How Ellie’s volunteering led to more opportunities

Hi, I’m Ellie, a volunteer Youth Ambassador with Career Connect. 

A couple of months ago, I had the opportunity to speak on BBC Radio Merseyside with my other volunteer group called Friends of Victoria Park! This was only a short segment but gave me a chance to raise my voice that most people do not have. It was such a fun day to see the behind the scenes of the radio and was also a nice way to promote my volunteer group and to share what we do. 

I have been part of this group for about a year, and I have had the chance to take part in many events there. We bring the community and families together and offer events such as Santa’s grotto, Easter egg hunts and hosting bands at the bandstand which has been incredibly rewarding. 

This has been wonderful for me as a young volunteer to be able to share my ideas and thoughts for my local area. This especially meant a lot to me as most people in this group are older than me, I really enjoy sharing with others how young people feel about the area and what change we want to see. 

This then influenced me to want to explore more youth volunteering, and this led me to becoming a Youth Ambassador for Career Connect! 

This really proved to me how many doors can be opened once I got involved in things that many people my age aren’t involved in. My first volunteer opportunity at the park gave me experience with communication during our monthly meetings, teamwork when working with other volunteers and independence when coming up with my own ideas. 

I have been able to transfer this to my Youth Ambassador role which has allowed me to become confident in my voice much quicker than I would’ve if I hadn’t already volunteered! It has made me so keen to explore more opportunities where I can interact with many people and make the world a better place. 

I have been really enjoying my role as a Youth Ambassador at Career Connect as I have found that my voice is valued just as much as the other adults in the room, they have given me and others the chance to raise our voice with conviction and power rather than hesitation. I have been offered so many opportunities already and I have only been a Youth Ambassador for a few months; it’s really changed my life! 

Being a youth ambassador for career connect has given me so many opportunities. I was asked to attend a Board Meeting with the trustees; this felt like such a privilege and really highlighted how Career Connect want the youth voice to be portrayed. I’ve had the opportunity to speak with the CEO on the very first meeting, this was a really cool way to get insights on what I’d be doing and showed how dedicated the team is to connect with the younger generations! During this, we got to ask Sheila questions and she was very open, it felt so comfortable.

 I’ve also been given many opportunities to join interview panels at Career Connect as well as being given the chance to complete a qualification in personal and social development – this will be entirely funded by Career Connect which makes it so much easier for us Youth Ambassadors to take part without worrying about how we can afford it! This has also given me more independence to complete qualifications outside of school/college. 

I cannot wait to see what our team can do together and what other volunteer opportunities I will have the chance to be a part of in the future; the sky is the limit!