Volunteers' Week Awards 2012

Volunteers’ Week (1 – 7 June) is about celebrating volunteers and volunteering.This event acknowledges the range of volunteering involvement in Midlothian, to recognise the contribution of volunteers and to reward volunteers for their dedication and commitment.

Our annual awards ceremony will take place on Thursday 7th June at 7pm at Newbattle Abbey College. Nominations for this year's awards have just opened and must be submitted by Friday 11th May.

Guidance notes on submitting nominations

We invite you to nominate individuals or teams of volunteers for the awards listed below. Please select only one category for each team or volunteer. Remember that if you nominate more than one team or volunteer for a single category you may be putting them in direct competition with each other. The Volunteer Team of the Year will be chosen from all the team entries we receive.

Who should enter?

Entry is open to all organisations who involve volunteers in their work. Our definition of volunteering is:

“Volunteering is about people giving their time and skills of their own free will– without pay - for the benefit of others, their communities and, very importantly, themselves.”

Who will judge the nominations?

The judging panel for each award will comprise of an independent panel of judges, including representatives from the sponsors of each award. The judges will assess nominations for each award on the information provided. Judging will take place during May 2012.

Who can attend the Volunteers Awards?

Representation from the winner(s) of each category, along with representation from nominated individuals and teams will be invited to attend the Volunteers Awards Night at Newbattle Abbey College on Thursday 7th June. Please note that numbers will be limited.

How to enter:

1. Complete the online survey using the link below:-

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/VolunteersAwards 

The closing date for nominations to be submitted is Friday 11th May. If you require a paper copy of the nomination pack, please call 0131 660 1216 or download a copy by clicking here.

2. Take some photos!

Nominations should be accompanied by photographs of your volunteers in action.  Once you have completed the online survey, we will get in touch to request the photographs. We recommend that you provide up to 10 photographs which will be shown at the Awards night to demonstrate the work of your volunteers.  It’s a real opportunity to show others what your volunteers do. Please provide the photos in digital format, either on disk or by email. If this is not possible, then a member of staff from the Volunteer Centre can come to visit your organisation and take photos of the volunteer(s) in action!

The closing date for submitting photos is Friday 25th May.

Award Categories

1. Health & Well-being

Befriending, Day Care, Caring for People with Disabilities are a few examples of how volunteers contribute to the Health & Well-being of others living in Midlothian. This is your chance to acknowledge volunteers who consider and care about the most vulnerable in our communities.

2. Organisational Support

Volunteers make a huge contribution to the running of organisations through serving on committees and Boards, fundraising, lobbying, campaigning and promotion.  The commitment of the volunteers undertaking these roles is often overlooked.   Now is your opportunity to show how much you appreciate the efforts of the volunteers who support the work of the organisation.

3. Service to the Community

Volunteers offer their time and skills to organisations that provide essential services to our community, such as youth groups and organisations who offer information, advice, counselling and support. Volunteers give their time to attend training, to equip them with skills and knowledge to assist people with life changing problems and issues and to improving things in their local area. The professionalism and commitment of these volunteers deserves to be commended!

4. Preservation of our Environment & Heritage

A variety of organisations and individuals are passionate about the history and heritage of the area and for caring about our local environment.  Do you know people who are enthusiastic about the past, present and future of Midlothian? 

5. Inspiring Young Volunteer

More and more young people are getting involved in volunteering and they can be an inspiration to us all.  This award recognises the unique contribution that young people make by bringing their enthusiasm, fresh ideas and energy to the work of lots of organisations across Midlothian.  Nominees should be aged under 25.

6. Long Service to Volunteering

Some volunteers are so committed to the work of an organisation that once they get involved, they stay involved.  This new award aims to recognise this level of commitment and is open to those who have contributed at least 10 years to an organisation’s work.

Volunteer Team of the Year Award 2012

The winning team will be chosen from all the team nominations we receive.  The winning team should display outstanding team work and effort.  Entries will be judged by an independent panel of judges.

Update on Live IT Sidekicks Group Sessions

A 5-week block of Live IT Sidekicks group sessions finished last week at Penicuik Library. There were 6 learners in the group and the sessions focused on improving basic IT skills. This free course was tutor-led with 3 volunteer “Sidekicks” on hand to provide additional one-to-one assistance. The group met once a week and covered topics such as improving basic keyboard and mouse skills, using Microsoft Word and searching the internet. After a few weeks, the group progressed onto learning about how to stay safe online and online shopping – which they thoroughly enjoyed! The final session of the course covered how to use email. This topic was particularly appealing to one learner who was able to email her daughter in Dubai for the first time.

In addition, the Sidekicks Development Officer has recently been working with a group of learners at Crystalmount Sheltered Housing Complex in Dalkeith. As part of the Supported Befriending Project, young volunteers were already visiting this complex for one evening per week to take part in befriending activities. The two project co-ordinators have worked together to offer basic IT tuition to the residents as one of their activities. Sidekicks are currently working with 4 learners at Crystalmount who have particularly enjoyed being able to listen to music and watch videos online. Several young volunteers have assisted with this group and the learners have especially enjoyed interacting with the young people and sharing interests using the laptops.

Pictured below are all the Learners and Sidekicks from the Penicuik Group.

Saltire Awards Launched

Saltire Awards have been launched in Midlothian!

Saltire Awards is a Scottish Government backed award for young people, designed to reward and recognise young peoples' commitment to volunteering. Saltire Awards consists of 3 levels: Challenge, Ascent and Approach, further details can be viewed on the official website. If you are aged 12 to 25 and are volunteering or considering volunteering you can register yourself on the Saltire website, or alternatively get in touch with a member of our youth team on 0131 660 1216. Saltire Awards replaces MV awards, so unclaimed MV hours can be used against Saltire awards.