Why Volunteer?

• Personal Development

       Much as volunteering is about the person receiving your time, it  is also about you. We care about your personal development through the volunteering experience. Your service co-ordinator is always at hand to support you and will have regular meeting to monitor your progress to make sure that we are meeting your expectations whether is be career goals or personal growth.  

I really enjoy being a volunteer for Children First Derby. I feel that I have been well matched with the families and had lots of support from the service Co-ordinator. The mum that I have supported for just over a year had been in an abusive relationship. With the separation from her husband she felt depressed and anxious finding life hard and day to day activities difficult. She has a eight year old son and found being a single parent hard to deal with, especially having no family or friends living nearby. Mum was very down and lonely. To start off with I gave her lots of emotional support, time to talk. As time went on I continued to visit each week helping with various things including school meetings, liaising with social workers and her domestic violence outreach worker. I gave her friendly advice on parenting skills, bringing her and her son closer together which was nice to see. The house was beginning to be a happy home.  We also went on outings together which helped with her anxiety. I supported her at the job centre when she had interviews and also during the court proceedings. I helped Mum plan for her future, enrolling her on a college course and she is now training to be a teaching assistant. I have really enjoyed supporting this family and found it totally rewarding.

• Developing your skills and improving employment prospects

     Through volunteering you will develop your management and communication skills and use your experiences and creativity to benefit others. At Children First Derby Mentoring and Family Support  volunteers get ongoing training and support from the coordinators to monitor their personal development through their volunteering experience.

I am currently studying a counselling and psychotherapy degree at university and am moving on to train to become a Social Worker. Throughout my time volunteering at Children First Derby it made me realise how important it is that families have the support that they offer as they make a big difference, and the charity have given me many opportunities such as training sessions in order for me to expand my knowledge and experience. Volunteering as a family support worker has inspired me to become a social worker as a career because it has given me an insight to how rewarding helping children and families is. So many families need the support that Children First Derby provides, and the charity has improved the lives of so many families.      

• Meeting people

Volunteering is a great opportunity to meet like minded people that share your values to help other people. It’s a great way to share your life stories and experiences, learn new things while making a positive  contribution and giving back. At Children First Derby, we make it a point to make our volunteers feel like they are part of a community and showing our appreciation by organising fun events including Curry Nights, Volunteer Appreciation ceremonies and get togethers to show how much we value your contribution to our charity.