Cheers to volunteers!
Did you know that we have hundreds of volunteers across our area giving a fantastic contribution to supporting Lincolnshire County Council services?
They’re making their impact in many parts of the council and they can be found in areas including heritage, countryside, adult care and children’s services.
People get involved for a variety of reasons, such as improving well-being, making new friends, gaining valuable new skills and experiences, boosting self-confidence and supporting the community.
Earlier in the summer, we held a celebration to thank our volunteers. This was hosted by Lincolnshire County Council’s deputy leader Cllr Rob Gibson with the county council chairman, Cllr Mike Beecham.
Representatives from services across the council were represented at the event which was held at the Lincolnshire Show.
These included volunteers from:
- The Museum of Lincolnshire Life
- School appeals panels
- Countryside access
- Ready for Anything emergencies
- Lincolnshire Chalk Streams project
- Adult Care daytime opportunities service
- Enterprise advisers (supporting our Careers Hub)
We’re always looking for new people to join us, so if you’re interested in getting involved, please see our website for details of what’s on offer.
It doesn’t even matter if you aren’t sure what kind of unpaid work you’d like to do.
Just visit www.lincolnshire.gov.uk/volunteer and you could soon be embarking on a rewarding journey filled with new experiences, friendships, and personal growth!
Ready to make a difference? Complete our Expression of Interest Form to kickstart your volunteering journey. This form will help us match you with the perfect opportunity looking into your experience, skills, and aspirations.
Here we’re showcasing just a small number of our dedicated volunteers who represent the wide range of opportunities available.
Bringing history to life!
Volunteer Maxine Etcell
Helping visitors experience our past is a skill brought to the Museum of Lincolnshire Life by volunteer Maxine Etcell from Lincoln.
Over the past 10 years she’s taken on the role of a wide range of characters at the city-based heritage site.
At the venue’s living history events she has played a Victorian Psychic, explaining how the Victorians were obsessed with spiritualism, and a cook in the 1940s kitchen talking about recipes and rationing.
She has also sold traditional sweets in the Co-op room, explained superstitions during the Pirate events and spoken to visitors about Easter traditions.
And in the festive season she appears as Mother Christmas – a role which is very popular with the museum’s young visitors.
In addition, she recruits new volunteers, greets visitors and sells souvenirs in the museum shop.
Visitor experience manager, Steve Dunk, said: “Maxine is a very much valued volunteer who is always willing to get involved, has a love of people and history and is a great member of the team.”
Ensuring families are treated fairly
Samantha Bryant from Sleaford finds her work helping families very rewarding
There are some council functions that could not take place without the support of volunteers.
One of these is our school appeals panels. These are legally required to deal with families of pupils whose application for a place at a certain school has been unsuccessful.
Each panel has three fully trained members who consider cases remotely via a video call.
Samantha Bryant from Sleaford is the chair of schools appeals panels and has been volunteering on them for seven years.
“It can be very intense work and there’s a lot of preparation. At busy times of year we can be hearing several cases a day over consecutive days,” she said.
“I feel very honoured to be able to do this job – I find it so rewarding,” she explained. “The schools really value what we do and we also receive emails from families thanking the panel, even if they’ve been unsuccessful.”
Business Support officer, Ellen Healy, who oversees the appeals panel process said: “Appeals panels members have to be committed as this work can be very challenging.
“We simply wouldn’t be able to hold appeals without volunteers such as Sam.
Looking after our rural rights of way
Ro Barltrop from Spalding finds volunteering interesting and satisfying - plus it keeps him fit
When you’re out enjoying our footpaths and bridleways, take a moment to think about our dedicated volunteers who work hard to ensure we can use them.
Across the county there are 62 volunteers who completed a mammoth 2174.5 hours last year to ensure our rights of way are kept open.
This includes replacing damaged waymarkers to ensure routes are easy to follow and removing vegetation overhanging gates, bridges and stiles.
Countryside access officer Debby Braund said: “Our volunteers play a really important role by being our eyes and ears on the ground.
“Between them they cover hundreds of miles a year, providing a valuable service that we would struggle to achieve without their commitment.”
Ro Barltrop from Spalding has been a countryside access volunteer for over two years and carries out the work one day a week.
He explained how he finds the work interesting as well as satisfying: “The role keeps me active and takes me to parts of Lincolnshire I would never normally visit, where I often meet walkers, residents and landowners with interesting knowledge of the local area and its history.
“I find it rewarding knowing that my work helps keep these paths open and accessible for everyone to enjoy.”
