29
Apr, 2021
april update

April Update!

April Update!

A Short Update from our Project Leader, Dave:

Today is a good day. I got outside, had a (much needed) haircut and I met a good friend and old colleague I haven’t seen for maybe a year and a half.

Things felt kind of normal. Yes, we still had to socially distance and wear masks. We sanitised our hands and the coffee was table service only, but it does feel like we are coming back to reality. I’m reluctant to say “normal” or “new normal” because the definition of that changes day to day and person to person. However, there does seem to be some kind of light at the end of the tunnel if we can all continue to take the right safety measures and look out for each other, and this is really encouraging and kind of exciting.

Along with this venture into the real world, I’ve been assessing current Scottish Government and Youth Scotland guidance on youth work provision going forward. Hopefully, this will allow the Connect Alloa Trustee Team to decide how we are going to bring back face-to-face sessions in the future in a safe, secure and supportive way.

We are also currently in talks with St. Mungo’s Parish Church about how and when we can get back into the building for youth work sessions. In addition to this, we are also considering some outdoor options too! I for one can’t wait to engage with our young people in a blended model of online and face-to-face sessions so we can meet everyone’s needs.

These new developments also present the opportunity to extend our Volunteer and Trustee Team! We are going to introduce a rota system for our weekly sessions, hopefully allowing more people to join our group and share their ideas, expertise and experience with our already diverse team.

Great things are happening and will continue to happen with Connect Alloa, and I am excited for the future we are working towards together!

Have a great day and stay safe everyone!

I appreciate you,

Dave

 

25
Apr, 2021
digital lock-in

Digital Lock-In April 2021

Digital Lock-In April 2021

We raised over £200!

We managed to raise £230 through donations on Just Giving! 

Firstly, we want to say a MASSIVE thank you to everyone who donated! We were blown away by the amount of support people showed for Connect Alloa, including volunteers, current and former members and their families.

The money raised from the event is going to be used to organise a well-deserved party for our young people once Covid-19 guidelines allow.

Hopefully, we will be able to meet again for in-person events over the summer and we’re really looking forward to reconnecting with everyone! 

digital lock-in fundraising total

What is A Digital Lock-In?

Basically, between 11am and 8pm on Saturday, April 10th we hosted a day-long session on our Discord server. Our young people were allowed to attend for however long they wanted, from a short 30 minute catch up to staying for a few hours!

Throughout the day we had regular screen breaks. We also included activities that would get everyone moving, from a scavenger hunt for items you could find around the house to body percussion (yup, it’s a thing).

Back in 2019, we hosted an in-person lock-in event at St. Mungo’s Parish Church. It was a sponsored day of activities and games. We had planned on hosting a second lock-in event in 2020, but – like pretty much everything else – we had to change our plans and adapt to a virtual lock-in event instead. 

Since we still couldn’t host an in-person event, we decided to keep our 2021 lock-in digital too!

Activities

Throughout the day we hosted a range of activities, from our at-home scavenger hunt to playing Among Us, to D&D and discussion topics. We had a brilliant time hanging out with the young people and volunteers!

To find out more about what sort of online activities we get up to, check out our blog post on the topic!

Join Connect Alloa!

Hopefully, we’ll be able to host some in-person youth group sessions when Covid-19 guidelines allow. We are looking into running some more outdoor activities in the summer months, so make sure to follow us on social media for updates!

Thinking about joining Connect Alloa? Find our registration form here!

Stay safe!

25
Apr, 2021

Join Our Trustee Committee!

Join our Trustee Committee!

Are you passionate about helping young people? Supporting the wider Clackmannanshire community? A team-player with lots of ideas? Get in touch!

We’re looking for new members to join our amazing Trustee Committee. We’re also specifically looking for someone interested in filling the Treasurer position.

What Does Being A Trustee Involve?

Being a Trustee is a voluntary role where you work with other members of our board to manage Connect Alloa. We are a local youth group, supporting young people and tackling social isolation and loneliness.

Throughout the week we host regular youth group sessions, where our young people can play games, get involved in fundraising challenges and just generally have a safe place to hang out and make friends.

Responsibilities

  • Attending our monthly board meetings (Zoom)
  • Help direct and grow our organisation, setting goals/monitoring outcomes
  • Occasionally supporting with different tasks (funding applications, etc.)
  • Help oversee staff/volunteers

What We're Looking For

  • Positive, can-do attitude
  • Willingness to get involved
  • Strong communication skills/teamwork
  • Any experience with charities, youth work/education, etc.

We are open-minded and are really just looking for someone who wants to get involved with the team and can bring some varied experience to the role as well!

What Our Current Trustees Say

“I became the Secretary for Connect Alloa’s Board after an opening became available and enjoy working with like-minded people to help the charity.” – Courtney, Secretary. 

“We live in a time where more and more young people are connected digitally, but ironically, where more and more young people feel disenfranchised and disconnected and lonely. Connect Alloa is a way to begin to address these challenges.” – Sang, Trustee.

