Volunteers from Sheffield Wednesday’s National Citizenship Service have been giving back and helping the Shiregreen community as part of the National Citizenship Service (NCS) programme.
For the third year running, Shiregreen Community Homes, part of Sanctuary Housing, provide a helping hand to the National Citizen Service programme – a project run by the Sheffield Wednesday Community Programme.
Facilitated by the club’s Community Programme, NCS is a government-funded youth programme designed to bring together young people and teach them how to communicate and work as a team, while contributing volunteer hours to help in the community.
Leading housing provider, Sanctuary, called on influential ties they hold in the neighbourhood to help organise hands-on and rewarding placements for the new volunteers.
The volunteers, aged between 16 and 17, mucked in and made every minute count for the Shiregreen community. Along with the valuable life-skills gained, participating students also exchanged their volunteering hours for important UCAS points to assist them with future educational applications.
The action-packed placement varied from green-fingered tasks at community allotments, and residents’ gardens, to building a greenhouse for local scouts and supporting a fundraising event for local charity, Sheffield Royal Society for the Blind.
Tom Ledger, NCS team leader for Sheffield Wednesday, said: “All the volunteers really enjoyed their time assisting Shiregreen projects – students had a great experience getting involved in such a variety of activities, from helping 231 Scouts Troops to maintaining 80 year-old Mr Banyard’s garden.
“We’d like to thank Sanctuary for assisting us with making contact with so many community groups and compiling a comprehensive placement.”
Sanctuary Housing’s director of neighbourhoods, Colleen Eccles, said: “We have worked with Sheffield Wednesday as a partner on many different projects, so it’s great that we can be part of their NCS programme.
“Everyone who visited is very thankful for the volunteers’ hard work and effort. The work carried out was fantastic, and we hope to facilitate the placement next year too!”
For more information on the NCS programme, please contact Tom by email – tom.ledger@swfc.co.uk or call the community office on 0114 221 2215