Katharine House Hospice’s Post

💬 🤔 Ever wondered what the long-term personal benefits of volunteering are? In this blog, we go over the connections, perspective, empathy, and more you can gain from volunteering with MEDLIFE. To learn more, click below! #BenefitsOfVolunteering #VolunteerAbroad #GainPerspective

🌟 Celebrating Volunteer Week 🌟 As we celebrate Volunteer Week, I wanted to share how volunteering has profoundly shaped my career in social work. I've had great volunteering opportunities where I've been able to use my social work knowledge and skills, previously as the Safeguarding Trustee at The Kids Network, and now as the Independent Member of Safeguarding at The Guide Dogs for the Blind Association. Reflecting on these experiences, I'm reminded of the incredible impact volunteering has had on both my professional and personal development. Here are five ways volunteering has helped me in my social work career: 1. **Opportunity to ultilise my social work skills outside of statutory social work:** Volunteering has helped me to see how my experience, knowledge and skills are truly valuable outside of my job role. 2. **Skill Development:** Volunteering allowed me to hone critical skills such as active listening, conflict resolution, and collaboration, all of which are invaluable in social work. 3. **Network Expansion:** It opened doors to a network of passionate professionals and advocates, providing opportunities for collaboration, mentorship, and support. 4. **Deeper understanding of the safeguarding needs and challenges in the Third Sector:** Hands-on experience has given me practical insights that enhanced my knowledge that I now use in delivering safeguarding training, particularly to trustees. 5. **Personal Fulfillment:** Knowing that my efforts made a tangible difference - which is why so many of us social workers enter the profession in the first place! Volunteering is incredibly rewarding and has re-ignited my passion and dedication to social work. Volunteering is a powerful way to give back to the community while growing both personally and professionally. What volunteering opportunities do you want to explore? Happy Volunteer Week! 🌍💙 #VolunteerWeek #SocialWork #CommunityImpact #ProfessionalGrowth #EmpathyInAction

As a #VolunteeringProfessional, my own experiences as a volunteer absolutely shape my work. Being able to put my ‘volunteer hat’ on is key to developing initiatives that will work for volunteers and helps me understand the support volunteers need from their manager and organisation to succeed. I experienced this recently when I had to make the difficult decision to leave my own volunteer role. Due to work and personal commitments, the volunteer role just wasn’t the fit for me just now, however much I wanted to make it work. Leaving a volunteer role can be hard and invoke a lot of guilt - but a good #VolunteerManager will ensure the volunteer is supported. They’ll listen and understand the issues and anything the organisation can learn. They’ll explore whether another role would be more suitable. They’ll thank without adding to the guilt. They’ll make it easy for a volunteer to return in the future. I hope Morna O'May, CVA, FRSA won’t mind me giving her a public shout out for doing all this in abundance when I had to take a break from volunteering. I felt appreciated even as I left and open to volunteering in the future. That’s the difference a good Volunteer Manager makes - without them, volunteers don’t have the support that makes such a difference to their experience, motivation and commitment. To all #VolunteerManagers today, you might think you’re just ‘doing your job’ but rest assured, that job and support means the world to someone volunteering for an organisation they care about. #VolunteerManagers #IVMD2024

At ACDCForYou, we believe volunteering is a powerful first step toward gaining valuable work experience and building the skills you need for your future career. Here’s how volunteering can help: ✅ Gain practical experience in fields aligned with your interests. ✅ Enhance work-related skills while making a positive impact on your community. ✅ Build relationships and networks that boost social wellbeing and confidence. #NDISEmployment #InclusiveWorkforce #NDISVolunteering #EmploymentSupports #VolunteeringOpportunities #DisabilityEmployment #SupportiveWorkplaces #NDISParticipants #AccessibleWork #InclusiveVolunteering #NDISOpportunities #DisabilitySupport #WorkplaceInclusion #VolunteerWithNDIS #EmpowerThroughWork

Want to know a secret to increasing volunteer engagement? 🤐 Change your next “volunteer ask” email subject to "Give an hour.” The psychology here is subtle but important: When we frame volunteering in terms of money ("donate time"), people: • Think transactionally • Calculate opportunity costs • Feel less connected When we frame it in hours: • Think relationally • Focus on impact • Feel more connected Your volunteers will start saying: "An hour feels like something I can share. My time feels like something I never have enough of." Small language changes, big mindset shifts. #SynagogueLife #VolunteerEngagement Track volunteer hours with ShulCloud’s event management module!

