14—VOLUNTEERING NEWS
£66m
million the estimated contribution that volunteers in Tameside bring to the economy each year
Celebrating the 26,200 Volunteers in Tameside! The State of The Sector report has provided a wealth of information on volunteers and volunteering in our borough. Over the next few months the team here at the Volunteer Centre will be looking through the data to see what we can learn from the report, how we can best support organisations and groups that have volunteers and how we can make it easier for you to volunteer. You can play your part in developing volunteering by helping us re-energise the Tameside Volunteering Strategy. Our Director of Volunteering, Sue Vickers, would like to invite you to a re-connection meeting in July (date to be confirmed) at Portland Basin Museum, where issues connected to volunteering, the impact of volunteering and how we can co‑ordinate the promotion of volunteering in Tameside will be discussed. There will also be lots of time to talk about your project and how you involve volunteers. If you would like to join in, email sue.vickers@cvat.org.uk or call 0161 339 2345 to register your interest.
The Contribution of Volunteering
Every year, over 20 million people across the UK volunteer, donating more than 100 million hours to their communities every week. In Tameside, we know that volunteers have given over 73,900 hours per week. The economic value of nationwide volunteering has been estimated to be worth in excess of £40 billion to our economy. Services and initiatives that are vital to the running of our country simply wouldn’t exist if it wasn’t for volunteers, for instance the Mountain and Cave Rescue Service has 3,500 volunteers; the judiciary has over 30,000 volunteer magistrates; and the Police engages over 15,000 Special Constables.
73,900
hours are given by over 26,000 volunteers every week
Re-building our Volunteer Centre You may have noticed that work at Penny Meadow has come to a standstill as we wait for quotes, architects drawings, planning permission, etc. If you have ever had any building work done you will know how frustrating this can be. However, we will soon have a brand new shop front and a great excuse to have a Grand Reopening. Keep up to date with what is happening by following us on Twitter @vctameside
Volunteers Week 2013 Thanks to everyone who took part in activities during Volunteers’ Week (1–7 June) 2013. As you may know, Volunteers’ Week is an annual campaign and celebrates the fantastic contribution millions of volunteers make across the UK. The theme of years’ celebrations focused on saying ‘Thank You’ to the millions of volunteers who regularly contribute to society, and to recognise the way that organisations celebrate the work of volunteers across the UK.
Community Cohesion Volunteering has a greater value than ensuring our essential community services function and national events are a success. Every year, millions of people help in all sorts of ways that they might not recognise as volunteering. This makes a crucial contribution to our communities, building co-operation and trust between individuals, and helping make our communities better places. The next newsletter will include a feature on the Volunteer and Community Awards being held on 26 June. We’d also like to share photos of your Volunteer’s Week celebrations, please send them in to us and we will publish a selection next time.