Free briefing session on Children First Act 2015

on 12 December 2017.

Following almost two years of preparations all remaining provisions of the Children First Act 2015 will be commenced from yesterday the 11th December 2017.

These include the provisi images ons in relation to mandatory reporting of child abuse and in relation to placing a legal obligation on organisations providing services to children to prepare and publish a Child Safeguarding Statement.

Together with the HSE Kerry Volunteer Centee will be providing FREE Child protection briefing on the Children First Act 2015 on the 24th of January 2018.

The purpose of the briefing is designed to provide information about key elements of the Children First Act 2015 and prepare community and voluntary groups, their Trustees and Volunteers to meet their statutory requirments under the Act.

The key to Managing Volunteers is ...

on 27 November 2017.

According to Breda Sheehan, Manager of the National Council for the Blind Ireland (NCBI) Charity Stop in Tralee, when it comes to managing volunteers, it’s all about appreciation and making the experience a positive one for NCBI all involved. We in Kerry Volunteer Centre agree fully!

Breda manages a team of up to 12 volunteers, and is keen to let them know that their hard work is appreciated. “I think the most important thing is to treat people the same way you would like to be treated yourself. You have to constantly keep in your head that they are giving of their free time, they are there to help out of goodwill. You have to appreciate them,” Breda advised.

Kerry couple shortlisted for Volunteer Ireland Awards

on 09 November 2017.

From over 500 nominations, 30 exceptional volunteers and 3 outstanding groups of volunteers have been shortlisted for this year’s Volunteer Ireland Awards including George and Mary Sugrue from Kerry. 2017 marks an extremely special year for t George and Mary Sugrue 3 he Volunteer Ireland Awards. Not only are they celebrating their tenth year, they will also form part of the prestigious closing ceremony of Sligo’s designation as European Volunteering Capital.

The awards aim to celebrate the extraordinary dedication that nominees have shown to help others, often taking time away from family and friends to give back. From those new to Ireland, husband and wife duos and local community stalwarts, we are lucky enough to have so many exceptional volunteers in Ireland. George and Mary, from Tralee, are one such example:

Let's put Volunteering in the 2021 Census

on 26 October 2017.

The Central Statistics Office are currently carrying out a public consultation on the types of questions that will be asked in Census 2021. There was a question on volunteering in 2006, but it was not included in the 2016 Census, much to our disappointment. As such, Kerry Volunteer Centre is asking for your support in getting Volunteering back into the Census-the deadline for submissions is November 3rd, so there is not much time left. census

We would love it if you were able to make a submission to the CSO supporting putting Volunteering related questions back into the Census. To make it as easy as possible, you can just cut and paste the text from our submission below and submit it at https://surveys.cso.ie/jfe/form/SV_3CtoRPfCjau7YPz - it shouldn’t take more than a minute. Kerry Volunteer Centres' submission is written to adhere to the framework of the consultation and makes what Kerry Volunteer Centre believe is a strong statistical argument.

Volunteering Matters with Kerry Parents and Friends Association

on 10 October 2017.

Over the last number o KPFA Banner f months the Kerry Volunteer Centre has been delighted to work with the Kerry Parents & Friends Association (KPFA) and the partnership has already borne fruit. June O’Mahony of the KPFA first contacted the Volunteer Centre this summer to discuss their need for a volunteer ‘Befriender”, a role that was successfully filled just a few weeks later.

“I was looking for a volunteer befriender in Tralee and someone mentioned the Volunteer Centre. I spoke to Linda in the office, I gave her the details and we took it from there,” June recalled. “A befriender is normally a person with a couple of hours to spare. It gives our people an opportunity to get out into the community and experience things with a new friend. It’s a different experience for them. It might just be to go for a walk or have a cup of coffee,” she added.

Tomás Volunteering Story: Do Good, Feel Good

on 28 June 2017.

images Tomás O Caoimh has always been used to having a busy schedule but when he found himself with some time on his hands he decided to embrace the opportunity. His first port of call was the Kerry Volunteer Centre. “I had always known the Kerry Volunteer Centre was there, just from passing the door or seeing it in the paper but this was the first time I contacted them,” Tomás who is currently out on disability leave explained. “In the past, I would have been involved in the Simon Community and St Vincent De Paul when I was in college I was always interested in volunteering and I had some time on my hands,” he added.

The 2017 Good Governance Awards

on 28 June 2017.

Kerry Volunteer Centre is delighted to share with you news of its involvemnt with the Carmichael Centre 2017 Good Governance Awards in association with its partners: Charities Institute Ireland, Dóchas, ENCLUDE, Volunteer Ireland, The Wheel, Davy Charities, Governance On-Line, Mason Hayes & Curran and Mazars.

This successful initiative now in its second year is accepting applications to be considered for one of four award categories. The Awards have been established to recognise and encourage compliance and adherence with good governance best practice by non-profit organisations in Ireland.

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