Did you know? ✅ 76% of employers say volunteering makes candidates stand out. ✅ Volunteering helps you develop key skills like teamwork, communication, and leadership. ✅ Volunteers are 27% more likely to find a job after unemployment. 💡 Whether you’re looking to enhance your CV, network with like-minded individuals, or gain hands-on experience, volunteering is a powerful step toward career growth. Start where your passions meet purpose—and watch your opportunities expand! 🌟 #Volunteering #CareerGrowth #Networking

This #VolunteersWeek I have decided to delete the Volunteering section of my LinkedIn profile. Bear with me. I have good reason. I have realised that my voluntary roles are too important to be left languishing at the bottom of my profile. In fact, these roles are so significant to me that I think they should be celebrated and given at least as much prominence as my paid work. Volunteering gives me so much joy and I have learned so much from every experience. Volunteering IS ‘Experience’. The fact that LinkedIn insists that we should separate paid and unpaid work speaks volumes about this platform’s view on productivity and worth. It’s one of the reasons why I sometimes feel uncomfortable even posting here. But we can choose to value our volunteering, to raise the profile of unpaid work and to acknowledge what we gain - and give - as a volunteer. So I have deleted the Volunteering section, and I’ve moved ALL of my experience to the top of my page. Nothing more important than anything else. Each entry a vital part of my career and life …and my LinkedIn profile. #volunteer #volunteering #workexperience #productivity #values #celebrate #volunteersweek24 #lovevolunteering

April is National Volunteer Month! Check out this insightful article from Virtuous on 4 effective ways to organize volunteer opportunities. From streamlining communication to maximizing impact, these tips will help you make the most of your volunteers' time and talents. 🔗 https://lnkd.in/gbWeWxCv #NationalVolunteerMonth #Volunteer #Volunteering #MakeADifference #CommunityService #VolunteerManagement

If your workplace supports it’s employees (you!) to do something to support your local community or good causes, get in touch with us at Humankind Charity Employer supported volunteering days, fundraising, events…. We’re always looking for people to support our work and spread the word! Your workplace might benefit too. Volunteering and fundraising can be fun, worthwhile and bring teams together. We’re a pretty good corporate partner too. And if your workplace doesn’t already support this… today is always the best time to bring it up! esv@humankindcharity.org.uk or fundraising@humankindcharity.org.uk

See how volunteering through VO Connect can help your employees, your company, and your community! Did you know that 68% of Canadians say, given the choice between two jobs, they would choose the one at the company with the stronger volunteering culture? (2017 Volunteer Canada/Ipsos Public Affairs). Volunteering is emerging as a premiere way to engage and retain employees and strengthen your team. Making it a success requires 4 key components: - Support of your company’s top leadership - Transparent and inclusive policies - A true “partnership” approach - Quality management of volunteer activities, time, and resources VO Connect is Volunteer Ottawa’s Corporate Community Engagement program. The VO team has the connections and expertise needed to make your corporate volunteering initiative a success. They help you find community organizations which align with your values and mandate, create and coordinate your activities, and liaise between you and your community organization partner to ensure everyone benefits. Whether you organize activities yourself or make it easy by using VO Connect, employee volunteering is good for everyone. The sharing of time, skills, empathy, and creativity is vital to the inclusivity, strength, and wellbeing of our communities. Learn more about VO Connect: https://lnkd.in/gnYB6-Qx #CorporateSocialResponsibility #EmployerSupportedVolunteering