Volunteering Celebrates International Day of Happiness 2015

Are you feeling happy? As part of the UN decreed day, Kingston University Students' Union took part in International Day of Happiness for the second year running, and wow, did we hand out a lot of hugs! Everyone's arms hurt the next day from handing out so many hugs and high fives! We think it is a measurement of not only dedication, but real success.

International Day of Happiness, is held on the 20th March of each year, and is designed to showcase the UN's awareness of the need for happiness and good well-being for the everyone to grow as a global economy. It isn't all just about money! For the global community to grow, we should strive for all to feel safe, secure and connected to our communities. Here at KUSU we think this is pretty important, and helping to spread a bit of happiness is certainly worthwhile.

This year we were lucky to have a bit of sunshine, in comparison to last year's rain, which always helps cheer everyone up. We took along our happiness tree, and set up in Kingston town centre. There we handed out free hugs, high fives, handmade jewellery, sweets and successfully added a lot of new pledges of happiness leaves to our tree. It is now looking somewhat less wintery.

Each pledge of happiness, is designed to get individuals thinking about what makes them happy, and what they could do over the next year to increase or spread positivity. It is tied to our tree, to showcase the growth of positivity each year, as the number of leaves increase. Pledges can be anything, as long as it is both personal but positive. They ranged from seeing family and friends more, to working towards passing driving tests.

Originally we had a goal to hand out about 100 hugs and high fives, and as many pledges as possible. However, we surpassed that with a total of around 500 hugs and countless high fives. We had many thank us for helping make them smile, and many of our volunteers decided to go on celebrating happiness, even when we had to pack up.

Happy International Day of Happiness.

The Volunteering Team xx

BeeAware at Global Festival

This week marked the celebration of Global Festival, with an entire week filled with events and stalls from each society, and even some volunteering projects. The aim of the week is to celebrate diversity here at Kingston University, and to embrace the amazing things our students groups do.

This year as part of the festival, KUSU’s BeeAware project, which aims to raise awareness of the declining bee population, hosted a honey tasting event to highlight what would be off the table should the honey bee die out.

The event proved very popular, with students and staff queueing to try some of the honey related items on show. The favourite type of honey proved to be the orange blossom, with the chilli honey being a bit too spicy for many. However by far the favourite item to try was the bee pollen, which is nice added to salads or smoothies. Bee pollen is thought to be great for energy with high protein and vitamin B levels, as well as helping with hayfever.

When BeeAware volunteers spoke about the many products that would be unavailable should the bee decline continue, such as cotton, lipsticks and almonds, many seemed genuinely shocked about the actual impact of bees. Fingers crossed this means that the group successfully added a few more to helping save the bees.

To find out more about BeeAware, follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kusubees

Twitter: https://twitter.com/KUSUBees

Duria Awale, Food Bank

Hi my name is Duria Awale, and I am part of the Islamic Society at Kingston University. At the start of the academic year the Islamic Society (ISoc) and I wanted to do something to help those less fortunate in the community, and we thought who better to help than the many homeless people in the Kingston area. At first we thought that we could just go around and feed the homeless, but after seeking advice from Sarah Dutton (Volunteering Project Design and Development Coordinator) we saw that it was not a feasible option. What we decided to do was to collect food items at the university to then donate to the Kaleidoscope hostel in Kingston.

In order for students on campus to donate they had to know about the project first, so the first step we took was to create a poster, which would have all the information about the collection points and create awareness on campus. This proved to be a success as we were able to collect £200 worth of food. The next step was to contact the Kaleidoscope Project to arrange a day where we could drop off all the food, when I first contacted them they were overjoyed that we were donating large amounts of food and they said the people living in the hostel would be also.

Dropping the food off:

The day of the drop off, seven Islamic Society volunteers and I filled up two cars with the food and took the 5 minute drive to the hostel. Sarah and Steve (Volunteering) joined us to give the food to the staff there; they were overjoyed with the amount of food we had brought. We also had the opportunity to speak to some of the users of the charity, who were very friendly and seemed like they were slightly taken aback by the fact that we had the initiative of assisting their community.

