This Volunteers’ Week, Blaenau Gwent Council is celebrating the dedication and hard work of those who give their time to get involved and make a difference to their community.
Volunteers come in all ages, as a group of young people who attend Stocktonville Youth Club, Tredegar, showed when they got together to clean up their local skate park.
Organised by Blaenau Gwent Youth Service, the clean-up brought together the young people and their families, joined by local police and fire representatives, who all worked together to make a real difference.
Team Manager with Blaenau Gwent Youth Service, Kristian Gay, said:
“The young people who attend the club came up with the idea themselves. They spoke about wanting to improve the local area, especially the skate park, which is an important space for them but had become plagued by litter. Instead of just talking about it, they stepped up and decided to do something about it, and the results were great. We are very proud of them.”
Armed with litter pickers, gloves and jet washing equipment courtesy of local fire officers, the group got stuck in. Afterwards, the area looked cleaner, safer and much more welcoming.
Blaenau Gwent Council’s Cabinet Member for Children, Young People and Families, Cllr Sue Edmunds said:
“This just goes to show that when young people are given the chance to get involved, they can achieve great things, and help create real, positive change in their communities.
“Volunteers’ Week is all about saying thank you to those people who come together or work alone to give their time, and make a difference, whether that’s a one off clean up or a regular commitment.
“It was also great to see families joining in, with parents using the opportunity to talk to their children about the importance of looking after their local area. A massive well done to everyone involved.”
The Council is working with communities through the Blaenau Gwent Deal, a new relationship where we work together to build something better, more resilient and fairer together, and where the role of volunteers is valued and supported.
The young people involved hope the clean-up is just the start, and that this will potentially lead to bigger improvements at the skate park in the future, including funding to upgrade the space and make it even better for everyone who uses it.
There are already plans to keep the momentum going, with more community activities and clean-ups in mind.
More on The Blaenau Gwent Deal.
