Blog | Middlesbrough Voluntary Development Agency

‘Human altruism which is not egoism is sterile’ – Marcel Proust

22 June 2017 - 12:05pm

We like to believe that people volunteer purely out of the goodness of their hearts. The reality is that people have a wide range of reasons to want to offer their time and skills to organisations. This can range from gaining experience in a specific role/ sector or utilising skills already obtained, making community connections, desire to feel valued and part of a team, getting involved in something enjoyable outside of work and family commitments, plus many more.

“I’m sorry but you don’t have enough experience”

5 June 2017 - 11:58am

Place yourself in the shoes of a young person within the NEET (not in education, employment or training) category living in Middlesbrough. You’ve been applying for lots of jobs but, if you do receive a response to your application, the answer is no. The reason you are given is that you do not have sufficient experience. This is the beginning of the vicious cycle of inexperience and unemployment which many young people in Middlesbrough, and across the country, find themselves trapped in.

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1 June 2017 - 12:47pm

Yes, we have finally taken the plunge and have gone for a double dose as well! Middlesbrough Volunteer Centre has a Facebook page, not just that we also have a South Tees wide volunteering page.

#helpieselfiechallenge accepted!

1 June 2017 - 11:07am

How is it National Volunteers Week already!?

I returned a whole month ago now from maternity leave and it has been lovely coming back to a new, larger volunteer centre team with so much energy and enthusiasm. There is so much going on with new projects up and running providing support to local people to kick start their volunteering journey and lots of exciting opportunities in the pipeline.