Positive Destinations

This programme, (supported by The National Lottery Community Fund and the Scottish Government’s No One Left Behind scheme) provides support if you need help to reduce barriers that limit your personal growth and development. This can involve developing communication, social and practical skills, as well as taking steps towards accessing further training, education or employment.

The way we work is tailored to you and our aim is to help you find a way to see  positive opportunities and a new way forward, and success is measured in a similarly individual way.

If this sounds like you, or someone you know– read on….

How our programme is structured

A core element is finding you a volunteer placement (typically half a day for 26 continuous weeks) in an organisation in Argyll & Bute. This gives you access to the benefits linked to volunteering that can include improved mental and physical health as well as a reduction in stress, anxiety, and depression. It can also boost confidence and self-esteem, helping you to stay active and engaged.

Support is provided by an individual mentor, assigned when you join the programme, who will work with you throughout the volunteering placement. Their initial role is to find you to find a placement best suited to your own situation. As well as providing the benefits outlined above this will be an opportunity to meet new people and share interests and activities, as well as making new, personal contacts. It is essential that you are equally committed to both volunteering and mentoring, and we will use our very best efforts to ensure you enjoy your time with us and move forward with a more positive approach to the future.

Working with your mentor

Once volunteering has started your mentor will have close, and regular, contact with you to help to you get the most benefit from your efforts, in a way that fits well with your expectations and hopes. You will meet regularly with your mentor, typically every second week, and often in an informal setting such as a local café, where the volunteering work and ways to manage difficult barriers can be talked over. The mentor will ensure that you have a clear view of the next steps that you can take to keep your personal development moving forwards.

When the 26 weeks is over

When your agreed volunteering time is over, we will provide you with a completion statement, agreed between you and your mentor, that gives an overview of the volunteering you have done, progress made and the benefits you took from it. There is no pressure for you to leave your volunteering role, and this is for you to discuss with the organiser at your placement.

It may be that continuing as a volunteer provides an environment that, at least for now, fits well with your view of the future. Alternatively, any skills that you strengthened and developed during volunteering may be the first step on the  path into further training, or it could be the beginning of a search for full or part-time work,.

Extra costs?

If you have any extra costs that result from volunteering e.g. workwear, there is a fund of £150 that can be used to offset these. The expenses have to be approved, in advance, by your mentor and can only be reclaimed with a receipt. Payments are paid directly into your personal bank account.

The possibility of gaining a Saltire Award on completion of the 6 months placement is under discussion for volunteers under 25 years old.