In response to today's remarks (Tuesday 27th February 2007) made by Chancellor, Gordon Brown at a seminar on Britishness, Dame Elisabeth Hoodless, Executive Director of CSV, the UK’s largest volunteering and training charity, said:
“We welcome the Chancellor’s recognition that active participation in the community helps immigrants integrate into society.
“Our own experience of developing volunteering opportunities for refugees and asylum seekers within the community on Tyneside shows that two thirds of participants benefit from getting jobs, entering further education or mainstream volunteering opportunities.
“Lack of competency and lack of confidence in speaking English presents a major barrier to community involvement or mainstream volunteering. Therefore as part of their volunteer activity our volunteers receive English language tuition. People need support to become involved in volunteering in their community and that’s exactly what our Community Connection scheme does.
“The chance to serve is a critical aspect of assimilation. Sitting alone at home is very destructive for any individual. The chance to participate has enormous value in terms of building social capital, establishing new friends and making a difference.”
Further press information: Jason Tanner, CSV Press Office on 020 7812 0038 / 07941 433598
Notes for editors:
1) 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 227,000 people give 5 million hours of their time as volunteers through CSV. CSV trains 12,705 people of all ages. www.csv.org.uk
2) For the last 18 months, CSV has been running Community Connection, an ESF funded (European Social Fund) project to develop volunteering opportunities for refugees and asylum seekers within the community on Tyneside. The Project is supported with an ESOL tutor, who works 12 hours a week, and a team of volunteer support workers. Community Connection is working in partnership with local charities and asylum support networks. Community Connection has created specific volunteering opportunities, which have helped the local community. Opportunities are as diverse as: tidying and decorating community centres; horticultural activities on community based allotments with local people and cooking projects with local people.