gbpartnerships' LIFTCo, Camden & Islington Estates Partnership, is pleased to be supporting Action for Children with £6,100 of funding to enable the delivery of volunteer training programs at Kentish Town Health Centre during 2023.
Action for Children, a UK-based charity, held the first of a series of volunteer training programs at Kentish Town Health Centre in February 2023 (pictured below). The aim of the training is to equip volunteers with the necessary skills to support children and young people in the country to live a safe and happy childhood.
With funding being crucial to the success of the training, Camden & Islington Estates Partnership generously provided £6,100 to support the sessions for one year. Working closely with Community Health Partnerships' Operations and Relationship Manager, Lorna Johnston, who was able to secure space for the training group to use the Sun Room at Kentish Town Health Centre.
The training program is focused on two key areas, namely the London Advocacy Service and London Independent Visitors (see below for more details about these services.) The first session was held on February 19th with over 40 volunteers in attendance. Further sessions are planned for May, August, and November 2023.
Action for Children has been working tirelessly to ensure that every child and young person in the country has the necessary foundations to thrive. Through these training programs, the organisation hopes to equip volunteers with the tools they need to support vulnerable children and young people in London.
The success of the program is largely dependent on the commitment and dedication of the volunteers who have chosen to participate. Action for Children expresses its gratitude to all the volunteers and the LIFTCo for their support in ensuring the success of the training program.
London Advocacy Service
This is a service for young people who are in contact with Children's Social Service. An advocate is a person who understands the law, knows how social services works and knows the rights of young people. An advocate speaks up for the young person and makes sure they are listened to and taken seriously in decisions being made about them and their lives. An advocate can tell the young person their rights, attend meetings with them, talk to social services on their behalf, help them write complaints and make sure they are heard. There are 14 volunteer advocates who are currently working to support 150 young people.
London Independent Visitors
All cared for young people are entitled to an independent visitor to take a long-term interest in their life, sometimes over several years, befriending and supporting them, often through changes in placements and within the team of helping professionals that work with them. Independent visitors are volunteers – they are diverse, dynamic individuals who commit to spending a few hours a month visiting a young person with the hope of building a long-term friendship based on shared interests. One of the goals of the independent visitor is to introduce their matched young person to the local community they live in. This means using local resources such as leisure centres, parks, cinemas, and food establishments.
Find out more about Action for Children here: www.actionforchildren.org.uk