Volunteering Focus - 27 August

Engage Renfrewshire and Renfrewshire Employability Month

September fast approaches, and this year Renfrewshire's Local Employability Partnership is extending its popular Employability Week to a full month! 

We're joining in the fun, with four dedicated events.

Top of the bill for Engage members - our next Volunteer Managers Forum which will focus on the theme ‘Volunteering as a Pathway to Employment’.



Date: Wednesday 17th September 9:30am to 11am

Volunteering plays a crucial role in helping individuals develop the confidence, skills and experience needed to take the next step in their journey towards employment. 

We’re delighted to be hosting this forum at the Russell Institute in Paisley – home to Invest in Renfrewshire, our local employability service. We’ll be joined by Margo from the Invest team, who will share an overview of the support they can offer to volunteers who are ready to explore job or training opportunities. Margo will also discuss how organisations can strengthen their employability focus by offering formal recognition of volunteers’ contributions and achievements.

There will also be time for networking, peer learning and open discussion around the challenges and opportunities of supporting volunteers on their employability journey.

Tea, coffee and breakfast rolls will be available on arrival – we look forward to welcoming you for an engaging and informative morning.


Sign up here


The Engage team are also presenting three dedicated Employability events, alongside the Invest team and Engage Renfrewshire members:

3rd September 10am - Why volunteering is for you (Adults' Session)

3rd September 11:15am - Why volunteering is for you (Young People's session)

18th September 10am - Careers with Purpose

These sessions are open to all and anyone interested in attending a session should contact Invest in Renfrewshire directly - 
https://investinrenfrewshire.com/ or 0300 3001180

 

Summit Award Nominations

Do you know a young volunteer who went above and beyond this summer? Someone who excelled at a summer club, supporting their peers and other young people? Or a young person who has volunteered tirelessly all year?

Our next round of Summit Awards Nominations close on September 12th and successful recipients will be celebrated at this year's Positive About Youth Awards ceremony in November!

Click the image below to learn more and nominate directly on the saltireawards.scot website or get in touch to find out more info@engagerenfrewshire.com

Are you passionate about diversity, community, and inclusion in Renfrewshire? 

We’re looking for enthusiastic volunteers who value equity, inclusion, and cultural understanding to support the Integration Network Renfrewshire (IN-Ren) — a vibrant network of community groups, individuals, and organisations working together to support ethnically and culturally diverse communities, including New Scots (refugees, asylum seekers, and migrants) as well as long-settled residents from diverse backgrounds. 

We welcome volunteers who are:
Motivated to be part of our diverse community — whether you have lived experience, previous volunteering/work experience, or are brand new and keen to get involved

For further information and to register your interest: head to the website

Calling All Halloween Buddies! We’re looking for enthusiastic volunteers to help make this Paisley Halloween Festival a hauntingly good time.

Paisley's most spooktacular event is back with the long-awaited, everyone's favourite parade! The Paisley Halloween Festival returns with an exciting new events program featuring a captivating town centre-wide parade. The event will run over 2 days, Friday, October 24th and Saturday, October 25th.

The festival, one of the biggest and best free Halloween festivals in the UK, attracts huge crowds to enjoy street theatre, live acts, fun installations and the parade. The event will have a variety of fun, spooky activities happening in Paisley Town Centre, and we need your help to deliver this spectacular event.

We are looking for enthusiastic individuals to get involved and help deliver one of Paisley's biggest events in the calendar.

For further information and to register your interest: head to the website

Kami Bear’s Teddy Trail is back for its second year — and it’s bigger and better than ever! Join us for a fun-filled day as families make their way through Glasgow’s beautiful West End, helping our beloved mascot, Kami Bear, find his missing walking gear.

This is Glasgow Children's Hospital Charity biggest community event of the year, and we need your help to make it a huge success. We’re on the lookout for 50 enthusiastic volunteers to join our team and help marshal the route and cheer on walkers as they pass. If you're ready to be part of something special and help bring smiles to hundreds of faces, sign up today and let’s make this an event to remember!

Volunteer Tasks:
Ensure walkers follow the trail route
Help maintain a positive and fun atmosphere for all walkers

Shift Time:
13th September 9am to 2pm (you may be finished earlier depending on your marshal location)

For further information and to register your interest: head to the website

UWS Volunteer Fair

University West of Scotland's Volunteer Fair will now be held
Thursday 11th September
11am to 3pm
UWS Union Building Level 1 (Storie St, Paisley PA1 2HB)
Now part of the University's wider Freshers' Week programme the volunteer fair will be an opportunity to reach a diverse range of students at the university, from new Buddies just starting their courses to older students returning from summer break. 

Skills Development Scotland - Young People's Career Ambitions Paper

Through a comprehensive programme of research SDS aim to understand and support the career aspirations and development of young people in Scotland. This research aims to inform policy, enhance careers services, and support young people to acquire the skills, guidance, and opportunities needed to achieve their career goals. 

The Young People's Career Ambitions research aims to understand the career aspirations, influences, and challenges faced by young people in Scotland. 

We would encourage any groups looking to engage young volunteers to read through the paper, particularly to the sections regarding motivations and key influences, a screenshot of which we've shared below. 



See the full paper here