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Give it a Swirl - the National Day of Volunteering.
Ireland’s first national day of volunteering took place in September 2007. Inspired by our logo and because the purpose of the day is to invite people to give volunteering a go, we named the national day of volunteering Give It A Swirl In conjunction with our member Volunteer Centres, VCI encourages not-for-profit organisations to devise hands-on, once-off volunteering projects and invites the public to get involved.
In its first year, Give It A Swirl achieved the following:
- 838 individuals participate 297 were youth volunteers (aged under 18)
- 68 projects took place in 60 organisations across 14 counties
- 2,583 hours of volunteering hours were generated
in 2008:
- 2500+ volunteers
- 130+ projects
- across 22 counties
In 2009
- 4000+ volunteers
- 170 projects
- across 24 counties
Give It A Swirl Day will be an annual event and this year (2009), it will take place on Friday, 25th September. We’re looking forward to building on the success of last year to make it an even bigger and better event.
Non Irish National Volunteer Campaign
Research undertaken by Volunteer Centres Ireland shows that there has been a considerable increase in the number of non-Irish nationals registering to volunteer through volunteer centres in 2008. In response, the national volunteer body initiated a wholly online national recruitment campaign in an effort to maintain the momentum and to maximise the potential of volunteers within this demographic.
To increase awareness of VCI and the services of local volunteer centres across Ireland, VCI selected three representatives from non-Irish national communities who are currently volunteering in Ireland. They identified the feel-good story these volunteers had to share of their experiences volunteering and published them on the VCI website, Facebook & bebo pages.
The reaction to the story was very positive, both from local and national media and also from the target demographic. VCI hopes to substantially contribute to integrating cultures in Irish communities.
You can view case studies and press releases from this campaign at www.volunteer.ie or visit our facebook page.
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