September 2006

In This Issue

- Features              - Events & Training              - The Centre's News

Corporate Volunteering Knowledge Network
[The Centre for Volunteering]

On Friday, 25 August we hosted the first breakfast seminar of our newly established Corporate Volunteering Knowledge Network. The network has been formed to meet the growing need to build knowledge, leadership and best practice in corporate volunteering.

Twenty-eight representatives from the private sector attended the invitation-only breakfast seminar. This breakfast is the first in a series of regular corporate volunteering seminars designed to provide information on how business can make an employer-supported volunteering program a dynamic and successful part of a company's overall strategy.

Hailey Cavill from Cavill + Co spoke about why and how corporate Australia is using employee engagement to attract and retain staff and build trust, pride, motivation and team spirit. Hailey also outlined several different models and best practice guidelines which would enhance this process. Tamara Reeves from Lend Lease and Justine Butler from the Australian Stock Exchange each provided an in-depth look at their successful corporate volunteering program.

The breakfast seminar was sponsored by the Hilton Sydney and ACU National. We would like to thank them for their generous support.

Opposition seeks police checks for volunteer workers
[ABC Online]
The NSW Opposition is angry that volunteers working with children are not required to submit to a police background check. Reba Meagher, Minister for Community Services and Youth, said that the current system is under review. The Commissioner for Children and Young People is surveying volunteer organisations to gain feedback from them on how to change the current system. Opposition spokeswoman on youth services Gladys Berejiklian insists that background checks for all employees be mandatory since only paid employees have to submit to background checks at present. MORE

Volunteers may be reimbursed
[The Age]

Volunteer firefighters, emergency services volunteers and other volunteers may be reimbursed for the cost of petrol with vouchers, tax rebates or cash reimbursements. The push to reimburse these volunteers is led by Government MPs who fear volunteer services might have to wind down or even close if there is no chance of reimbursement. Due to the high cost of petrol, politicians such as Tasmanian Liberal Senator Guy Barnett and South Australian MP Kym Richardson have offered this as a way to keep volunteer services from going under. The program suggests volunteer organisations be given cash grants by the Federal Government. Other proposals are being made along with this one. MORE

The Centre for Volunteering Breakfast Seminar: Youth Volunteering Special
Tuesday, 19 September 2006, 9am–10.30am

Join us for our regular Breakfast Seminar held monthly at The Centre for Volunteering, Level 2, 228 Pitt Street (between Park and Market Streets), Sydney.

Ensuring the future of volunteering
Young people represent the future of volunteering – and they are ready and willing to become involved in their community today. However, research shows that appropriate volunteering opportunities for young people are limited.

This month, Jacinthe Brosseau, The Centre for Volunteering's Community Project Manager and SCIP coordinator (Student Community Involvement Program), and Harry Whelan, volunteer youth advisor and SCIP speaker, will lead a discussion on the involvement of young people as volunteers in community organisations. The session will help organisations prepare for young people's involvement by exploring attitudes toward young people, discussing issues and challenges relating to youth volunteering, and brainstorming possible ways for young people to get involved.

This session will equip organisations with tools for creating relevant volunteering opportunities for young people and implementing best practice in volunteer management.

Nikki James, Youth Officer at St Vincent de Paul, will give a brief talk about her organisation's successful youth volunteering program.

Numbers are limited. It is essential that you RSVP to attend and order breakfast in advance. Breakfast costs $5 and includes fruit salad, raisin toast and muffins. Tea and coffee are free.

- Email Alison Keene or phone 02 9261 3600.
- Mark your calendar with the dates of our 2006 Breakfast Forums.

SVM Workshop: Submission Writing (1 day)
Wednesday, 13 September 2006, 9am–5pm

This workshop assists management committee members, general managers and managers of volunteers to prepare successful funding submissions and write effective reports. This is an interactive workshop designed to help directly with planning and writing your submissions.

- Find out more about Submission Writing.
- Enrol online to attend the Submission Writing workshop.
- View the School of Volunteer Management's course calendar.

