1Good evening, everyone.
2Let me start by welcoming you all to this talk and thanking you for taking the time to consider joining ACE voluntary organisation.
3ACE offers support to people and services in the local area
4and we're now looking for more volunteers to help us do this.
5By the way, I hope you're all comfortable,
6we have brought in extra seats so that no one has to stand,
7but it does mean that the people at the back of the room may be a bit squashed.
8We'll only be here for about half an hour so, hopefully, that's OK.
9One of the first questions we're often asked is how old you need to be to volunteer.
10Well, you can be as young as 16 or you can be 60 or over:
11it all depends on what type of voluntary work you want to do.
12Other considerations, such as reliability, are crucial in voluntary work
13and age isn't related to these, in our experience.
14Another question we get asked relates to training.
15Well, there's plenty of that and it's all face-to-face.
16What's more, training doesn't end when you start working for us.
17It takes place before, during and after periods of work.
18Often, it's run by other experienced volunteers as managers tend to prefer to get on with other things.
19Now, I would ask you to consider a couple of important issues
20before you decide to apply for voluntary work.
21We don't worry about why you want to be a volunteer -
22people have many different reasons that range from getting work experience to just doing something they've always wanted to do.
23But it is critical that you have enough hours in the day for whatever role we agree is suitable for you -
24if being a volunteer becomes stressful then it's best not to do it at all.
25You may think that your income is important, but we don't ask about that.
26It's up to you to decide if you can work without earning money.
27What we value is dedication.
28Some of our most loyal volunteers earn very little themselves
29but still give their full energy to the work they do with us.
30OK, so let's take a look at some of the work areas that we need volunteers for
31and the sort of things that would help you in those.
32You may wish simply to help us raise money.
33If you have the creativity to come up with an imaginative or novel way of fundraising, we'd be delighted,
34as standing in the local streets or shops with a collection box can be rather boring!
35One outdoor activity that we need volunteers for is litter collection
36and for this, it's useful if you can walk for long periods, sometimes uphill.
37Some of our regular collectors are quite elderly,
38but very active and keen to protect the environment.
39If you enjoy working with children, we have three vacancies for what are called 'playmates'.
40These volunteers help children learn about staying healthy through a range of out-of-school activities.
41You don't need to have children yourself,
42but it's good if you know something about nutrition and can give clear instructions.
43If that doesn't appeal to you,
44maybe you would be interested in helping out at our story club for disabled children,
45especially if you have done some acting.
46We put on three performances a year based on books they have read
47and we're always looking for support with the theatrical side of this.
48The last area I'll mention today is first aid.
49Volunteers who join this group can end up teaching others in vulnerable groups who may be at risk of injury.
50Initially, though, your priority will be to take in a lot of information
51and not forget any important steps or details.
52Right, so does anyone have any questions...