Guest column: Celebrating 10 years of volunteering services in Gainsborough

Heather Arnatt, area co-ordinator for Voluntary Services Centre in West Lindsey

Based at the Guildhall on Marshall’s Yard, VCS provides advice and support to volunteers and organisations alike.

The former organisation, Voluntary Sector Support Services West Lindsey was based in a unit at the back of the old Co-operative department store.

In 2008, it grasped the opportunity to join Urban Challenge Ltd with funding from the Lottery, and employed extra staff.

This move enabled VCS to expand its remit to assist local community groups grow, as well as to continue to promote volunteering across West Lindsey.

In 2011 VCS moved into West Lindsey Council’s Guildhall, enabling it to work collaboratively across the district.

Over the last 10 years, working closely with its offices in Lincoln and Sleaford, and through collaboration with other Lincolnshire organisations, VCS has expanded its scope with successful community projects such as Lincolnshire MOVE, Talent Match and Social Prescribing.

Across 2018, VCS be celebrating this milestone at a variety of events.

Volunteer management, ‘getting started with involving volunteers’, takes place on Friday, April 27 from 10am to 12noon.

West Lindsey Voluntary Sector Forum is also on Friday, April 27 from 12.30pm, to 2.30pm.

V:Expo Lincolnshire is on Friday, June 1 from 10am to 2.30pm at Navenby Village Hall.

Information about all of the events is available on the VCS website.

If you have time on your hands why not help the organisation celebrate?

You can do this by visiting the group’s Gainsborough office and giving volunteering a try.

Volunteering can unlock your potential and tap into qualities and skills you didn’t even realise you had – boosting self worth, esteem and even enhancing your CV.

Research says that doing good actually does you good, boosting both mental and physical health, contributing to a more positive community.

Why not visit your local volunteer centre to see if there’s a role for you?

You can book to have an informal chat with a volunteer advisor and find out what opportunities are availabe.

Visit the Guildhall at Marshall’s Yard in Gainsborough, call 01427 613470, email [email protected] or visit the website at www.voluntarycentreservices.org.uk