Volunteering in the community
As two more community venues receive the King's Trust treatment, we're pausing to look back at some our past community volunteering projects that young people at IAF have completed and marvel at the impact they have had whilst on programme. Over the years, we've supported many different organisations to improve their facilities and get a makeover funded by the fundraising activities of IAF's young people. From wildlife parks to sensory gardens and churches to care homes, we've quietly been delivering social value to Nottinghamshire's communities and helping young people to develop their skills in preparation for the world of work.
Mansfield wildlife rescue
Mansfield 5 were surrounded by animals as they constructed and painted the sites fences and furniture. Over the years, several of our young people have stayed on as volunteers, maintaining the grounds so that injured wildlife has a safe space to live and recover.
Hetty's
Mansfield 3 and Mansfield 6 both paid a visit to Hetty's in Mansfield Woodhouse and their combined efforts resulted in a fantastic memorial and wildlife garden for service users to visit for quiet reflection.
Teversal visitors centre
Ashfield 2 took to the Teversal trails to repair and replace wooden fencing as well as building a mud kitchen play area for young visitors to explore and run wild in. Members from Ashfield 3 also helped out during their work experience weeks, picking up fresh tasks to help the centre and its users.
Bassetlaw Foodbank
Worksop 6 got stuck into life on the community allotments and helped prepare the foundations of a BBQ areas and built raised beds for accessible planting. Whilst half of the team worked on the outdoor space, the others upcycled furniture for their cafe which later opened as a much needed community space for local residents.
Mansfield Woodhouse Methodist Church
Mansfield 7 made a huge difference to the Methodist Church garden, clearing away years of overgrown weeds and rubbish from the site and resetting the space with easy to maintain gravelled space for the community set with recycled pallet planters and seating.
Sutton Young People's Centre
Ashfield 1 made a great start updating areas of the SYPC site owned by Notts County Council. They painted meeting rooms, built wheelchair accessible benches for outdoor seating area and even added a mural to the entrance.
Goodwin Hall
Retford 1 delivered an award winning garden project to make the facility bloom with brand new planting and bedding areas.
Jigsaw Allotments
Mansfield 8 completed their community project over in Pleasley at the Jigsaw Community allotment grounds. They built a pond, bird boxes, bug hotels and repainted sheds and fences whilst also finding time to whip up a brick built BBQ.
Why volunteer?
Volunteering is a great way to reconnect with your community and give back to the services and organisations who are actively working to make Nottinghamshire a better place to live. Research also shows that volunteering can be great for your mental health and for young people who are not in work or education, it can be a way to build new friendships, add experience to your CV and give you a healthy routine to get you out of the house.
How can I get involved?
You don't need to be on our King's Trust programmes though to access volunteering opportunities within social action projects and IAF is regularly visited by the team at VIY to recruit young people to their upcoming construction projects. Opportunities within our Mansfield hub, which most recently included renovating the downstairs into a life-skills kitchen, also presents young people with a chance to learn new skills and we couldn't have made the youth hub the space it is today without your support! Other micro-volunteering challenges within our youth activities timetable are also there and events community litter picks are a fantastic example of a simple action we take to embed pride in place - look out for upcoming events or share an idea for a space you'd like to support with our team.
If you are interested in exploring local volunteering opportunities, IAF staff can also help you explore other websites such as BCVS and MCVS or put you in touch with contacts we've built up over the years.