The Islamic Society and I share the belief that philanthropy is an important aspect in society and without this there will be no support for the less fortunate.

Saying yes is the beginning

Hello guys!

My name is Pramila Limbu and I am currently studying International business.  As part of my student-led project I coordinated the Garden makeover for Age Concern on 4^th of November 2013.

Why I said yes?

I always had a passion of helping others and improving the community. Even though my degree is international business which is not directly related to what this project is about. Volunteering has always been a hobby of mine since I was in school. In school there were various fund raisers I was involved in. I remember particularly when I was in the choir. We raised money for St. Helena hospice by doing a mini concert for the local community. I also volunteered for sense charity shop on Saturdays for 4 years. When I was in college I volunteered for conservation for areas like Abberton reserve, Fringringhoe and Bradwell on sea.
There was also another reason that I had never led a project so, this was an opportunity for me to experience the excitement and hard work that goes into leading a volunteering project.

Project day!

On the day I was nervous but I didn't have to be as Sarah (volunteering coordinator) was also with me which was good.  I was most afraid about the turnout of people but I had more than enough people to volunteer for the project. So, I was very happy. The weather was great and sunny which was a plus. After that we got on with it and finished the job. Below are pictures of the event as pictures speak a thousand words!

Volunteers on the day: Adeeba, Ayan, Fadame, Nazya, Sarah (KUSU Projects Volunteer Coordinator), Selvia, and Sofie.

Results!

This experience made me very proud of myself as I know that I made a change in the age concern garden. I am now inspired to start a project myself if I want to and not just volunteer when there is a project. If you have an idea make it happen and don't wait for others to come up with the Idea and regret it later. So, this experience was very eye opening for me. There were lots of documents to fill in, various meetings to discuss at and visiting the site several times. But, it was all worth it at the end. The feels you get is amazing and gives you a different kind of buzz. Lastly this would have been possible without the lovely volunteers. Thank you very much once again!

If you are interested in setting up and running your own volunteering project, then contact KUSU Volunteering at S.Dutton@kingston.ac.uk.

Volunteering at Kingston Hospital

Hi my name is Karis and I am graduating in Biomedical Science. 

As I am hoping to study medicine the following year I thought it would be a good idea to experience the real life environment of a hospital and have the chance to help people at the same time. This was when I found the opportunity to volunteer in  A&E  and the wards in Kingston Hospital via the Kingston University Student Union volunteering website. 

I attend the hospital once a month at the moment and help out on an afternoon with tea making, offering food and generally being someone there for the patients to talk to. If the ward is quiet then from time to time I also help patients fill out a patient response form so they can give their opinion on the service they have received, which is vital for making improvements. 

Whilst helping out I have also had the chance to talk to many consultants, nurses and junior doctors who have shared their experiences with me and gave me advice for the future. This is a useful volunteering opportunity for someone who wants to have a career in the medical profession and as you can chose when and how often to attend the hospital you can work it around your needs. The hospital can provide you with a parking permit or pay for your travel expenses from the train. 

If you have a few spare hours or an afternoon I would definitely give it a go! 

Hello from Steve!

Hi, my name is Steve and I'm very excited to be your new Community Placements Volunteer Co-ordinator. I will be taking over from Abbie and working alongside Sarah Dutton who is the Student and Staff-led Projects Volunteer Co-ordinator. I’m just getting settled in to my new role at the moment but can’t wait to start helping you to volunteer on some exciting and worthwhile projects out in the community.

I love volunteering and come from a background of recruiting and co-ordinating volunteers having most recently co-ordinated volunteer mentors at National Citizenship Service provider, The Challenge Network. Volunteering has been a huge part of my life and has opened so many doors for me, including an international placement and the chance to discuss volunteering with government officials and CEOs. I am really excited to be at Kingston University Students Union (KUSU) to help you open the same doors and so many more.

