Project Drive to Success

 

I am very excited about a pilot project, ‘Drive to Success’ we are trying to get funding for at work.  One of my colleagues ran it successfully elsewhere and I have great hopes for it at Peabody.

Drive to Success has two strands.

 It aims to support our volunteer management committees who are desperate for younger volunteers to help support administration and running of activities.

It will enable a fair selection of one young person aged 21-30 on each estate to secure a driving license in return for 200 hours of community volunteering.  Once in possession of a driving license this will give a young person an invaluable skill to gain employment.  They could get a driving job without any other qualifications.

It will also give income to a driving instructor on at least one of our estates.

Not least, we hope it will encourage younger people to engage more with what is going on in our centres.

 

This is how it will work.  Each management group will draw up a list of skills required to fulfil certain tasks which will be central to each estate.  E.g.

·       To update the website especially the timetable on a weekly basis

·       To attend monthly Tenant Association meetings, take, type up and distribute minutes

·       To update all estate noticeboards monthly to ensure centre activities are advertised

Gore Road – want additional admin

Dalgarno – could help in the 3 estate gardens (& support Corner 9)

Peabody Hill – need help to lock up the centre at week-end events

Green Man – need front of desk cover at the centre

 

The job description will be advertised on the estate.  The 21-30 age bracket is because if someone has not got a driving license by the time they are 21 it is likely that it is because of finances.  Also, because we need a degree of maturity for the volunteer tasks involved.  A TA member will recruit alongside the community development worker who will manage the process across the 4 estates.

The successful candidate will have the chance for 2 attempts at the theory, 25hrs driving lessons and 2 attempts at the test.  Their 200 hrs of volunteering will be signed off by designated TA members.

Our budget comes in at about £900 per person. 900/200 works out at £4.50 an hour.

I’ll let you know how it develops.