THIRTY years ago Volunteering Australia started National Volunteer Week to celebrate and say thank you to all the volunteers across Australia.

This year, from Monday, May 20, to Sunday, May 26, thousands of events will be held to thank more than six million Australians who, true to the 2019 theme, are “Making a world of difference”.

Out of the six million Australians, Volunteering and Contact ACT CEO Vicky Darling says Canberra has the highest rate of volunteering in the country at 36.8 per cent, which is nearly four in 10. This means volunteers in the ACT give 10.9 million hours a year.

Passionate about supporting volunteers in the region, Volunteering and Contact ACT is holding a week of free and ticketed training sessions, a symposium and an open day.

From 12pm to 2pm on Monday, May 20, it will hold a free “Volunteering Essentials” training session.

“[It] is an opportunity for people to learn more about what is involved in volunteering and understand their rights and responsibilities as a volunteer,” Vicky says.

Then from 5.30pm on Tuesday, May 21, Volunteering and Contact ACT will be hosting the 28th Annual Volunteering Awards for the Canberra region.

Over the next two days, Wednesday and Thursday, will be a two-day symposium, which Vicky says is a ticketed event run by renowned psychologist Dr Adam Blanch about helping managers protect the wellbeing of their teams.

“On the second day we have workshops on how to navigate legal issues when having volunteers and how to leverage digital marketing to tell compelling stories,” she says.

Dr Blanch will be back from 8.30am to 6pm on Thursday, May 23 conducting a free workshop, which is particularly helpful for volunteers involved with supporting vulnerable clients.

Finally, on Friday, May 24, Vicky says they’re wrapping up the week with a volunteering open day at the shopfront.

“If you have ever wanted to volunteer but need help getting started or are looking for more information, drop in and see our friendly team,” Vicky says.

Bookings at vc-act.org.au