Jenni Wood, who’s running Volunteering Yate the programme which supports people looking to volunteer by matching them up with the perfect volunteer role to suit them.
Jenni has been volunteering with Southern Brooks for the past 18 months on a student counselling placement. She has enjoyed helping people to feel more confident and capable of reaching their full potential. When the Volunteer Co-ordinator role came up she was attracted to the idea of channelling her passion for supporting other people through a different outlet.
“I like to make a difference, help others. I started volunteering many years ago when my children were small, I felt isolated and alone as a new mother. I found joining groups helped me connect and make friends, I was part of something which made me feel supported and valued. I wanted others to feel the same, it wasn’t long before I started volunteering. Through my volunteering I discovered I was passionate about helping others, this started my journey down the counselling path. Volunteering is a lifeline for so many, from all ages, social diversity. The opportunities to meet new people, develop new skills, be challenged, have a purpose in life, offering everyone the opportunity to find themselves, grow and be part of something much bigger in their community.”
Volunteering Yate works in a responsive way to the needs of the community. Rather than a dated model of waiting for people to contact us in a set place at a set time, we are flexible at meeting potential volunteers at times and places which suit them best. If the Pop In café at 2pm on a Tuesday is a good time for someone, then that’s where we’ll meet them. For people who don’t want to meet face to face, we can arrange things via email or through our volunteering yate facebook page.
There are so many brilliant community groups, charities and activities taking place across Yate, Chipping Sodbury and Doddington that people have a wide choice of opportunities to pick from. We can help people find something to suit their skills and interests, from driving a minibus for Green Community Travel, welcoming people to Yate Heritage Centre or tree planting with Wapley Bushes Conservation Group.
If you have a role you’d like to find someone to help with or you’d like to volunteer but not sure where to start, get in touch with Jenni at volunteeringyate@southernbrooks.org.uk or call 07970894763.