“After five years of working with staff within a range of organisations as an external consultant, I was keen to have a more direct role in impacting on the services and experiences that young people were being offered, so in 2018 I joined the Connect Trustee Team. Driven by a passion for providing meaningful experiences, high quality service and great team support.” – Joanna, Chairperson.

Contact Us!

Interested? Got some questions? Email our Project Leader, Dave Crozier at dave@connectalloa.org.uk for more information.

13
Apr, 2021
Online Activities

Online Activities

Online Activities

We’ve had the same dilemma as everyone else over the past year: how do you adapt to life online? Since moving our youth group sessions online, we’ve had to get creative about what activities we can offer our young people. Using Discord, a platform that lets us talk and hang out virtually as a group, Connect Alloa has been able to offer regular digital youth nights throughout lockdown. Over the past year, we’ve adapted different activities to make them online-friendly and found some new games to play as a group.

Online Scavenger Hunts

Basically, how this works is someone reads out a list of items for our young people and volunteers to find. These items can be simple – a book, a bowl, a hat – or a bit more personal – something related to a hobby or a picture.

During a group call, everyone gets told the list of objects at the same time. The person who collects all their items first and gets back to their screen fastest wins.

This is a great warm up activity and it also gets the young people away from their screens for part of the session. It’s also usually a good discussion starter if someone brings an unusual item and it really lets the young people share some of their hobbies/interests with the group too!

Among Us

Among Us is an online multiplayer game that’s free to download to your phone. You’re on a spaceship with your crewmates, trying to complete a bunch of tasks to keep everything running properly (why these small blob people have such terrible, constantly malfunctioning spacecrafts is never really addressed). However, at least one player will secretly be an ‘imposter.’ Their job is to try and kill everyone else on the spaceship, one by one, without anyone realising its them.

When a player discovers a body, they can hit the report button and start a group vote on who everyone things the killer is. If the majority of players vote for the same person, that player gets chucked off the spaceship. Pick correctly and the crewmates win. Pick the wrong person and the killer gets another chance. 

Jackbox Games

We also have a Jackbox Games account, which gives us access to a whole bunch of online multiplayer games. All a young person needs to do to take part is go the Jackbox website and type in the game code given during group.

Jackbox Games often encourage problem solving skills and creativity. A lot the games involve coming up with funny answers or responses, with points being awarded by other players for good answers.

jackbox games

Dungeons and Dragons

Another activity we’ve been able to host online has been Dungeons and Dragons. Since Discord allows everyone to participate in group voice and/or video calls, we’ve been able to adapt D&D to suit our digital sessions.

D&D also encourages creativity, team work and problem solving, as pointed out by Ethan Gilsdorf in this Ted article: ‘How playing Dungeons & Dragons has helped me be more connected, creative and compassionate.’ 

Suggestions

At Connect Alloa we are constantly looking for feedback and suggestions from our young people and volunteers. If there’s a new or different activity you want to try at one of our sessions, let us know!

Hopefully, we’ll be able to host some in-person youth group sessions when Covid-19 guidelines allow. We are looking into running some more outdoor activities in the summer months, so make sure to follow us on social media for updates!

Interested in joining Connect Alloa? Find our registration form here!

Stay safe everyone!

6
Apr, 2021
volunteering

Volunteering: Why you should do it!

Volunteering: Why you should do it!

Volunteering is a fantastic way to give back to your local community and support a cause you’re passionate about. From youth work to animal rights,  there’s plenty of different volunteer roles out there.

Here at Connect Alloa, we wouldn’t be able to provide our regular youth group sessions without the help of our amazing volunteers. Between organising fun activities, running sessions and engaging with the young people, they make Connect Alloa the welcoming and friendly group that we are.

It's good for you!

Volunteering also has a lot of personal benefits, such as allowing you to develop new skills, build your confidence and meet new people. Plus it looks great on your CV!

At Connect, our volunteers have been able to attend child protection training with Youth Scotland and obtain PVG checks. This not only helps us ensure the safety of the young people we work with, but also allows our volunteers to grow their confidence and gain experience in youth work and community engagement.

Volunteering is also good for your mental wellbeing! According to Bupa, some research indicates that volunteering can positively affect on your mental health and helps people feel more connected within their community. 

Youth Volunteering

If you’re aged between 12-25 and volunteer in Scotland, you are eligible to participate in the Saltire Awards scheme. This Scottish Government scheme awards certificates for different levels of voluntary commitment, from short projects to extended volunteer work. These certificates recognise youth volunteering and the positive impact it has on local communities and charities across Scotland.

If you are a young person who volunteers, you can find out more about the Saltire Awards over on their website!

Find out more!

Interested in volunteering with us? Email dave@connectalloa.org.uk to find out more about getting involved with Connect Alloa. We are always happy to meet new people and chat about our group!

Not sure Connect Alloa is the right volunteer opportunity for you? Check out the volunteering page on the CTSI website for other volunteering roles within the Clackmannanshire area.

It’s also worth joining our Connected Clacks Facebook group to stay up to date with other local youth organisations and opportunities.