By Haydn Cobb
Recently Sport Brighton gave eight volunteers a special day out to the Olympic Park as a reward for their work. (see previous news item)
But I am sure you are all aware, they were not the only volunteers at the Olympic Games. Over 70,000 Olympic Games Makers were in action all over the country from Hampden Park, Glasgow to Weymouth and Portland Docks. Volunteers were first used in Olympic history the last time they were held in this country in the 1948 Games and it is believed it would have been impossible to run the Games without them. Volunteers have been used at every Games since.
So there is another thing we Brits did first.
This time it was the most volunteers ever used at an Olympic Games and possibly the most highly commended. Every Olympic-goer from the wide-eyed 10-year-old who is the “inspire a generation” generation to the Prime Minister David Cameron has said the same thing: they were great and they put a smile on all faces. Charming and positive with the can-do attitude they did their job perfectly. All working for nothing.
This isn’t strictly true. They worked to say ‘I was there’. They worked for the experience. They worked to put on the best show London could produce. They worked to reward themselves not with money but for something much greater and irreplaceable.
It is within the British spirit to volunteer, to give so that others can enjoy. It touched each of the University of Brighton volunteers and showed us what they already knew. To give a little, a lot can be rewarded.
Each volunteer that attended the Olympic day out works within the Parklife programme, organised by Sport Brighton to increase sport participation from University of Brighton students. They run sessions on their passion for a particular sport or sports, from Netball to Dodgeball.
Sport Brighton offer a range of internal volunteer opportunities, giving you the chance to get involved in a range of areas within its programmes from student sports clubs to the recreational Parklife programme. You can volunteer in a broad range of roles, ranging from the delivery of activities to the promotion and marketing of them. Not only can volunteering be fun it can also help to increase your chances of future employability through gaining skills and potential qualifications.
If you’d like to get involved in volunteering with Sport Brighton then just contact Sport Brighton.