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Volunteering Focus - 22 October
Get inspired and stay informed with this week's volunteering e-alert!
Join the Creating Hope with Peer Support Workshop on 30th October (that's next week!) to boost you and your volunteers' confidence and skills supporting people affected by suicide. Don’t miss the Vaping Awareness Session on 4th November — perfect for those working with young volunteers who want to have informed, open conversations about vaping.
Don't have young volunteers involved yet but want to learn how? The next #YouthVIP training is coming up on 5th November (remember remember!)
Stay up to date with the new Disclosure (Scotland) Act changes coming in 2026 and be sure to share Volunteer Scotland's Trustees Week event on 5th November with any prospective Trustees as they explore the Trustee Journey with experts from Volunteer Scotland, Brodies LLP, and Change the Chemistry.
Peer Support Workshop
Finding Your Feet
30 October
10am to 4pm
Want your volunteers to build confidence & skills providing peer support to people affected by suicide? Make a real impact & create meaningful connections!
Join Scottish Recovery Network for this all day session where we’ll start with an exploration of peer support and why it has a vital role to play in suicide prevention. Then we'll look at the Creating Hope with Peer Support Pathway. This Pathway outlines four key stages of the peer support relationship and journey: Connect, Explore, Hope and Support.
Who is this workshop for?
- Peer Supporters / Workers in groups or services who want to build their confidence supporting people affected by suicide
- People with lived experience interested in developing peer support skills
Group numbers for this workshop are deliberately low to provide a small group session where participants can discuss challenges, shape solutions and exchange skills and ideas.
Sign up here
Supporting Young Volunteers Series
Continuing our Supporting Young Volunteers Series of training, mark your calendars for our next session – 4th November
Join us and HSCP colleagues for this interactive session. This is particularly for volunteer managers working with young people, including young volunteers.
These sessions equip attendees with accurate information about vaping — including health harms, youth trends, and environmental impacts — helping them feel more confident in having open, informed conversations with the young people they support.
One attendee shared they had:
“More confidence in passing on factual information with regards to vaping. Equipped with more knowledge and places to signpost.”
Our next Young People and Vaping awareness session is scheduled to take place on Tuesday 4th November 10-12pm.
Please see more details on our Eventbrite where you will be able to register to join.
Volunteering Matters, YouthLink Scotland and Young Scot and are delighted to announce the next highly anticipated date for the fantastically successful YouthVIP training.
If you, your team or any of the people around you would like to learn more about how to make your organisation more young people friendly in the world of volunteering, then join us for a highly immersive and interactive online workshop with lots of practical takeaways designed to ensure your organisation attracts and retains the young volunteers you're looking for.
Funded by The Scottish Government, this session is for everyone interested in improving youth participation in their organisations, everyone is welcome!
Don’t hesitate to get this booked, spaces are limited.
Disclosure Scotland Act
As you will be aware, the majority of the provisions in the Disclosure (Scotland) Act 2020 were put into action on April 1, 2025.
Looking ahead, starting from April 1, 2026, individuals joining the Protecting Vulnerable Groups (PVG) scheme will automatically be enrolled in a five-year membership tailored to their specific regulated role, replacing the previous lifetime membership model.
Disclosure Scotland is planning a transition from April 2026 to ensure existing PVG scheme members are smoothly and fairly transferred to the new five-year membership system.
See more from Volunteer Scotland here
Understanding and Preparing for the Trustee Journey
Date: Wednesday, 5th November 2025
Time: 2.00pm - 3.30pm
Location: Online, via Zoom
Are you thinking about becoming a trustee? Already serving on a board and looking to deepen your understanding? Or are you part of an organisation trying to recruit and support trustees?
Join Volunteer Scotland during Trustees Week 2025 for this interactive online session, exploring the Trustee Journey — from targeted recruitment and board diversity to governance responsibilities and best practices. This 90-minute event brings together expertise from:
The session will include live polls, opportunities for discussion, and a panel Q&A with expert contributors and case study trustees.
Do you have a volunteer project coming up over the festive period? Looking for some short term volunteers to join for gift wrapping sessions? Support for festive parties or community lunches?
Remember our Team Kinetic platform is free to use for all Engage Renfrewshire members and now has over 2000 local residents registered.
Use the platform to promote your opportunity, engage your volunteers, and even manage their training and shifts.
Get in touch today to learn more: info@engagerenfrewshire.com