Volunteering benefits so many people and my aim going forward is to show that it is also FUN! Often we can forget that what we are doing is making a difference because it is so enjoyable. If we can’t find you something that you think is your idea of fun, why not get in touch with Sarah (s.dutton@kingston.ac.uk) and plan your own project. Whichever route you wish to follow we will be here to make your volunteering ambitions possible.  Now is a great chance to test out volunteering if you haven’t before as London Student Volunteering Fortnight runs from the 28^th October- 8^th November and offers the chance to get involved and see what it’s all about.

I can’t wait to start meeting you all and talking to you about exciting opportunities. If you have any questions about community volunteering then please get in touch with me (Stephen.alexander@kingston.ac.uk). I would also love to hear from those of you already volunteering about what you are up to at the moment. 

Whatever it is about volunteering that peaks your interest, get in touch to see how you can get involved!

Arrivederci SU Volunteers! It's been fun!

I’m really sad to announce that I am leaving KUSU Volunteering on the 11 October to begin a new job with Queen Mary University.

I have absolutely loved working here over the past 7 months, and it has been a real pleasure to help so many of you volunteer on community placements.  I am especially sad to be leaving as I have met so many fabulous students since terms started who I know will make brilliant volunteers.

If you have applied to volunteer on an event or regular placement then please be aware that there may be a delay in your application being processed.   KUSU Volunteering will announce as soon as they have hired someone to replace me – so make sure you book an appointment to see them once they are settled in.

For all of you who begin volunteer make sure that you are recording your volunteering hours on your online profiles!

Sarah will be around if you have any questions, but please remember that she also has to manage projects, so it might rather busy over the next few months.

Good luck to all of you,  and I hope you all manage to enjoy your volunteering journeys!!

Abbie xx

Jewellery Making at Shooting Stars CHASE

Hi there, I’m Sam Neale, a third year Psychology BSc student at Kingston University, and I recently ran a jewellery workshop at Shooting Stars CHASE Children’s Hospice, with children aged 4 -12.

I am so glad I got to run the project and to have had a positive impact at the hospice. I hoped they would have fun making things and to give them a sense of satisfaction upon making something creative which they can always keep. The children certainly seemed to enjoy it! You can see all their beautiful jewellery in the photos on this blog, and more on the KUSU Volunteering Facebook page.

Aside from making a positive impact at Shooting Star CHASE, I also wanted to build my own confidence in leading and supervising a project with young children, as I had previously only volunteered and worked in assistant roles or taught small groups as directed by a class teacher. I definitely achieved this goal, and feel far more confident to go on and teach/work with children.

  

As hoped, the project was a success and the children said they really enjoyed making the jewellery. One girl enjoyed it so much she made about 7 bracelets! Throughout the afternoon the children were able to relax and chat among themselves, with KUSU and myself, as well as the staff on hand to support children with more severe physical impairments, all whilst they worked on designing and making their jewellery. Seeing them have so much fun helped my confidence in knowing I am able to organise, lead and supervise a project.

                       

The staff and children seemed delighted with the session and I think this project would work well on another occasion or in a similar organisation, with similar aged children. 

As this was a student-led project, this experience has taught me how to plan, organise and manage a project. I now really appreciate all the fine details that go into planning volunteering work, particularly with children, especially risk assessment planning! I was also able to practice and develop my skills in liaising with people from different organisations and budget planning as well as time management. 

I think my favorite part though, was watching the children enjoy a project I had planned, it made it that bit more rewarding. This experience has been wonderful, and not only will it look great on my CV but is something I will cherish forever. Throughout the project I was supported by KUSU Volunteer Coordinators Jemma and Sarah, who helped train me in filling out a risk assessment, and coach me through project planning. It was really great having them there as a support mechanism, and they were more than happy to help with anything during my project.

Having long enjoyed volunteering, I believe it is a great way to make a positive impact on people whilst get something back yourself in the process, whether that be simply enjoying seeing others benefit from your efforts or gaining valuable experience, or both! The more proactive you are and the more you give, the more you get back. I will definitely continue volunteering when I can.

