Two thirds of employers say volunteering can add skills to their workforce, (1) while 79% of members from the Association of Graduate Recruiters agree that graduates who volunteer progress through the organisation more quickly. (2)

For the first time, the two organisations, Universities UK and CSV, have linked up to get even more students involved in the CSV Make a Difference Day campaign, the UK's single biggest day of volunteering. The campaign, which is supported by Barclays Community Investment Programme saw 114,000 people take part last year in a variety of activities to improve the lives of others. These included tackling homophobic crime, preventing young Muslims prisoners from re-offending, football training for blind children, helping school children with their reading, baking and donating cakes to elderly people, recyclable litter collections and planting bulbs and trees.

Both organisations hope that by getting involved in the day students can reap the benefits that volunteering can bring. Universities UK's president, Professor Drummond Bone explains:

"We believe that volunteering is an essential part of university life. Not only does it help build stronger relations between students and the local community, but it also provides students with a range of essential skills, such as team building, problem solving and communications. In an increasingly competitive job market graduates need to think about how they can make themselves stand out from the crowd. Volunteering is an excellent way to do this."

While many young people decide to take a gap year before university, often getting involved in a voluntary project overseas, CSV recognise this opportunity is not available to everyone. However the CSV Make a Difference campaign ensures that everyone can enjoy the volunteering experience. Claire Ghoussoub explains:

"At CSV we believe that nobody should be excluded from volunteering. This is why we run a wide range of volunteering programmes that meet everyone's needs. CSV Make a Difference Day is perfect for students as it's just one day, so it won't interfere with studies or exclude those students who may need to work part-time to fund their education. Everyone can get involved, whatever their background, and reap the benefits from taking part."

Sarah, an Applied Psychology student at Leeds Met, had never volunteered before she went to university, but found the experience hugely rewarding.

"One of the most rewarding volunteering projects I got involved with was tidying up older people's overgrown gardens. It was part of a government initiative to reduce crime. If someone's garden is in a bit of a mess it sends out a message to others that the person living there is frail and vulnerable, which is like an invitation to robbery. It was all done in just one day. It's really amazing what a difference you can make in a day."

Her volunteering also helped Sarah decide what she wanted to do with herself after graduating, as well as making her more attractive to future employers.

"I didn't really know what I wanted to do. I toyed with lots of different ideas. Volunteering helped me make up my mind as I had the opportunity to try out lots of different things. I decided that I really wanted to carry on working in the voluntary sector and I now have a new job co-ordinating volunteers with C.A.L.M (Community Action at Leeds Metropolitan)."

"I definitely think my volunteering experience helped me get my job. It shows employers you have something extra. I would definitely recommend other students give it a go. It's a great way to discover what you want to do after graduating. And even if you are sure about what you want to do, it's a great way of gaining experience in your chosen field. It's also a great way to meet people, have fun and help someone else out."

CSV Make a Difference Day takes place on Saturday 28th October 2006, with activities being held a week either side. For more information or to register an activity call FREEPHONE 0800 284533 or got to www.csv.org.uk/difference.

ENDS

Further press information: Esther Freeman, CSV Make a Difference Day Press Office on 020 7812 0035 or email: efreeman@csv.org.uk Out of office hours: 07981 591150

Latest press releases: www.csv.org.uk/press

Notes for editors


1. TimeBank Employer Attitude Survey (Continental Research July 2004)

2. CSV Reports on Time Well Spent, August 2000, page 2. (89 companies from the 450 members of the Association of Graduate Recruiters responded to a CSV survey in July 2000.)

3. CSV Make a Difference Day takes place on Saturday 28 October 2006, and activities take part a week either side. Around 115,000 people are expected to give time rather than money to improve their local community. The campaign is organised by CSV (Community Service Volunteers) and supported by Barclays community investment programme and the Home Office Active Communities Directorate.

4. CSV (Community Service Volunteers) creates opportunities for people to take an active part in the life of their communities through volunteering, training and community action. Each year 195,000 people give 4.9 million hours of their time as volunteers through CSV. CSV trains 11,500 people of all ages.

5. Barclays PLC actively encourages employee involvement and provides direct support through its employee community programmes. These include paid time off in work time for volunteering, grants for group volunteering activities, matched fundraising and matched payroll giving.

6. In 2005, more than 26,000 Barclays employees around the world took advantage of the support available to them for their work in the community - to the benefit of more than 7,500 charities and community groups.

7. More than 10,000 Barclays employees took part in Make A Difference Day activities globally, including projects in Africa and Spain. Volunteering activity included mentoring, beach clearing, gardening and painting.

8. Barclays is taking its community investment responsibilities seriously - investing £39.1 million in 2005. The organisation focuses on the areas where it can use its knowledge and expertise to make the biggest difference to key social issues. In the UK, this includes programmes about money education, debt advice, financial inclusion and getting people into work. Barclays also strives to strengthen the local communities in which they operate, and are investing £30 million over three years in grassroots sport through Barclays Spaces for Sports.

9. For further information see social responsibility at http://www.barclays.com. Media enquiries contact: Jon Logie, Barclays PLC on 0207 116 6040.

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