Pupils sign-up to helpout their community (From Barry And District News)

Pupils sign-up to helpout their community

SIXTH-formers at Ysgol Gyfun Bro Morgannwg, the Vale's Welsh-medium comprehensive school, have become the latest in a line of people to volunteer with local organisations by enrolling with the Vale Volunteer Bureau programme.

The Vale Volunteer Bureau (VVB) offers a one-stop resource for information, advice and guidance on all aspects of volunteering for both volunteers and recruiting organisations.

The aim is to link the skills, experiences, time and enthusiasm of local people looking to volunteer with organisations seeking to develop their service.

Sixth formers will have the chance to get involved in voluntary work within various organisations in the Vale of Glamorgan and help in the community.

This, along with other projects the school is undertaking, will strengthen ties between the local community and the school.

Charles Pagler, a sixth former at Ysgol Gyfun Bro Morgannwg said: "Volunteering provides pupils with the opportunity to help others in the local community.

"We will meet new people and improve our social skills, and it will also allow us to be altruistic and to learn new skills."

Arwel Jones, head of sixth form at Ysgol Gyfun Bro Morgannwg, added: "Volunteering provides pupils with the opportunity to develop many of their personal skills, and in particular their social skills.

"The programme will provide pupils with a great range of skills which the students will be able to use on future job applications."

Mark Ellis, outreach worker for the Vale Volunteer Bureau, said: "Young people can get involved with volunteering for a number of reasons.

"Voluntary work can offer a number of varied routes for young people who are looking to start out on the road to a new career, gaining qualifications or just simply looking for a chance to acquire new skills.

"It also gives them a chance to gain work experience, social contact, involvement in the community, challenges and the chance to build up confidence."

Many of the sixth formers have enrolled on the Millennium Volunteering programme.