Ryburn Valley High School and Specialist Media Arts College

Name of Organisation

Why did you decide to go for Investing in Volunteers?

We have a long tradition of working with volunteers and wanted to prove that we value and support all our young people who get involved. We also wanted to demonstrate our pride in and commitment to our young people’s volunteering and we felt this accreditation was an excellent way of doing this.

What benefits have you found from working towards Investing in Volunteers?

The process highlighted small things that we had neglected or missed out from our organisation, helped our YVDA come to a full understanding of the project, raised interest in volunteering within school and also public awareness of our commitment to young people’s volunteering.

Tell us about your experience of the assessment process in your organisation.

The process was simpler than we imagined, once the application form was completed. Information gathering was probably the most difficult part, as the YVDAtook over the application process 6 months after the previous MV Co-ordinator had left, and then organising the time slots for interviews with the Assessor as the students and staff all had busy agendas of their own. The Assessor was helpful and understanding, did not intimidate the students who were as young as 11.

5 Practical tips you would give another organisation working towards Investing in Volunteers

Give yourself plenty of time to gather information

Make sure you have all documents up to date and to hand

Keep everyone involved informed

Keep in touch with your Assessor and ask questions!

Talk to other organisations who have been through the process recently