What will I be doing? Aberlour Options Aberdeen support children who have complex needs through fun activities, regularly day trips and adventures. Adventure Buddy Volunteers support these activities, engaging with children either in groups or on a 1:1 basis and encouraging participation. Adventure Buddy Volunteers support staff to plan, prepare and run outings and activities. This may include outdoor activities such as trips to the park or the beach, or in-house activities such as arts and crafts or playing board games. The impact you can make Trying new activities can be a daunting experience for children and young people. As an Adventure Buddy, you can play an active role in encouraging children to take part in activities, develop confidence and experience new opportunities. By taking part in an activity together, volunteers can motivate and reassure children, and form trusting relationships. The benefits to you Adventure Buddy Volunteers gain valuable experience of working with children with complex needs, and learning how to support and encourage them to try something new. Volunteers can develop their own skills and confidence in working with others, while being part of a supporting and engaging staff team. Adventure Buddy Volunteers typically support either in-house activities, day-trips or outings once a fortnight. If you are interested in this role, please enquire or apply now.

This opportunity is to help at a group for families who have children with rare, complex, special or additional needs. BANG has monthly meetings where parent/carers have a rare chance to get together, discuss issues or problems and get support and possible solutions. It also gives parent/carers of special needs children some much needed time out from day to day life. The volunteer(s) would play with children (0-8 yrs), help with painting and crafts (making and help to serve snack. Parents will be responsible for their children and will be present in the room at all times. Toileting and changing needs will be dealt with by the child’s parent/carer. Of the children involved with the group, some have special needs, learning disabilities, physical disabilities and other conditions. Some are siblings to the special needs child and have no special need. cards, pictures etc)

The Lawfield Walking Bus was established a year ago and enables children to walk to school in safe, supervised groups. The Bus concept is a safe, healthy and environmentally friendly approach to walking large groups of children to school. Each Bus has an adult 'Driver' at the front and an adult 'Conductor' at the rear. We sing songs, play instruments and tell stories on the way to school. The Bus can only be sustained if volunteers are available to be the Driver or Conductor, even on a rota basis. The children walk to school in a group along a set route picking up additional 'passengers' from home along the way. Everyone wears a reflective harness connected to a "Walkodile". The number of walking buses will depend on the number of children who are interested. We operate the buses every day for the journey to school.

When you take part in a volunteering project through Concordia, you can be sure you’ll be making a real difference to a community, and to yourself. For nearly 70 years now, we've provided volunteering and work opportunities overseas and here in the UK. Today we work with 80 like minded, non-profit partner organisations from 60 countries, to offer medium and short term community volunteering, around the world. A selection of projects is available for teenagers aged 16 and 17. Types of international volunteer projects include conservation, restoration, archaeology, construction, arts, children’s play-schemes and teaching. Board and accommodation is free of charge for projects in Europe, North America, Japan and South Korea. For projects in Latin America, Asia, Middle East and Africa volunteer pay an extra on arrival fee of approx. £150/200 that covers food and accommodation, as well as funding the programme in the country.

Would you like to Volunteer for Home-Start Deveron? Home-Start Deveron is part of a national network that offers friendly, informal support to families with at least one child under the age of five years. The daily stresses of bringing up a family can often become overwhelming and as a result parents find themselves unable to cope. Home-Start Deveron can help to alleviate some of the challenges that families face, through regular support from volunteers, who themselves have parenting experience. As a Volunteer what would I do? Volunteers visit families, in their own homes, for two to three hours per week. How you help is really down to the family itself, some might need someone to talk to, others might need more practical support with meal planning, cooking, reading to their children or finding out about local services. Volunteers can also help to run groups such as Stay and Play sessions and cookery classes for parents. Can my support and friendship really make a difference? The early years before children go off to school are vital and at Home-Start Deveron we believe parents have the key role in creating a secure childhood for their children. It's just that sometimes they need a bit of your help. This offer of regular, flexible support can go a long way to helping families to get back on their feet. Parents grow in confidence, strengthen bonds with their children and regain a sense of the value of themselves as parents.

The Zap group meets on Wednesday evenings from 6 pm until 8 pm on Wednesday evenings at Prestonpans Community Centre. We were fortunate to get a lottery grant and with this we purchased a large range of activities that the youth could enjoy. The group are all on the spectrum of Autism / Aspergers syndrome and the group is a safe place to socialise and to learn. We currently have four staff and the ratio of staff to young person is 1 to 2. We run summer programmes and celebrate events like Christmas and Halloween. The young people have learned a lot from the group and we have learned a lot about how best to support young people who have this condition. We are currently looking for volunteers in order that we might expand provision and invite other youth to join us. There is always a demand for more young people to come along. For people preparing for a community based career or just wishing to give time to the community with an interesting group, this would be a really good volunteering opportunity. Volunteers could opt into summer work or commit to term time

Volunteers would be required to help run the Parent + Toddler group with a vision of possibly leading on this in the future. Tasks involved will include: - Taking Register - Setting up activities/crafts etc - Interacting with the Parents + Toddlers - Encouraging parent interaction - Set-up of tea/coffee and snacks - Clearing up at end of group - Responsible for money handling

Lego clubs consist of a weekly 1 hour drop-in session in libraries. Lego Clubs are suitable for children aged 8 and over. Younger children to be accompanied by an adult. The role of the volunteer is just to supervise children, ensuring that they are safe.They are also expected to engage with children and to ensure that the club runs smoothly. Lego Club Volunteers need to be members of the PVG scheme.

PlayPeace is a parent led service to support families who have a child or children with additional needs. By offering play sessions which include children with additional needs, siblings and parents or carers PlayPeace aims to provide a welcoming, inclusive club which enables friendships, learning and play. It is in a safe setting with peer support for parents and carers.

Do you want to make a positive difference in your local community? Then consider volunteering with the Youth and Extreme Clubs at Portgordon Community Church. Our clubs for young people make a positive difference and help young people improve their confidence and self esteem. Volunteers are encouraged to use their creative skills, helping with activities such as crafting or gaming sessions. Volunteering with the clubs is a great way to get to know your local community, so if you have an hour or so to spare, we would like to hear from you.