Bal Jandu has become the first Junior Achievement volunteer to complete a nationally recognised community volunteering qualification, the CVQ.
The qualification was made available to Junior Achievement’s 400-plus volunteers with the generous support of Barclays and is a nationally recognised qualification awarded by the educational charity ASDAN (Award Scheme Development and Accreditation Network), the UK’s fourth largest awarding body. Available free of charge to anyone volunteering for Junior Achievement the CVQ is not an exam-based programme but a vocational qualification which allows volunteers to build up a portfolio of evidence.
The aim of the qualification is to encourage more people to volunteer for Junior Achievement and to help them engage with young people in the classroom.
Mrs Bandhu, who is the mother of 10-year-old twin girls and has been volunteering with Junior Achievement since 2010 said: ‘For my part volunteering is enjoyable and satisfying, an opportunity to share your experience with young people and help them make informed career choices for when they leave school. The CVQ appealed as it is a flexible programme in which you can mix and match units. It’s increased my confidence in the classroom and when I’m coaching and training other volunteers. Importantly it provides the tools with which to volunteer to the highest standard.’
Junior Achievement chief executive Sue Cook said: ‘Bal is to be congratulated on becoming the first volunteer to complete the CVQ. This is a very flexible qualification designed to fit around a candidate’s timetable and offers a selection of topics for study. The CVQ helps further personal career development, is a good fit with a company’s corporate social responsibility strategy and is also our way of giving something back to the volunteers who give so generously of their time to help us develop young people’s entrepreneurial skills.’
To find out more about volunteering for Junior Achievement and how you can take a nationally recognised qualification visit www.jaiom.im/volunteers or contact Sue Cook by calling 666266.
Junior Achievement Isle of Man, Suite 2, Peterson House, Middle River, Douglas.
Photo caption - Bal Jandu is presented with her CVQ certificate by Junior Achievement chief executive Sue Cook. Picture Andrew Barton.
