Tuesday, 2 October 2012
Thing 22 Volunteering
Yes volunteering is a good thing if you can afford to do it. In my school
library I couldn't do my job without volunteers. My employers haven't taken on
enough staff to do the job properly, and so I'm having to use volunteers more
and more. However, I do agree with the premise that there should be payback, and that valuable experienced should be gained by those volunteering. I do my best in difficult circumstances. From my point of view, it's great to get an outsiders view. New eyes
often hightlight issues that I may not have thought of. I train my volunteers to
do the basics and they choose the hours that they can commit to. If they have
particular skills such as artistic/creative abilities I use them to the full.
I do try to make sure they aren't given all the boring jobs in order to keep them interested. Unfortunately, they do move on quite quickly, and the investment of time
training is then lost and I have to start again. From the volunteers point of
view, there are many hurdles still in place that have to be jumped over before
they can work in our school. Not only do they have to the CRB check (as a
given), the school insists on them filling out a FULL employment application
form and then undergo an interview with senior management. I personally think
it's a bit over the top and will put a lot of people off. Surely this red tape
can be reduced for people who are doing us a huge favour?! But policy seems to
be set in stone. As a means of gaining work experience I'm all for it. It shows
intitiative, commitment to the profession and willingness to move forward. It
bumps up the CV no end. So go for it!
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