College hosts volunteer showcase event

Hundreds of Wigan students pledged to give up their free time to help others at Winstanley College's annual Volunteer Fair.
Students Harvey Powell and Mio Okubo meet Paul Corker, Senior Fundraiser at MedEquip4Kids, at the Volunteer FairStudents Harvey Powell and Mio Okubo meet Paul Corker, Senior Fundraiser at MedEquip4Kids, at the Volunteer Fair
Students Harvey Powell and Mio Okubo meet Paul Corker, Senior Fundraiser at MedEquip4Kids, at the Volunteer Fair

A wide range of charities and organisations visited the event, showcasing the opportunities that they have for young people to get involved and make a difference, with the added benefit of providing valuable work experience for them.

One of the visiting charities was MedEquip4Kids which provides medical and play apparatus for local children, including patients at Wigan Infirmary.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Paul Cocker, who is senior fund-raiser for the charity, was delighted with the amount of interest that was generated for his organisation.

He said: “As a charity we rely heavily on people’s generosity both financially and in terms of their time.

Students are a great asset to us.

“We find that they bring a youthful energy to the team which can only improve our fund-raising efforts.”

More than 1,000 students had visited the fair by the end of the day.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

And that making it a real success for the college’s newly appointed work experience co-ordinator Louise Bytheway.

She said: “As university and apprenticeship applications get more competitive, it is important to have something other than just top grades to make you stand out from the crowd.

“Volunteering shows you have the dedication to commit to a placement even without the financial incentive of a wage.

“It also helps you to develop skills needed for the workplace such as teamwork and time management.”

and, most importantly, it is a chance to meet new people and have fun!”