This week, we were pleased to be able to present Forth Valley Sensory Centre with their Volunteer Friendly Award.

(Caption: Jacquie Winning and Jen Kerr with the Forth Valley Sensory Centre’s Volunteer Friendly Award plaque and certificate, respectively.)

The Volunteer Friendly Award is a user-friendly quality standard designed to help organisations develop and follow best practise techniques when it comes to recruiting, utilising and supporting volunteers.

“I’m delighted to present this award to Forth Valley Sensory Centre,” says Jen Kerr, incoming CEO of CVS Falkirk. “As a newcomer to Falkirk, it’s a fantastic opportunity for me to get a sense of the incredible work being done in our sector.”

“Volunteering organisations like the Sensory Centre offer people the chance to develop their skills, their confidence, and make new and lasting connections, something that’s becoming more and more important, especially in terms of health and wellbeing.”

“Achieving the Volunteer Friendly Award recognises the Sensory Centre’s commitment to their volunteers and everyone who uses the centre, to making sure they are happy, safe and fulfilled, and receive the most from their experiences.”

“There’s no denying the impact our third sector has in Falkirk, and Forth Valley Sensory Centre has been a huge part of that, and with this award, will clearly continue to be.”

For over 10 years, Forth Valley Sensory Centre has been supporting people in Forth Valley with sensory impairment and their families. The Centre acts as a Community Hub, offering support, advice, practical help and social opportunities.

(Caption: Caroline Storey, Volunteer Co-ordinator at Forth Valley Sensory Centre, and Jen Kerr with the centre’s Volunteer Friendly Award plaque and certificate, respectively.)

Their overall objective is to help people who have a sensory impairment live as independently as possible. The Centre is owned and run by Forth Valley Sensory Centre Trust, a partnership of RNIB Scotland, Action on Hearing Loss, NHS Forth Valley, Falkirk Council and Stirling Council

Jacquie Winning, Centre Manager, says, “We could not do what we do without our volunteers. We support people of all ages with all levels of sight or hearing loss from children to pensioners from mild hearing problems to profound deafness or age related sight conditions to complete blindness, everyone can benefit from our groups, classes and support.”

“Our volunteers support us in a multitude of ways including providing transport, gardening and supporting our fundraising events. Their dedication, as with many charities across Scotland, is critical to our work and vital for our centre users. We wanted to ensure that we were doing the best for them and what better way than having an independent audit of our approach? We are ecstatic to have gained our Volunteer Friendly Award.”

(Caption: Jacquie Winning, Caroline Storey, and Jen Kerr.)

For further information on the Volunteer Friendly Award in Falkirk, please contact CVS Falkirk by phone: 01324 692000, or email: info@cvsfalkirk.org.uk

To find out more about the Centre and their work, visit the Forth Valley Sensory Centre website, or follow them on Twitter and Facebook.