Londonderry back to work advocates suggest voluntary sector

As part of Volunteers' Week, the local volunteer centre will be reinforcing the fantastic benefits of volunteering in your local community whilst the Kickstart to Work Programme will be supporting people in their quest to get back into employment.

Kickstart considers volunteering as an invaluable way of gaining relevant work experience, improving employability skills and increasing self-confidence for some participants.

Volunteers' Week is a national campaign to celebrate volunteering, which takes place from 1 to 7 June each year.

The Week focuses on the key themes of recognising and rewarding current volunteers and recruiting new volunteers by encouraging people to give volunteering a try.

This year, the local volunteer centre have organised a number of promotional events including this joint venture with the Kickstart to Work Programme, when they will visit the car park of Sainsbury's, Strand Road on Thursday 3rd June 2010 from 12noon to 4.00pm in the purpose built, state of the art Kickstart mobile unit.

Hugh Hastings, Chairperson, LSP, commented 'The Kickstart to Work programme on behalf of Derry City Council is supporting The North West Volunteer Centre during volunteer week by bringing their outreach service directly to local communities.

The Kickstart mobile unit is open to the public, with TV and Internet access, to assist in job search activities.

This vehicle will be available on request to compliment local events organised by the community, voluntary or public sector.

Kickstart to Work offers a range of services to residents and businesses in the Derry City Council area, helping people match their abilities and interests with jobs or training opportunities and assisting employers in finding the right staff.'

That vision of helping people to identify opportunities in their lives is clearly a shared goal of both projects, with the North West Volunteer Centre keen to promote the benefits of volunteering to the general public.

Jacqueline Garnon, Centre Manager of North West Volunteer Centre explained: "Volunteering can provide a real focus to someone's life and provide a gateway to other opportunities including paid work, but more importantly, the impact of volunteering has a profound effect on us all; individuals, families, the environment and society as a whole.

"It is the lifeblood of our communities and there is no doubt that volunteering is making a real difference to people's lives in the North West."

To find out more about the services we provide at the North West Volunteer Centre and Kickstart to Work Programme why not pop along to see us in the Kickstart Bus at Sainsbury's, Strand Road between 12.00am and 4.00pm on Thursday 3rd June 2010.

You can talk to an advisor about volunteering or job/ training opportunities in your local area. Alternatively contact the Volunteer Centre on tel. (028) 7127 1017 or Kickstart to Work Programme on tel. (028) 7130 8466.