Volunteering experiences for young people

Date: 7th September 2016
Category: Education, including vocational education
Author: BEMIS

BEMIS, in collaboration with a number of European partners has become part of the Validation System in Lifelong Learning Experiences of Youth Volunteering (VALLEY) project. The project aims to provide a new approach to promoting volunteering among young people.

This approach presents volunteering as a resource of personal empowerment and as a way to validate skills and competences developed during their volunteering experience. One of the most powerful informal learning contexts is represented by the volunteering sector, where people have the opportunity to experience different situations, putting into practice their own skills and getting new experience.

VALLEY will focus on the following target groups:

• Young people already involved in volunteer activities;
• Young people who have never experienced volunteering, with a specific focus on disadvantaged groups.

Volunteering represents an ideal opportunity for helping young migrants to facilitate their integration into their community. It provides the basis for people to make new social connections, share their skills and help people in need, develop community knowledge, increase language skills and acquire new competences potentially valuable in terms of employment opportunities.

Aims of valley project

VALLEY intends to promote volunteering of young adults, especially those with fewer opportunities. Volunteering is an important field for learning, where young people can have experiences that help to prepare and empower them for their adult life. BEMIS along with its partners carried out a survey questionnaire and desk research on volunteering across the UK in 2015/16. Findings from partner host countries highlighted a lack of recognition for informal and non-formal volunteering.

• Find out more and to get in touch with BEMIS about volunteering opportunities for young people.