In October to December 2023, we delivered the Get Ready to Volunteer course to a class of 15 young people in the Kirkwall Grammar School, Curriculum Support department. We spent a period a week with the class, with additional work being done by the pupils throughout the rest of the week lead by the class teacher.
The class chose to support Women’s Aid Orkney by creating Christmas pamper packs for women without family or loved ones. Morgan Maxton from Women’s Aid Orkney came and spoke to the pupils about the work the charity does, and the young people were able to ask some very insightful questions. To produce the pamper packs, the class organised a donation drive by creating the advertising, approaching local businesses and press. Then they arranged to collect the donated items themselves. Their target was to put together 15 pamper packs, and in the end, they collected enough products to create nearly 40!
Amy Johnston the class teacher, was very involved throughout the whole project. She said:
The pupils all engaged positively with the theory side of things and worked well with VAO in recognising their own skills and abilities.
Morgan returned to pick up the pamper packs for Women’s Aid Orkney. She said:
We were delighted when the pupils chose us and with their wonderful idea to make pamper packs for the women we support as Christmas presents. They were very engaged in what we do as a charity and how they could help. They did all the work themselves and the end product was sensational… The pupils did an amazing job and as a charity we were grateful for their help and enthusiasm.
As a result of Get Ready to Volunteer, at least 2 of the young people have gone on to do more volunteering.
As well as the practical aspect, the pupils learned about work going on in the community and how to access support, and indeed how to continue supporting the charity's work themselves. Pupil, Jessica said:
It was good to learn more about Women’s Aid and the work they do as I didn’t really know what they did before. Now I know what kind of things they need and how to support them in the future.
The course helped develop the pupils’ confidence and skills. Class teacher, Amy said:
We were able to come up with our challenge, and all pupils were able to develop skills such as communication and teamwork.
The women who received the packs were grateful for the personal touches in the packs. Morgan from Women’s Aid Orkney said:
The women who received a pamper pack were delighted and the handmade cards with positive notes made everyone smile.
