At Castle Furniture our volunteers and staff members are all cherished and appreciated, no matter how their capabilities or skillset differ, we believe no matter what your personal situation, you have a place in our enterprise.
Our Volunteers specifically play a huge role in the running of our business, whether it’s operating and managing our online store, driving our vans or working on our shop floor, we couldn’t do it without them! Every year we celebrate along with the rest of the Country, this was the 38th year of the recognition given to volunteers, and we’ve been celebrating since 1993, the day we opened our doors in Cupar.
Volunteering can be a truly life changing experience, allowing all members of our community to expand their skill set, confidence and CV. It can allow individuals to work on specific issues that need resolved before going into employment, or it can be a safe space for vulnerable members of our community that need specific support that couldn’t be met in most employment situations.
Here’s some stories from our previous and current Volunteers.
Lisa
Lisa was sent to Castle by West Fife Enterprise for a 3 week work placement with limited experience in a working environment and obstacles to overcome regarding confidence in the workplace and customer service. Lisa enjoyed her placement so much that she requested to join Castle as a volunteer which was happily accepted. Throughout her time here Lisa has grown from strength to strength, never failing to challenge herself and improve constantly. We watched her confidence and skillset blossom moving from her volunteer position onto a 16hr contract then onto full time employment. Lisa is now one of our most reliable and knowledgeable members of staff who’s looking onto teaching and leading our team, inducting new members of staff and improving the day to day workings of our charity. Lisa is a prime example of the progression that volunteering at Castle can provide. Dylan
“After a good few years of struggling heavily with depression and anxiety after my Mothers passing, I decided I was ready to get back into work but was worried that my confidence and people skills had deteriorated. The Jobcentre put me forward to the Fife Voluntary Action in which we discussed what sort of work place would be a good fit for me to get back into the swing of things again. I straight away suggested Castle Furniture, as I had done a placement here for a few months back in 2009 and really enjoyed myself and learned a wide variety of skills.
I’ve now been here for about 3 months and enjoying myself while regaining my work skills and confidence. The staff are friendly and will not hesitate to help you out when difficult situations arise.
I have sat and passed my manual handling training and my First Aid I am currently learning how to use the computer and its system to further enhance my knowledge and skills at Castle Furniture, it’s been great for me learning all these new things as I plan to do hopefully more than volunteering very soon”.
Aniela
“After being laid off from my previous job due to COVID, and after experiencing some awful personnel management in my next, I was extremely apprehensive about entering another working environment. My confidence was on the floor and I had no faith in my abilities whatsoever, then I became pregnant and it felt like the world was on my shoulders with no options.
A friend had referred me to Castle to come in as a volunteer, I was nervous but after my first interview with Silv, her passion for the cause was infectious. I felt pride again and a new sense of purpose. I was trained in a variety of new skills such as how to deal with referrals from the public and how to write Case Studies. The work I was doing was making a difference to our community and that feeling is irreplaceable. Silv is always looking to where our strengths are, she always wants us to be our best and constantly provides courses and opportunities to improve ourselves and our CV.
I have recently been moved into a more creative role and now write pieces for the website as well as designing graphics to accompany the writing. Getting to help others while also exercising the creative part of my brain has been quite literally a dream come true. I am now regaining my confidence and self-assuredness and it is all down to the Castle Furniture Project and this amazing individualist charity. I can’t thank them enough”.
Comments