If you want to run your own volunteering project like me, then visit the KUSU Volunteering website to find out more.

                                                                            Sam xx

   

                                             

A Wonderful Week in the world of KUSU Volunteering - Recognising Volunteers' Achievements!

Last week was a really exciting week in the world of KUSU Volunteering! On Tuesday 7^th May 2013 we had our annual Volunteering Awards Ceremony, followed by our End of Year Social, the next day. Although having the two events so close together was a little hectic (!) it was really special getting to spend a couple of days celebrating all of the volunteering that our amazing KUSU Volunteers have done over the past year.

During the social, under the leadership of Rachel Burgess from KUBAG, a group of students and staff volunteered a couple hours of their time each, removing five rubbish bags full of the vigorous invader Himalayan Balsam from the Hogsmill riverbank at Knights Park campus. Student volunteers were then treated to a yummy afternoon picnic and were presented with a certificate thanking them for all the volunteering they’ve done this year.

The KUSU Volunteer Awards Ceremony 2013 was kicked off by KUSU’s Student Development Manager Mo Haque who thanked everyone for coming and explained that the evening’s celebrations were about congratulating certain KUSU Volunteers on their exceptional achievements, dedication and commitment. Deputy Vice Chancellor Dr David Mackintosh was a brilliant guest speaker, talking about how much of a positive difference student volunteers make to their local community, as well as highlighting all of the wonderful skills students will have gained throughout their time volunteering and how this will improve their employability upon graduation.

Abbie and I (KUSU’s Volunteer Coordinators), with the help of Lauren McCormack (Vice President of Activities) then had the delightful role of speaking about the award winners, sharing their volunteering stories and journeys with the audience and presenting the awards! Here’s what we had to say about them:

Best Volunteer Newcomer – Natalie Flower

We’ve had some excellent new volunteers this year so competition was tight, but this year’s winner is Natalie Flower. Natalie has taken part in several one-off events this year, including volunteering at the Royal Parks Half Marathon, Women’s Only Run, London Marathon, as well as becoming an avid knitter making hats for premature babies. Despite having a hectic timetable and often being on placement as a student nurse, Natalie always gives us vital feedback about the volunteering she has done, what she enjoyed, what she’d like to see more of and we’re delighted to award her Best Volunteer Newcomer.

Community Volunteer of the Year – Lucy Williams

Awarded for a combination of excellence in regard to the amount of time given, the level of dedication and the overall impact the volunteer has made to the local community. Lucy Williams was nominated by Refugee Action Kingston: “Lucy started volunteering at our crèche in May 2012 and regularly helps one morning a week to run free sessions for refugee and asylum seeking children under the age of 5. Lucy has been consistently reliable, enthusiastic, great with the children and an overall asset to our crèche team. Lucy has shown a real commitment to supporting children and families who attend our learning centre crèche and outside of her normal volunteering role Lucy has always advocated on behalf of RAK to promote the work we do.  Lucy has collected large amounts of clothing for our donation days and always offers or makes herself available to help where she can.”

One-Off Volunteer of the Year – Philip Commatas

Philip has given up a huge amount of his time taking part in an astonishing 12 one-off volunteering opportunities this academic year since he registered as a KUSU Volunteer in October! He’s volunteered on the Momentum Opera Evening, Winter Night Shelter, Christmas Tree Harvesting event and French Day at Age Concern, to name just a few. He’s also a regular KUBAG volunteer helping out at lots of environmental events and has just been placed at the Cancer Research shop in Kingston. Philip has been a brilliant and reliable one-off volunteer. He gets stuck into every volunteering role, he’s extremely flexible, works well in a team and is a delight to have around.

