Langside College - Soutside Festival

Shirley O’Boyle and Natalie Good received Silver Awards for Volunteering by completing over 20 hours of volunteering while studying with Langside College. Shirley, who completed her HNC, and Natalie, who completed her HND, were encouraged by staff at the college to take part in one-off events which bring the College closer to the community.

Their lecturers regularly receive requests for students to take part in community events such as the Castlemilk Fun Day or the Southside Festival and the students were keen to get involved.  When asked why they decided to volunteer, Shirley pointed out that “It was a chance to give something back and gain experience at the same time.  Volunteering allowed us all to build our confidence in ourselves and in our work.  Volunteering also allowed us to meet all sorts of different people.”

For Natalie it was the feeling that volunteering gave her. She says “I felt good making others feel good about themselves - you could see the results right away.”

When asked if they volunteered because they had extra time on their hands they just laughed as both look after their own families at the same time as developing their career skills.  They agreed that having their own families might make them appreciate and look at the world a little differently.

At the Southside Festival they were left with responsibility for their own efforts and they rose to the challenge.  “We had the resources and ability to organise ourselves and we knew that our own children would be coming along on the day so we wanted the day to be something special for people to enjoy.” Shirley and Natalie had to adapt quickly.  No longer within the comfort zone of a state-of-the-art salon they were challenged to concentrate on the bare essentials and still get the job done.  “The organisers had an idea of what we should be doing, but it quickly became obvious that this was not practical and didn’t suit potential customers.” They had to move away from what had been planned for them and restructure what they were offering.  Changing their location, prices and services and making themselves easier to access made them one of the most popular events offered at the festival.

Volunteering gave Sharon and Natalie the opportunity to display their abilities, through day-to-day course work and assessment, which might not otherwise have been visible. They each displayed a commitment to responsibly participate in political, economic, social and cultural life, an enterprising attitude, resilience, self-reliance, communication in different ways and settings, ability to work in partnership and teams, to take the initiative and to lead, to apply critical thinking and to solve problems.  These were all amply demonstrated in this one event alone.  Both Shirley and Natalie are certain that whatever their future holds, they will continue to volunteer.  Having been students and volunteers Natalie and Shirley see themselves as successful learners whose confidence has grown and who realise they are now more effective and responsible members of the community.