The Birchip Business and Learning Centre has received a $5,000 Brumby Labor Government funding boost to encourage people to volunteer.
Member for Northern Victoria Region, Candy Broad MP announced today that the Birchip Business and Learning Centre had received the grant from the latest round of Victorian Volunteer Small Grants.
Ms Broad said the organisation had received the grant for its Providing Opportunities for Volunteer project aimed at providing accredited training to community members so that they have the skills required to become volunteers in local sporting clubs and service organisations. These trained volunteers will be linked up with organisations requiring volunteers.
“The Brumby Labor Government is helping to fund training for volunteers because volunteers are the backbone of communities and these days qualifications like food handling and first aid are required for most community activities”, Ms Broad said.
Birchip is one of 26 projects to benefit from the latest round of Victorian Volunteer Small Grants to help organisations recruit and train volunteers.
Community Development Minister Peter Batchelor said the Victorian Volunteer Small Grants program was part of a $21 million package of support for volunteering and community enterprises.
“As part of the package the Brumby Labor Government will invest a further $3 million over the next three years to help people get involved and increase support for volunteers,” Mr Batchelor said.
“The lives of people in communities across Victoria are touched each day by the efforts of volunteers who give their time to help others.
“From driving a car pool to coaching a kid’s footy team or teaching older people to use the internet, volunteers of all kinds play an important role in building stronger communities.”
Mr Batchelor said volunteering not only helped the community, but research showed that people who volunteered reaped rewards such as improved health and wellbeing, and better employment opportunities.
“It’s no exaggeration to say that many of our most important local organisations, events and services would simply cease to function if volunteers stopped giving their time,” Mr Batchelor said.
Since 2004, more than 1200 organisations have been funded through the Victorian Volunteer Small Grants, with a total of more than $4 million across Victoria to support and attract volunteers.
Applications for the Victorian Volunteer Small Grants are open. For more information, visit www.grants.dpcd.vic.gov.au