School Volunteer of the Year – Mark Lynch

Awarded for a combination of excellence in regard to the amount of time given, the level of dedication and the overall impact the volunteer has made to a local school. Mark Lynch was nominated by Tolworth Junior School for his mentoring role: “We interviewed Mark in January for a very important role at our school. We needed a male role model for a year 6 pupil with behavioural problems. The pupil in question (pupil x) aged 10/11 does not have a male figure in his life and is known to display very aggressive disruptive behaviour. Mark works with pupil x on a one to one basis every Thursday afternoon. Mark has a creative style of mentoring incorporating the talent of the pupil. He is not judgemental; he has given pupil x the confidence to confide in him. He understands, he demonstrates empathy and he acts on requests immediately. Mark created and designed a project for pupil x to work on during the Thursday meetings. Mark has proven to be the Perfect Role Model and we have seen evidence of improved behaviour from pupil x.”

Pupil x also commented: “Mark is fun, he listens to me, he is a good artist, and we are writing a comic book. I really like being with him.”

Be A Champion Volunteering Project – Sub Aqua Club

Be A Champion encourages sports students to continue the legacy of the London 20123 Games and run volunteering projects. The Sub Aqua Club have run an amazing three volunteering projects including a ‘try-dive’ - teaching a local youth cadet group how to dive, and 2 underwater river cleans of the Thames in Kingston. The second river clean saw 25 students volunteer, giving 184 hours of their time and removing an astonishing 2338kg of rubbish from the Thames, including 82 shopping trolleys, a soldier’s helmet dated 1954, 110 glass bottles, an engine block, a coconut and 17.5 skateboards - all of which pose a threat to wildlife and river users.

The Sub Aqua Club’s commitment to making a difference in the community by sharing their skill set and working on three volunteering projects this year is phenomenal. Mary Tetley, BSAC chief executive, said: “Underwater litter-picks like the terrific one staged by the Kingston University team gives our divers the chance to contribute to the fight against marine pollution...  all of those involved in this latest Kingston University clean up deserve a pat on the back for their efforts. The volume of shopping trolleys they have recovered is astounding and really does highlight the problems we face with what is discarded in our precious marine habitats.”

Volunteers Inspiring People Via Sport (VIPS) Volunteer of the Year – Fiorella Badin

Student Wellbeing offer a sports-specific volunteering programme called VIPS. VIPS was launched in September 2010 and was awarded the Inspire Mark from the Olympic board along with the 'Experts in Volunteering' recognition from the Greater London Volunteering team. Students can gain a recognised coaching qualification and enjoy sports-specific work experience by taking advantage of the volunteering opportunities available. This includes placements at football clubs affiliated with Fulham, Chelsea and Arsenal, Wentworth golf club, and one off events such as London Marathons and events at the London Youth Games to name a few.

Students give back to the community by putting in the required 10 hours volunteering at a time that fits in around their studies and effectively become sports ambassadors for the University. This year Fiorella Badin is our first ever winner of the VIPs award, chosen for her commitment, dedication and enthusiasm for the scheme. 

Student-Led Volunteering Project of the Year – Olufunmilola Kehinde

Projects this year have included a knitting club making hats for premature babies, a Caribbean Culture Day for people with afro-caribbean heritage and a clay-making after school club. The winning project was led by Masters student Funmi who ran a jewellery-making workshop, teaching 10 children aged 4-6 years of age and their parents from Kingston WelCare how to make different types of jewellery including bracelets, necklaces and keyrings.

Funmi was a delight to support, always replying to emails and deadlines on time, her project proposal and costing document were extremely thorough and she delivered the workshop with professionalism and confidence. She was an excellent leader and we were extremely impressed with her time-management, organisational skills and commitment. Kingston WelCare had this to say about Funmi’s jewellery workshop: "My Thanks for your time and interest in WelCare. Your energy and fun approach was so up lifting. Thanks for planning and delivering the workshop. Everyone had a great time."

