Volunteering success - Hear from Alisha

We hear from Alisha Martin, who is one of our former volunteers about her experience working with The Arc and now more recently becoming an apprentice with us.

Before volunteering she was a full-time welder, but unfortunately ended up losing most of her hearing, so decided to leave. She now likes to help others, so alongside her apprenticeship she supports the Doncaster homeless team with anything she can.

“I have been volunteering at the youth sessions at The Arc for over six months, and have done everything from face painting, crafts, and games.

“I loved helping to plan activities, often taking the lead within the group and even making reindeer food around Christmas, which the young people loved. I chose to volunteer to get out of the house and to make new friends.

“Four months ago, I started my apprenticeship at Ongo within the Lettings Team and saw this as an amazing opportunity to continue to help people in the community, and increase my skills and experience to eventually gain a qualification.  

“I found that volunteering at The Arc’s youth sessions boosted my confidence and helped develop my creative side.  It has been a great experience and I have had lots of fun helping. I would encourage other people to volunteer.

“Without volunteering at The Arc I know I wouldn’t have had the confidence to apply for an apprenticeship at Ongo. However, thanks to the support of the staff at The Arc and the training I received, I am now in a great place to develop my career.”

So far, we have supported around 80 people a year, by helping them into work placements or volunteering roles. Before volunteering, we offer training to help, which covers Ongo and our values, placement opportunities, expectations on placement, equality and diversity, GDPR and much more.

If you, or someone you know would like an opportunity to volunteer at The Arc, please get in touch. You can email hello@arcwestcliff.co.uk, call the team on 01724 298818 or drop into The Arc to chat in person.