Darlington Council Voluntary Services (CVS) received a grant of £7,557 to introduce a project designed to help local people back into employment.
Darlington CVS provides support for voluntary and community groups in Darlington. This project introduced a range of training courses that aimed to increase the opportunities for individuals to move toward employment, to help increase the capacity of voluntary organisations and to build confidence for vulnerable clients who would be unlikely to access training through other routes.
Darlington CVS is based at Church Row, Darlington.
The Certificate in Community Volunteering course has been the most successful of those on offer and has increased opportunities for many people who attended the training, including:
Sue, an unemployed housewife who was keen to do some admin volunteering to help her find employment on a part-time basis.
Lindsay, a recovering drug addict who wanted to gain experience as a project worker.
June, who is unemployed and registered blind and whose aim is to volunteer and then move into paid employment.
Tanya, an unemployed young mother who had very specific career goals
and wanted help to achieve them.
Raven, an unemployed young man hoping to ease himself into employment
by way of volunteering. He is now a regular volunteer.
Joanne Jones, a Training Support Worker commented:
“The project provided the opportunity to assist individuals including ex-offenders, the unemployed and those with a health problem. It has helped groups and individuals in a deprived area to develop skills which can be beneficial on both a community and individual level.”