4 in 10 people volunteer in the UK and there must be a reason for it. In this blog, I will be talking about the benefits of Volunteering and how it can help you as a person.
Volunteering helps your confidence:
When it comes to volunteering I have heard so many stories about how it has helped with peoples confidence in themselves and in what they are doing. The reason this is so important is that if you are looking for work, for example, it is vital that you walk into an interview with confidence in who you are but also that you can do the job. Volunteering would allow you to do this as it helps build character and gives you experience in the field you are going into meaning you will have something the other people at the interview won?t have. ? how would volunteering help with this situation ? try and link it back to the first point
Volunteering helps you to gain new skills and great experience:
Volunteering can give you new skills that you didn?t even know you had. It can help you grow your communication skills as you might be working with others to stock shelves or even make a coffee. It also looks great on your CV and could help you get a job. At Community Solutions, you could volunteer as a one to one befriender or in Mr Gatty?s Tea Room or as a group leader or even as admin and reception. No matter what you want to gain skills in there is something for you at Community Solutions ? add something in about what roles we have available and what skills they could learn or experience they could gain.
Volunteering gives a sense of purpose:
Volunteering helps give you a sense of purpose, it gives you something to wake up for. It makes you feel good because you are doing something to help others but don?t take it from me here are a few quotes from some of our volunteers:
?I feel fulfilled and enriched and the staff working there are dedicated and highly professional people who are very supportive. I feel part of a feel good social support family and I would certainly recommend volunteering to anyone especially with CSNW.? ? John
?It makes me feel better if I have helped in some way. It is not always immediately obvious that I do make a positive impact but every now and again someone will say something that makes it worthwhile.? ? Steven
?I get the enjoyment of helping people out of volunteering, and it was also something to get me out of the house.? ? Alison
Volunteering helps the community:
The important work from charities and other non-government organisations rely on volunteers to help spread the workload. For example, in this time of COVID-19, there have been over 750,000 people that have applied to volunteer to help the NHS cope people are volunteering at the community hubs set up around the country to help make sure people are okay. They are calling and helping people who maybe can?t look after themselves. Volunteering is important to help keep the community stable and in a place of healthy wellbeing. Just have a read through this bit again, it?s making a really good point but it?s a bit repetitive in the middle and doesn?t read quite right.
Volunteering helps your Health:
Volunteering can?t only help your mental health but also your physical health.
Did you know that when you volunteer and focus on someone else instead of yourself your stress levels decrease AND your immune system gets stronger? This is because when you focus on someone else it decreases tension building in your body and replaces them with positive feelings and a sense of purpose.
Volunteering can help build community:
Here at Community Solutions, we believe that community is an incredible tool to help the people we support. Joining a community is so important because it gives us people who we can rely on but also helps us gain lasting friendships.
Being a part of a community is so vital especially with everything that?s going on in the world today with us all having to be under social isolation. Community means that when this ends we will have people who we can go and see. It means that during this time we have people calling us and making sure we are okay. It gives us friends and that is the most important thing because being alone isn?t good for you.
Volunteering is Fun:
At Community Solutions, we know how to have fun. We hold yearly celebrations for our volunteers and have so many events to be apart of that you?ll never be bored. Not only that but the people you work with will become your friends and every time you meet will be meeting up with your friends. If you are a group leader or helper then you are bound to have fun in the groups you support as like in the point above, we are all a community.
If you would like to know more about volunteering at Community Solutions North West click here: https://csnw.co.uk/how-to-become-a-volunteer/
If you would like to start the process click here: https://csnw.co.uk/get-involved/volunteer/
Blog by Reuben Wingfield
