Students making a difference in our community
Published on 6 December 12
Student action is a volunteering organisation that gives you the opportunity to participate in and manage your own community projects
There are a huge number of different projects to get involved with that help make a meaningful and beneficial contribution to people in the local community. Here are a few examples of what students have been getting up to: |
Homeless ProjectsRuby tells us about her experience working with Student Action on their Outreach project. What is Outreach?Outreach is a student-led project which sees volunteers hand out food and hot drinks to homeless people in Manchester City Centre. The scheme, which runs 5 days a week, is not just about the odd sandwich and cup of tea. For many of the rough sleepers that we meet, Outreach is an opportunity to have interaction without judgement. |
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How do you help the community?Student Action has recently begun an exciting collaboration with Food on Campus, to distribute food to homeless people, which would otherwise have been thrown away. Our most recent food-pick up equated to over 50 sandwiches! What a fantastic way to reduce food waste and poverty in Manchester! In addition, Outreach is working with the No Second Night Out initiative. The project aims to find those sleeping rough for the first time, offer an immediate alternative, and works by a referral system online. Why should others get involved? |
Get InvolvedThis Christmas, Student Action will be hitting the streets of Manchester to hand out goodies to the homeless. If you have any clothes/toiletries you are willing to donate they would be much appreciated! You can drop items off at the Student Action desk on the first floor of the Union at any time. |
The project is most definitely my favourite part of the week. I have met some of the most interesting, funny and kind people along the way. As a project leader for Outreach, I’ve come to know a number of the homeless people pretty well and it’s always great to see a familiar face and have a catch up. Many of us pass by rough sleepers without a care in the world, too busy with our own lives, to stop and consider the fact that acknowledgment and a smile doesn’t break the bank. Women’s ShelterAlice has been involved in a project to support the Women’s shelter, here are some of her highlights. What projects have you been involved with?The project is to work with the residents to create and maintain a garden of vegetables and flowers. The residents are aged from 18 upwards, and some suffer from mental illness and substance abuse issues, or have been involved in abusive relationships. What are the aims of your project?The aim of the project is to provide a productive and rewarding activity which leads towards a visible achievement: a beautiful tranquil garden area which the residents can enjoy! The produce of the garden will be used in cooking activities, and the space will be used for barbecues and outdoor activities. How does this help the community?The focus throughout the project is on enabling the residents to make decisions and shape their own environment. The original idea of a gardening project arose through discussions with residents, and, since the initiation of the project in September, the residents have been involved in every step of designing, planning, building, and planting the garden area so far. Through this process the residents have an opportunity to socialise with each-other and with students. What have you gained from the project?The students involved in the project benefit from the opportunity to engage with members of the community outside of their daily lives, and a chance to develop gardening, woodwork, and team-work skills! We are excited for Spring where we will hopefully see the first flowers in the newly built beds, and to begin planting vegetables! |