DERBSYHIRE: Free training to work with adults

The Derbyshire Volunteer Passport Scheme was first launched countywide in 2011 for people who wanted to work with children and young people and since then hundreds of people have received free training and accreditation.

The Derbyshire County Council scheme has proved so successful that it is now being extended to include training for people who want to volunteer to work with adults.

The Derbyshire Volunteer Passport Scheme was developed by the county council in partnership with the voluntary, community and independent sector with the aim of giving people the skills they need to work with people.

Volunteers are offered five free half-day training sessions covering a range of relevant areas and successful candidates receive a Volunteer Passport ID badge and an accreditation certificate.

The training sessions are different if people want to work with children and young people.

Before being awarded a Volunteer Passport all potential volunteers must have a Disclosure and Barring Service check, previously known as a CRB check.

People who successfully complete all the training can wear the Volunteer Passport ID badge to show they have been approved to volunteer by the county council.

Anyone over the age of 16 can apply for a Volunteer Passport and people don’t need any qualifications to do the training.

As well as demonstrating people have the basic skills to volunteer in a variety of settings, the training can be used as a basis to progress on to national qualification courses.

Derbyshire County Council Cabinet Member for Adult Care Councillor Charles Jones said: “We’re really pleased to be launching the new Volunteer Passport for people who want to work with adults.

“The Volunteer Passport will benefit people whether they are already experienced volunteers giving several hours of their time a week or if they are thinking about volunteering for the first time.

“People who already have a Volunteer Passport have been extremely positive about the training and say it has helped them build up their skills and gain confidence.”

Training sessions will be held at venues across Derbyshire and will be organised by a local volunteer centre.

To apply for a Volunteer Passport to work with adults or children and young people go to www.derbyshire.gov.uk/passport and follow the appropriate links.