Visit our stall at Sydney's Earthdance Festival
Sunday, 17 September 2006, 9am–4pm

Show your support for The Centre for Volunteering and visit our information and fundraising stall in the markets area at Sydney's Earthdance Markets which is part of the 10th Annual Earthdance Global Festival for Peace.

The festival will be held at Sydney Park, St Peters. We will have plenty of information on volunteering as well as t-shirts, water bottles, wrist bands and more. All money raised will be used to support volunteering in NSW.

The Centre for Volunteering's Fundraising Tupperware Lunch
NEW DATE: Thursday, 5 October, 12pm–1pm

Are you are Tupperware fan? If not, why not! We are holding a fundraising Tupperware lunchtime demonstration at our Pitt Street office on Thursday, 5 October. We will be serving lunch - join us from 12pm to 1pm. Ten per cent of all sales will be used to support The Centre for Volunteering and volunteering in NSW.

Please RSVP by COB Tuesday, 3 October. Phone Janine Cowen on 9261 3600 or email jcowen@volunteering.com.au

Free seminar: Building a Bridge with Youth
Tuesday, 26 September, 10am–1pm

We would like to invite all organisations that are interested in gaining an in-depth understanding of youth culture and that support the view that 'young people can make a difference in our society' to join us in a free information seminar on how we can effectively engage young people in volunteering opportunities.

As part of our Volunteering Makes a Difference pilot program, Youth Off The Streets has formed a joint initiative with us with the aim of engaging disadvantaged youth to participate in volunteer activities of their own choice. Volunteer activities can allow these young people to tap into their talents and interests as well as gain valuable skills, increased self-esteem and a greater connection to their community.

The information seminar will focus on the notion of building a bridge between young people and their community.

We will be discussing and sharing ideas about mentoring, volunteering, youth culture and understanding disadvantaged youth. John Martin, Cluster Manager for Youth Off The Streets Outreach Programs (which includes mentoring and service learning initiatives) will present various strategies for connecting with young people so that both they and each organisation get the most out of this innovative volunteering experience.

Join us and Youth Off the Streets at the The Centre for Volunteering, Level 2, 228 Pitt Street, Sydney. Morning tea will be provided.

Please RSVP by phoning Jacinthe Brosseau on 9261 3600 or email jbrosseau@volunteering.com.au by COB Friday, 22 September.

Membership renewal reminder
The deadline for this year's membership renewal is 30 September 2006 when unpaid memberships will lapse automatically. Members cannot use the Volunteer Referral Service to recruit volunteers or access any other member services until their membership is renewed.

If you would like another copy of your invoice or have any questions, please phone Jan or John in the Membership Department on 9261 3600 or download a
 Membership Renewal Form.

Volunteer Referral Service update
Alison Keene, newly appointed Volunteer Services Coordinator, writes: "My first month here at The Centre has flown by, and I have been warmly welcomed by the incredibly dedicated volunteer teams who run our referrals service. These teams are growing, with five new volunteers coming on board in the last couple of weeks. The aim in the coming months is to improve the service we offer to our member organisations by matching more accurately the referrals we make to them. As part of that aim, member organisations are now able to submit their job descriptions to us online. Please let me know what you think, and watch this space for more news as I settle into the job!"

Lynne Dalton takes part in Nivea Panel
On 6 September, Lynne Dalton, CEO was invited to participate in a panel discussion on mature women's attitudes to ageing. The evening was hosted by Nivea to coincide with the launch of a new range of products designed especially for mature skin. Lynne writes: "Guests were able to road test some of the products during the evening and, I must say, these new products received many compliments from the mostly female guests. The evening was lively with panel members including former ABC sports announcer Anne Sargent, actor Paula Duncan and television personality Pru MacSween. Market researcher Julie Dang led the discussion and asked panel members pertinent questions about ageing and the lifestyle of mature women. Some of the panel were quite frank and honest in relating their life experiences and feelings as well as being highly entertaining. Nivea plans to feature mature women in volunteering and their contribution to society as part of its corporate social responsibility program. We look forward to Nivea's continued support for the voluntary sector and particularly The Centre for Volunteering."

