North West regional winners
Congratulations to the following North West regional award winners!
Best new volunteer
Natalie George
Natalie has been working with Brook Pennine on the v24/24 Sex Positive campaign for six months, helping to raise positive understanding of different sexualities, and using her own experiences as a teen mum to raise awareness of safe sex.
Natalie spends three days a week with the project, which she “loves everything about”. She is a complete convert to volunteering and has applied to become a volunteer at a new youth centre opening in her town in 2012.
Overall commitment to volunteering
Danika Hamilton
Danika Hamilton’s life has not always been easy. But despite the challenges she's faced, she is a passionate and committed volunteer who dedicates her time to helping others through Positive Futures Sports Development. She is also a mentor for The Princes Trust and is proof that hard work and having a passion for something can help you get through the darker times in life.
She has volunteered on the “Talk 2 Frank” campaign, delivering information to hundreds of young people across greater Manchester about the dangers of drug use and is currently a Support Mentor on the SENSE programme run by Manchester Active Voices, a project which helps young women become more confident and develop their self-esteem.
Youth worker
Paul Wright
Paul Wright’s personal success was a result of the Canal Boat Project youth group, of which he was a founding member. With its support, he was the first of his group to attend university. After graduating, Paul knew that he wanted to offer other young people in his deprived area of Runcorn the same support and opportunities he had.
He is passionate about inspiring young people from his community find their talents through community work and volunteering. One of Paul’s proudest achievements was a trip to Ghana this month (December 11). With his support, young people in his community raised £30k to build a computer centre for children in rural Ghana. He was able to take a container of building materials and equipment to Ghana and help young volunteers start work over there.
National Citizen Service (NCS)
NCS Runcorn
Motivated by inequalities they saw in provision for young people in their town compared to the neighbouring town of Widnes, the team decided to tackle the lack of youth centres in the area. The team successfully raised money and support to revive a derelict youth centre to run a community day and are now working together to secure funding to open the centre permanently for the young people of their community.
About NCS:
NCS aims to promote a more cohesive, responsible and engaged society by bringing young people from different backgrounds together to make a difference in their communities. It is a voluntary programme for 16-year-olds which focuses on their personal and social development. It includes challenging activities, from away-from-home residential experiences to a self-designed social action project.
Team
Warrington Youth Club
The young volunteers at Warrington youth Club provide support and activities for more than 100 young people, many of whom have learning disabilities. The dedicated team of volunteers run activities and outings for the centre’s users, as well as providing emotional support and encouragement. Their work has allowed the club to triple in capacity in the last two years.
Bringing communities together
Alex Winstanley
Alex,19, from Wigan is a trainee P.E Teacher and volunteer sports coach, working with children from various backgrounds. He is passionate about rugby and coaching and has seen his actions make a real difference to the lives of many young people.
He started volunteering with school teams whilst he was at secondary school by helping to coach and officiate rugby matches. He also began helping out at the CHAMPS Centre, assisting children aged 5 to 15, including some who had physical and learning disabilities.