Make Your Mark: Volunteering at Amina
On 29th February 2024, our team took part in the Make Your Mark Volunteer Managers Conference in Stirling. The Make Your Mark Volunteering Campaign aims to increase the quantity and diversity of heritage volunteers in Scotland.
The theme of this year’s Conference was ‘Inclusion at Every Stage’. The Conference aimed to show inclusion as the golden thread through the volunteering journey, from thinking about engaging volunteers, to recruitment, support, and further steps, moving on from volunteering.
Our CEO Mariam Ahmed gave a fantastic presentation about Managing Volunteer Relationships and Providing Support to Empower Women from Racialised Communities.
At present, Amina MWRC provides a number of volunteering opportunities for women who would like to build their confidence or employability skills:
- Helpline Volunteers: Helpline Volunteers are part of the wider Helpline Team, and are expected to answer phone calls from women who require advice or support. Helpline Volunteers free training that allows them to respond to calls in the most effective manner, and are also required to help manage the live chat feature on our website to answer enquiries. Befriending volunteers schedule support calls once a week to provide emotional support to clients who may be socially isolated, facing domestic abuse, or struggling with their mental wellbeing.
- Creative Wellbeing Volunteers: Creative Wellbeing volunteers help the Amina Dundee team to provide its weekly services, workshops, and events. These services encompass the Creative Wellbeing Team’s four key strands of Health & Wellbeing, Skill Sharing, Outdoor Activities, and Arts & Culture. Creative Wellbeing Volunteers often get the exciting opportunity to collaborate with organisations including the V&A Dundee, and Dundee Contemporary Arts!
- Event Volunteers: Event Volunteers help to facilitate Amina’s ongoing events across all projects in Glasgow. Volunteers can gain invaluable experience by helping in the logistics of events, including tasks such as event registrations, event set-up, ushering, and facilitating Q&A sessions.
During the Conference, we outlined two key areas through our Volunteering Posters:
Creative Wellbeing Volunteer Journey
We highlighted the volunteering journey of our talented Creative Wellbeing volunteer, Arati Ahmed. Arati is an invaluable member of our Creative Wellbeing team, who first started volunteering with Amina in 2009, and is an active volunteer to date. Volunteering at Amina has helped Arati build the confidence and skills she required to secure a role at the Dundee Contemporary Arts as a Freelance Graphic Designer. Recently, she has been involved in delivering Quilling sessions to our women, facilitating our Print Skills workshops with DCA, overseeing and contributing to the Dundee Tapestry, displayed at the V&A.
Helpline Volunteering
Our Helpline Volunteering Poster highlighted the key details of the programme, in addition to basic expectations of a volunteer. We offer a number of benefits to our Volunteers, including:
- Free Helpline Training
- Ongoing Support in person and online for mental health & wellbeing
- Training Opportunities to facilitate personal development
- Reimbursement for Travel and Lunch Costs while volunteering
- Volunteer of the Month Awards to celebrate and appreciate our most exceptional team players.
The Make Your Mark Campaign is overseen by a working group that is chaired by Volunteer Scotland and includes Historic Environment Scotland (Vice Chair), Amina Muslim Women’s Resource Centre, Glasgow Disability Alliance, Jambo! Radio, Scottish Refugee Council, Museums Galleries Scotland,The National Trust for Scotland, Heritage Trust Network, National Mining Museum Scotland, Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, Archaeology Scotland, The Scottish Civic Trust, Scottish Council on Archives, NatureScot, The Royal Zoological Society of Scotland, and National Galleries Scotland.
Thank you to Make Your Mark for having us, and for providing a platform to highlight the significance of voluntary roles at Amina!
Interested in volunteering with Amina MWRC? Join us by volunteering with Amina!