Kingston University Biodiversity Action Group Volunteer of the Year – Tina Corr

Led by Rachel Burgess, KUBAG is a group of staff and student volunteers dedicated to preserving and enhancing biodiversity on campus. Nominated for outstanding dedication to and leadership of a conservation project, here’s what KUBAG had to say about Tina: ‘Tina Corr is described by KUBAG as the life and soul of the Kingston Hill beehive project. She checks the hive nearly every week throughout the year and ensures the wellbeing of the bees by providing supplementary food and protection when necessary as well as health checks. She not only looks after the hive, but also coordinates the student and staff volunteer check assistants for the weekly summer checks. Her passion for the bees is inspiring and she never misses an opportunity to help promote the project and suggest ways we can improve habitat for bees on campus. She devotes countless hours to this project and events such as frame-building, talks and honey tasting and constantly strives to raise awareness about bees, their lives and current plight which is fabulous.’

Volunteer Blog of the Year – Chris Elliott

This is a new award that KUSU Volunteering has created this academic year. We’ve had an amazing 23 blogs submitted to us by students capturing the different volunteering they’ve been doing. These students are to be congratulated on sharing their volunteering experiences and journeys with the rest of the student body, and acting as ambassadors encouraging their peers to try out volunteering.The criteria for Volunteer Blog of the Year included how informative and inspirational a blog was, as well as the writing style. It was really hard to shortlist as the blogs were of a really high quality, but in the end 6 students made the cut and the winner was Chris Elliott for his blog entitled: “The Thames River Clean – A Guide to Student-Led Volunteering”. This blog is captures Chris’ quirky and humorous take on life whilst encouraging and inspiring students to try out Student-Led Volunteering.

Volunteer-Involving Organisation of the Year – Tolworth Junior School

We are hugely excited this year to be giving out an award to a Volunteer Involving Organisation – which has been nominated by students for being an amazing and supportive organisation to volunteer with.

In the words of the student nominator: ‘It is hard to sum up why I feel that this school deserves the award in just a couple of paragraphs. From the moment I walked into the school for my interview I felt that the school was special, it gives off welcoming and warm vibe. The staff at Tolworth are very involved in aiding me in my role, they always make time to have meetings with me before and after my sessions with the child I work with, they allow me the freedom to do what I think is best but also offer support and guidance to aid me in my role. Being given the opportunity to work with tolworth has been completely worth it. I have never felt happier or more supported in a role. The only bad thing I have to say about this whole experience is that it will soon be the summer and I won’t be going there anymore! TOLWORTH ROCKS!’

Outstanding Contribution to Volunteering – Chris Elliott

This award is the most prestigious of our awards, marking excellence, achievement, dedication and leadership. Chris has been an integral part of the KUSU Volunteering “landscape” if you will. He was nominated and won this award for organising the Sub Aqua’s first underwater river clean, which took approximately a year to organise to gain permission from local/national authorities including British Sub-Aqua Club, Kingston Council, Metropolitan Police and the Environment Agency. Despite many barriers Chris remained enthusiastic, was meticulously organised, and displayed excellent communication skills and commitment. Chris is also receiving this award for organising Sub Aqua’s youth group try dive, supporting another student to lead on the 2^nd river clean, being a regular volunteer for KUBAG, taking part in one-off volunteering events such as volunteering as the mini-bus driver for the Xmas Tree harvesting event, running our First Aid training session for KUSU Volunteers, cleaning out the shark tanks at Chessington World of Aventures and blogging about his volunteering experiences.

Chris is extremely reliable, a great team-member and always in good spirits. KUSU Volunteering have loved supporting him on his volunteering journey. It’s truly been an honour. He is a champion of student volunteering and a role model to his peers. He represents the best student volunteering talent Kingston University has to offer.

Jemma Houghton and Abbie Hurrell
KUSU Volunteer Co-ordinators
Photographs taken by Kingston University Professional Photographer Chris Thomas.

Mini BioBlitz at Kingston Hill!

