V-Bite 4th October 2011 Hi Everyone Welcome back to Sussex, or if this is your first year, welcome! We really hope that you have had an enjoyable summer and feel refreshed and ready for the exciting year ahead. V-Bite is the weekly term-time Project V e-bulletin and you have received this because at some point in your life you must have expressed an interest in volunteering with Project V and we have added you to our mailing list. The aim of V-Bite is to keep you up to date with volunteering opportunities (new ones come in every week) and to let you know about anything else related to volunteering that we think you may wish to know about. Over the summer we have registered many new volunteering opportunities from organizations keen to recruit volunteers, and we have over 300 volunteering opportunities that have previously been registered which may interest you. You can use the ‘Opportunity Search’ facility on our website to get more information about each volunteering opportunity, but to give you an idea of some of the new roles, they include:

1) Clinic Assistant support with Pathways to Health (ID ref 632) 2) Shape Up Programme Assistant with Brighton & Hove Food Partnership (ID

ref 630) 3) Community Engagement Volunteer with The Bridge Community Education

Centre (ID ref 634) 4) Youth Work with The Nutty Wizard Community Café (ID ref 627) 5) Collection Co-ordinator with CLIC National Sargent (ID Ref 624) 6) Reception Volunteer with B&H Federation of Disabled People (ID Ref 622) 7) Fundraising Committee Member with The Whitehawk Inn (ID Ref 621) 8) Computer Volunteer with the Students’ Union (ID Ref 620) 9) Youth Work Volunteer with Brighton & Hove Inclusion Project (ID Ref 626)

If, having checked out the details on the website, you wish to find out more about how you can get involved in any of the opportunities detailed above, or any others that you have viewed online, view appointment availability online and then contact us on projectv@sussex.ac.uk to request an appointment. COMMUNITY PROJECTS ON CAMPUS! Every now and again we invite projects registered with us onto campus to talk directly to students about their volunteering opportunities. This is a great opportunity for you to find out more about volunteering with these specific projects. This term we have arranged the following: 1) Sussex Pathways is a multi-faith project supporting offenders prior to, upon and after release from prison. The project engages the enthusiasm, dedication and commitment of volunteers from the local community, training them as social mentors to offenders. If you would like to find out more about mentoring with Sussex Pathways, come along to a special event:

Tuesday 18th October 6-9pm Meeting House

Lecture: Prison – Mentoring & You? Given by Dr G.Ashenden (Senior Lecturer & University Chaplin) Followed by talks from: Caroline Mayhew, (Founding Trustee and Chair of Sussex Pathways), Adrian Martin (Sussex Pathways project manager) and a Sussex Pathways mentor and mentee. Project V staff will be at the event to give you more information about how you can volunteer with Sussex Pathways through Project V. 2) Groundwork Solent work to deliver projects for people, places and prosperity through six strategic themes: Communities (Building stronger neighbourhoods), Land (reconnecting people with their surroundings), Employment (training for work

and supporting enterprise), Education (learning, citizenship and sustainability), Business (integrating the economy and the environment, Youth (realizing young people’s potential:

Tuesday 25th Oct Library Square 11am – 2pm

You can chat with workers and volunteers from Groundwork Solent and, if you wish, have a go at some of the inclusive games that the project uses to create and strengthen social bonds e.g. skittles, space hopper and sack races, tug of war.

This opportunity is open to all students – no previous experience is required, you just need an interest in working with people. Full training and support is given.

A COUPLE OF REQUESTS: 1) Resuming Volunteering? In order that we can continue to offer support to those of you that continue to volunteer from last year to this year, could you please let us know if you are going to return to your volunteering placement in the Autumn term? Please e-mail us on projectv@sussex.ac.uk. If not, and you would like to consider other volunteering opportunities, please check out the website, www.sussexstudent.com/volunteering for volunteering opportunities and come and see us, or e-mail us to let us know which opportunity you would like to be referred to. 2) Address Change Update: Some of you may have moved address since last term; if this is the case, can you please e-mail us on projectv@sussex.ac.uk to let us know. That’s all for this week. Any questions, comments, concerns, just get in touch. Michaela Rossmann and Naomi Ashman Volunteering Manager & Volunteer Placement Co-ordinator

Project V, Students’ Union Activities Centre 1st Floor, Falmer House University of Sussex projectv@sussex.ac.uk www.sussexstudent.com/volunteering (01273) 873387 (If you would like to be unsubscribed from this mailing list, please e-mail projectv@sussex.ac.uk )