Over a hundred children from six Rutland primary schools have been shown the value of volunteering.
A pilot project by Voluntary Action Rutland, supported by Oakham School's Voluntary Action, saw mainly year fives record their volunteering from reading to their siblings, to visiting the homeless, and spending time with residents of care homes, as well as sorting waste food and picking up litter. Some children who went the extra mile were recognised yesterday by the Lord Lieutenant and High Sheriff in a short ceremony.
CEO of Voluntary Action Rutland, Tom Walters, says they really wanted to inspire the next generation.
"We have a huge, powerful volunteer army within Rutland, and it's one of our great strengths, but a lot of them are older, and what we want to do is unlock the potential of the next generation. If we can get our young people even as young as 9 and 10 like we've done here, to think about two really big things, the power of volunteering, but also how easy it can be to do it and how rewarding it is and that when you put those two things together, you have people who will engage in volunteering and hopefully stick with it for their lives."

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