KUSU Volunteer Fiona Mahone

Hi, my name is Fiona Mhone and I am a student volunteer at Kingston University. I registered as a KUSU Volunteer in March 2013 and last week I took part in my first One-Off Volunteering project! It was a mini- bio blitz at Kingston Hill with Kingston University Biodiversity Action Group (KUBAG). It was such an amazing experience - we went bird watching in the morning, at lunchtime we had delicious sandwiches, identified different species using microscopes and later in the afternoon we went pond dipping and identified different species in the Kingston Hill pond. The pond dipping was my favourite part as it was educational and great fun.

I would like to urge students to volunteer as much as they can because it’s a really a brilliant way of spending time learning new things. You don’t need to have any specialist skills to experience the joy of volunteering, you just need to be friendly and enthusiastic! 

Check out KUBAG's Bioblitz blog too! 

Smooth Newt!

Elliot in the pond.

John and Dave trying to identify a bee found in the woodland.

Your Skills Go A Long Way

So why would anyone volunteer? I was never really sure about that until I started; and then I realised how much you can get out of it yourself. That doesn’t sound very philanthropic does it? But I’m not talking about CV building or preparing yourself for the world of work (As the CEO of the Students’ Union, I’m already there!); I’m talking about that slightly cheesy happy feeling of simply doing something that is both good and useful to somebody else. For me, that has been enough, going out and sharing something that I am comfortable with (in my case, using a computer) to people less confident (service users at Age Concern Kingston). So, basically, spending an hour a week of one to one time helping people get online or sharing photos or understanding e-mail so they can talk to their friends and families doesn’t make me Bill Gates, but it can make a world of difference to someone who might be scared of a computer.    

Bradbury Centre - Age Concern Kingston

I am nowhere near a computer expert, I can just about work my way round a pc for work, but the point is; you don’t have to be the worlds’ best at something to help someone with less skills than you; you just have to be enthusiastic and friendly. For an hour a week I am given a chance to meet someone new, share some of their life experiences, have a chat and do something helpful without it feeling a big deal. And it’s always nice to share with people and for that time you spend with someone to be worthwhile and be appreciated.

So, if you think volunteering is a) hard work or b) not something you can do because you don’t have a skill or c) you think you don’t have the time, then I’d say think again. It’s easy to get involved, either on a regular basis or as a one-off and not only is it good on your CV but its’ good for you too in a much more important way – it makes you feel good in yourself, and who doesn’t need that?

New KUSU Volunteer Coordinator says Hi!

Abbie Hurrell - Volunteer Coordinator (Schools and Community)

Hi my name is Abbie Hurrell and I am the new Volunteer Coordinator (Community and Schools) for KUSU Volunteering.  I work alongside the lovely Jemma Houghton who is your other Volunteer Coordinator (Jemma looks after One-Off and Student-Led Volunteering).

I started this job in mid February, coming from a background of Volunteer Brokerage having worked with the Volunteering Richmond and Volunteering Wandsworth Volunteer Services.  I absolutely love volunteering; it keeps you busy, makes you appreciate life, makes you feel fantastic about helping others and is a brilliant way to meet other people! Volunteering is also hugely important in increasing graduate employability, with most employers now seeing experience as the key attribute in a job candidate. Previously I have volunteered with animal charities, schools, the elderly and with children with disabilities; I even spent 3 months living and volunteering in Italy. 

Although I’ve only been here a month I have already registered lots of volunteers and had the pleasure of meeting lots of enthusiastic and energetic KU students. It has been hugely rewarding to see some of you choose a volunteer opportunity and begin volunteering in such a short space of time – so thank you to everyone I’ve seen so far!

Community Volunteering is also starting to really expand in terms of the opportunities we are offering, with Action Tutoring, Missing People and Kingston Hospital all signing up to the service and eagerly awaiting some new student volunteers to help with their work. I’ve also had loads of really useful feedback from students on the kinds of volunteering you would like to do on an ongoing basis – so continue to visit our Community Page as it gets updated at the beginning of each month with new opportunities. If you have any suggestions of other opportunities we could be offering, then let me know - this is YOUR service!

