We would like to say a HUGE congratulations to The Exodus Project, who are our second Barnsley organisation to achieve the Volunteering Quality Award that recognises volunteering good practice.

The Exodus Project are a children’s charity providing after school clubs, weekends away and day trips for children and young people in Barnsley. They work with their families and support them with food parcels and other financial, practical or emotional help. They also have two charity shops that help raise vital funds for their service.

Their aim is to build supportive and lasting relationships and be a place of security for young people in Barnsley. They believe having volunteers that live in the local community helps to build relationships and break down barriers.

Being a small charity, they would not be able to reach as many children and young people as they currently do without their volunteers. They are essential to the work they do in their afterschool clubs and charity shops.

Each volunteer is unique and brings a different skill to the charity, enabling them to provide a variety of activities and programmes.

The Exodus Project not only support young people through their daily activities but they also take on volunteers from 14 years old, helping young people continue the skills they have built up by visiting their club and setting them up for a successful future.

The Exodus Project currently have 60 volunteers in their organisation, all of varying ages, and as part of the assessment process for the award, we spoke to some of the volunteers about what they thought about volunteering for The Exodus Project. We were blown away by all the lovely, positive comments we read.

One volunteer said –

“Since starting volunteering here I have had such many great experiences and have learnt so much and built so much confidence and social skills. It’s become like a second family to me and I appreciate this charity so much. I definitely see myself here for the future.”

Another said –

“I love it! Really nice family feel and a real focus on improving the lives of others both volunteers and young people.”

The support The Exodus Project offers its volunteers really stood out to us with one volunteer saying –

“If I have any issues with anything within club or outside club, when I was struggling with some anxieties around university they were always there to listen. My volunteer co-ordinator has helped me get jobs by writing me references when I have needed them over the years.”

We are really lucky to have an organisation like The Exodus Project in Barnsley that is doing so much for our young people, encouraging their aspirations and providing them with experience and skills for life.

We are really proud to award them the Volunteering Quality Award for the work they do.

To read more about The Exodus Project, you can visit their website here or their Facebook page here.