Nivea has kindly donated a lovely gift basket filled with their latest products to The Centre for Volunteering – and it could be yours. You can buy a $2 raffle ticket when you visit The Centre for Volunteering's Pitt Street office. The raffle will be drawn on Tuesday, 5 December 2006 to celebrate International Volunteer Day. All money raised will be used to support volunteering in NSW.

School of Volunteer Management update
The School of Volunteer Management (SVM) is pleased to announce the addition of accredited qualifications for volunteers. These qualifications were developed by Volunteering Australia in response to demands from the NFP sector. The qualifications are an excellent tool to:

• formally recognise the contribution volunteers make to an organisation
• assist in retaining volunteers
• assist in attracting the right volunteer for a job role
• formalise existing induction processes
• formalise volunteer roles to ensure they are working within the scope of their position
• link volunteers to an organisation's mission.

The new qualifications will be available at SVM soon. More information about how to introduce the qualifications is now available on the SVM website.

SVM is also pleased to announce a new range of competency-based workshops from the Diploma of Business. These workshops will be scheduled at the School throughout 2007 and are available to organisations as part of our customised training options. Please visit the SVM website for a description of the new workshops.

For more information about SVM, phone 9261 3600 or visit www.svm.net.au. Don't forget to sign up for the SVM e-newsletter while there.

Project Updates

Volunteers and the Law: Legal needs survey
We are very pleased with the response to our survey with 272 responses to date received from a range of volunteering organisations in NSW. We are analysing the survey results and will produce the final report in November 2006. A preliminary look at the results suggests that OH&S, insurance, child protection and governance are among the most pressing issues facing the sector. Pro bono lawyers, board members and community legal centres are some of the main legal resources used by NFP organisations. About half of our respondents face some form of difficulty with finding up-to-date legal information and resources relating to volunteering while over 70% are supportive of developing a comprehensive online legal resource clearing house and having a 1300 hotline. For more information phone Dr Anton Mischewski, Research and Policy Manager, on 9261 3600.

Student Community Involvement Program (SCIP)
The SCIP team ran Community Education Days in two high schools in August – Marist College Kogarah and Marist College Pagewood in Maroubra. We would like to thank the following people and organisations for their wonderful presentations which were well received by both students and teachers:

• Harry Whelan and Karen Taylor – The Centre for Volunteering
• Penny Douglas – Ronald McDonald House
• Tom Meade, Jenny Moss, Jenny Hardy, Ben Austin, and Brendan Farthing – House With No Steps
• Anthony Mitchell and Coral Dixon – Amnesty International Australia
• Hugh James and Boukje Pieters – Red Cross Youth Challenge
• Sonia Markoff – St George Area Intellectual Disability
• Kieran Thomas – Youth Challenge Australia
• Rita Sofea – International Volunteers for Peace
• Nikki James – St Vincent de Paul Society.

Thanks also to Margaret Kelly, Lyn Blundell, Tonia Hales and Jodie Hughes for their invaluable skills in coordinating the education days.

As well, the SCIP team developed and ran workshops at the 2006 State Student Representative Council Conference (organised by the Department of Education and Training). During these workshops, we provided tools for student representative councils to become involved in the development and implementation of student community involvement programs in their own schools.

The SCIP team attended a Youth Leadership Day organised by the Community Relations Commission and participated in workshops and discussions on youth leadership issues and opportunities. This day was part of the Commission's annual Community Relations Symposium that focused on 'enhancing community harmony' in multicultural Australia.

Copyright © 2006 The Centre for Volunteering | ABN 28 002 416 024
Level 2, 228 Pitt St, Sydney NSW 2000
T: 02 9261 3600 | F: 02 9261 4033 | E: info@volunteering.com.au
www.volunteering.com.au
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