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Over 3,000 children in Torfaen enjoyed free play sessions thanks to these young people

a group of young people holding certificates
Cllr Kebba Manneh and Cllr Anthony Hunt presented the Summer Volunteering Awards

Over 180 young people were thanked last night for volunteering with Torfaen Play Service.

During 2022/23, a total of 187 young volunteers made sure around 3,000 children enjoyed free play sessions throughout the area over the year. Timesheets show that the 187 volunteers gave up 26,368 hours of their time. This included supporting 180 children with a disability or complex behaviour, the majority of them were teamed up with a ‘volunteer play buddy’.

Torfaen Play Service invited the volunteers and their families to celebrate their achievement.

  • Cllr Mandy Owen presented the Term-Time volunteers awards.
  • Cllr Kebba Manneh, leader of Cwmbran Community Council, and Cllr Anthony Hunt, leader of Torfaen Council, presented the Summer Volunteering Awards.
  • Councillor Anthony Bird, chair of Cwmbran Community, presented the Play Apprentices/ Trainees Awards.
  • Lynne Neagle, Torfaen’s MS, presented the Volunteer of the Year Award, to Maia Elsworthy.
a politician presents certificate to a young person
Lynne Neagle, Torfaen MS,and Maia Elsworthy
three councillors and an award winner
(l to r) Cllr Anthony Hunt. Maia Elsworthy, Cllr Anthony Bird and Cllr Kebba Manneh,
a group of young people holding certificates
Cllr Kebba Manneh and Cllr Anthony Hunt presented the Summer Volunteering Awards
a group of young people holding certificates
Cllr Mandy Owen presented the Term-Time volunteers awards
four young people hold certificates stood next to a councillor
Cllr Anthony Bird (r) with the young people who collected the Play Apprentices/ Trainees Awards.
two young men on stage compere an awards evening
Max Griffiths and Ben Wolverson compered the awards evening
an audience in a theatre
Max Griffiths and Ben Wolverson compered the awards evening

Play development site supervisors Max Griffiths and Ben Wolverson compered the evening. The pair both started their careers as play service volunteers.

The audience were told that since 2002, over 2,000 volunteers have volunteered for a total of over 220,000 hours.

Benefits of volunteering

The audience was reminded of the benefits of volunteering including increased self-esteem, making friends, more confidence, better social skills and postive well-being. A range of previous volunteers popped up in a video to talk about how volunteering with the play service helped them in their current careers.

Thanks to the volunteers

Julian Davenne, Torfaen Council’s play service manager, said: “None of this would be possible without the hard work of the volunteers.” He said that during last year’s summer holidays, the average daily attendance across all 37 sites was between 2,000 and 2,500 children.

Funding

The Torfaen Council-run service receives financial support from every community and town council in town- Blaenavon Town Council, Pontypool Community Council, Croesyceiliog and Llanyrafon Community Council, Henllys Community Council and Cwmbran Community Council.

Thanks to volunteers

Stephen Vickers, Torfaen Council’s chief executive, said the volunteers are “positive role models’ who are there “come rain or shine” while “shaping the lives of young people”. He said they are “the best in Wales, the UK, and the world”.

Nick Thomas-Symonds, Torfaen MP, said the volunteers were “crucial in offering opportunities, especially to those with disabilities.” He said he was “astounded” at hearing the number of total hours the volunteers have given.

Cllr Anthony Hunt told the audience that some people say “all the councils do is empty bins” but this shows “we do so much more than that.” He said he loved the work the volunteers do throughout the year to “bring out the spark in young people”. Cllr Hunt closed the event by saying that they don’t take what the volunteers do “for granted” and added that the way Torfaen Play Service is run “doesn’t happen anywhere in Wales. Our play service is the envy of others across Wales.”

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Over 3,000 children in Torfaen enjoyed free play sessions thanks to these young people