Schools Volunteering is currently not open as we had such a huge intake at the beginning of the year that we don’t have any space left in our schools for more students. Don’t worry though! We are in the process of contacting lots of schools in the area, so hopefully we will have some new opportunities for you soon. 

This month we are beginning to prepare for our annual Volunteer Awards Ceremony – which is something I am really excited to be a part of. It will be a great opportunity to meet you all, and also to shout out to the Kingston community about all the good volunteering that our students are doing. 

If you have any questions about Community and Schools Volunteering then please contact me, or if you’re already currently volunteering then please send me a message and let me know how it’s going – I’d love to hear from you! 

Finally, thank you for being so welcoming and I am Iooking forward to helping you all get more involved in volunteering in the future!

My Buddy and Me

My name is Bisi Olukanni and I'm in my third year of my Psychology degree at Kingston. I volunteer for Kingston's Buddy Scheme. 
The main idea behind the buddy scheme is that you meet with someone who has some form of learning disability and as their buddy your role is to help them enjoy life. On average I would say I meet with my buddy Millie twice a month. Millie has Aspergers Syndrome. At first glance she doesn't appear to have any disability. However, individuals with this type of disability tend to be very socially withdrawn and as a result become isolated. As her buddy I meet with her and take part in a variety of activities so that she feels happy and comfortable to go and have fun with a friend. 

The type of things we have done so far are ice skating, swimming, going to the cinema and Chessington World of Adventures. Our next meeting we have planned  to meet up just for a gossip and a little retail therapy!

Millie and I at Chessington about to go on a ride

What got me so interested in volunteering as a buddy was the thought that many young people with learning disabilities don't get opportunities to socialise and make friends. I wanted to do what I could to help others to build social skills. It's very rewarding knowing that you do make some one's week by planning a day out, and your friendship could provide them with the confidence to go out and make their own friends and prevent them being taken advantage of! Additionally, I study Psychology and  this role seemed like a fantastic way to get experience working with people who I am likely to work with in the future and have fun at the same time!

Since I started volunteering as a buddy I've learned a great deal about the types of issues that can arise when working with someone who has a learning disability for example, mood changes. Before being assigned a buddy you undergo training which helps you combat any problems and explains who to contact if you need further assistance. After completing my training I felt very confident and I have yet to experience an issue I couldn't resolve. After making friends with Millie I feel much more open about who I talk to and who I befriend and it has really widened the type of people I have around me and improved my own social skills.

What I enjoy most about volunteering with the Buddy Scheme is that it allows me to take a break from the stresses of uni work and have fun with a great friend. The activities you do are a joint decision so you can have input on what activity you want to do. It's a mutual relationship, you are NOT their carer but an honest friend that will help them understand how typical friendships develop i.e. sometimes you have to compromise! Also, the Buddy Scheme cover your expenses, so excuses- it's a chance to make a friend, learn about them and their disability and have fun for free!

Millie feeling anxious about getting on the ice!

Over the past few months that I have been meeting with Millie we have had some great moments - the funniest moment was when we went ice skating at Guildford Spectrum and neither if us mentioned that we hadn't done it in a long time - that was our first mistake! We were a little apprehensive about stepping on to the ice so managed to persuade the staff to let us use a 'Penguin Guide' - this is usually what really small children use. For the whole two hours Millie and I spent the whole time 'skating' with a tiny penguin in front of us....it was rather embarrassing especially as I still managed to fall over...but was such great fun and we made the most of it. We won't be going ice skating again in a hurry!!   

Me putting on my skates

Upon completion of my degree I am hoping to go on to do clinical training, which would mean after another 3yrs I will be a Clinical psychologist! I can't wait to start on my career path. Volunteering has helped confirm that this is a job I want to do and has made me more employable through this experience. 
Most importantly it has helped me see the benefit of volunteering and why it is so important for communities that we have volunteers to help others lead a fulfilling and happy life. For a few hours a month you get fantastic returns and I will continue to volunteer as long as possible.

I hope to see more Kingston Students volunteer in the future, it's worth it!