The Volunteer Centre's New Home
The Volunteer Centre has now opened at its new home
in Bath Central Library. This is a much more appropriate
location for our service – being far more accessible as
well as a logical home! Already, we have had over double
the number of drop-in enquiries. Our chair of trustees
Marion Cooper, says “New opportunities for volunteering
come in every day and, with public sector cuts beginning
to really bite, the need for volunteers has never been
so great. Lots of people from all walks of life use the
library and we hope that, by being on the spot, we can
make ‘volunteering’ as common as changing a library book
or using the internet.”
Bath Central Library is situated on the 1st floor of
The Podium shopping centre in Bath (above Waitrose).
View map here. The address is 19 The Podium, Northgate
Street, Bath, BA1 5AN and the new phone number for the
Volunteer Centre is 01225 338105.
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Vetting & Barring Scheme halted
As you are probably aware by now, Theresa May, the new Home
Secretary, has announced a halt to the new Vetting &
Barring Scheme. Although the need for such a scheme
was clearly established by the Bichard Enquiry, the problems
and questions surrounding its implementation have been many.
The Home Secretary said,
“The Government has made clear its intention to bring the
criminal records and Vetting and Barring regimes back to
common sense levels. Until this remodelling has taken place,
we have decided to maintain those aspects of the new Scheme
which are already in place, but not to introduce further
elements.”
We do not know, as yet, what future the ISA scheme has.
CRB checks remain unaffected.
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Volunteer Managers Network (VMN)
The VMN is open to anyone in B&NES who has responsibility
for managing volunteers. It offers the chance to meet other
Volunteer Managers, to share ideas, solve problems and find
out about the latest developments in the world of
volunteering. Membership is free.
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How to Attract Volunteers
Mike Plows recently gave a presentation on how to attract
volunteers to your group or project and the steps you can
take to ensure your volunteers stay with you. Here is a copy
of the
presentation and a
document covering the topics.
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New Home – New Manager.
The Volunteer Centre has a new manager to run things in
its new location. Mike Plows started with us on 31st January
and we are glad to have him as part of the team. Mike says
“I have recently been appointed Manager of the Volunteer
Centre – Bath & North East Somerset, and what an exciting
and challenging opportunity this is!
There is great change within the voluntary sector and our
recent move into Bath Central Library is a really important
step for us as we develop a new partnership with Bath &
North East Somerset Library Services, supporting their own
volunteer recruitment programme.
Over the past few years I have worked with a number of
charitable organisations and taken a particular interest in
the area of volunteering, looking at this both from the
perspective of a volunteer and as a manager of these
invaluable individuals. I believe this is an area where
there is significant future development potential,
particularly if organisations are able to improve and
enhance the overall experience for volunteers.
So why did I take this role? As an individual I am committed
to ‘making a difference’ within the community and am
passionate for volunteering. I have been fortunate to enjoy
the life enriching opportunities volunteering can bring and
am committed to helping others share such an experience.
I look forward to welcoming you to our new home!
Mike Plows – Volunteer Centre manager
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