Volunteering

Our volunteers support young people in all areas of our work at The RPT and play a valuable part in supporting the services we offer. All volunteers work under the supervision of experienced staff.

The work is equally rewarding for both volunteer and client. For example, one of our volunteers worked with a talented young musician and helped him find a place at music school.

Roles can vary from ongoing one-on-one work to one-off projects which complement the work of a key worker. For example, a volunteer could:

• tutor teenagers who are struggling academically with general skills such as essay writing or with specific subjects such as chemistry (this work can involve long term weekly meetings or shorter pre-exam support);
• befriend a pregnant teenager and continue support after the baby is born; this can include finding baby clothes, encouragement in attending pre-natal classes or help with studies so that the young mother doesn’t lose the momentum of her coursework when she can’t attend college and ongoing weekly meetings;
• respond to a specific need faced by a client’s family;
• or collate replies to a client survey.

Mentoring

When we match volunteers and clients for one-on-one work there is always a specific assignment such as maths tutoring or pregnancy support. As the relationship continues and trust builds the volunteer may become more of a mentor who offers a wider range of advice.

This could include: university course selection; careers advice; how to handle criticism from a boss; helping start a baby off with a childminder; or how to shop for nutritious food.

If you would like to offer your services, please be aware that you will be asked for 2 references and must complete an enhanced Criminal Records Bureau Disclosure application form which allows for a background check by the police.

To find out more about getting involved, please click on Volunteer Forms, complete the application and email it to Catherine Moss at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Or print out and post your completed form to Mrs.Catherine Moss

The Rugby Portobello Trust, 221 Walmer Road, London W11 4EY

Thank you.

Volunteering at the RPT

A message from Eleanor, an RPT volunteer, November 2007

“This was a rich and varied year for me. I helped six ‘at risk’ teenagers come to terms with school. Some had been out of school for months, and all of them were fairly passive and unused to doing anything very constructive. They all had failed at school.
Along with the modified GCSE programme we taught, I found we had to ‘wake them up’, to make them interested or curious about things before they could even talk or write about them.
Gradually, step-by-step, we introduced them to new ideas and experiences they had never before enjoyed, like visiting a local business in the Portobello Road and choosing a book from a library. Over time we were able to prove to them that their participation mattered – that we valued their work and took it seriously. We had some exam successes but, much much more importantly, some of those young people were pulled from the brink of despair.
I also worked – together with a PhD candidate from Imperial College – to support a Congolese asylum-seeker with his studies in Bio Medical Sciences. My colleague helped with the ‘science’ and I assisted with reading and writing in English.
We were very lucky to have a pupil who was enthusiastic about his studies and determined to make a success of his university education. I found it quite a challenge to master a new vocabulary in order to help my French-speaking pupil write university-level essays in English. I remember we laughed a lot, but I knew that all the while he was gaining in self-confidence. I hope to carry on with this – I love helping motivated people to use language well.’
 

A message from Kate Moir an RPT Volunteer 2007

I became involved with the Rugby Portobello Trust by chance.   I was asked by volunteer co-ordinator Catherine Moss  whether I had any good quality winter clothes that I would be prepared to give to a young asylum seeker with a new born baby but other no other family.

Catherine then mentioned my name to the Schools Teenage Pregnancy Project, who worked in association with RPT, and they contacted me to see whether I still needed my son’s car seat.  They needed one so that a young girl could bring her new born baby home from hospital.

I met with the Schools Teenage Pregnancy Project and found their work both interesting and illuminating.  Whilst talking with them about the issues facing many of the young girls with new babies it became apparent that there was a real need for good quality clothes, equipment and bedding amongst the young mothers. It is believed that the average cost of equipping a new baby for it’s first few months is somewhere in the region of £3,000, and many of the pregnant girls had little or no financial resources.

It didn’t take very long to realise that we could do something very positive to help these girls. All that was needed was some willing donors of good quality clothes and equipment, somewhere to store them, and a couple of volunteers to run a drop in centre.    We could then invite the teenage mothers in need of this type of practical assistance to meet with us and borrow anything they might need.

So the Clothes Lending Scheme had been conceived, and began its life as a twice monthly drop in centre in a store room in the Kensington Training Centre(, run by Kristin Bayne and me.

We learned quite quickly what it was that most of these young girls needed - a starter kit.  A moses basket, bedding, muslins, bath towels, new born baby clothes, a baby sling.   We also learned what they didn’t need; large prams that couldn’t be stored, sturdy highchairs that filled a room.  We were insistent that items that came to us were in good condition, and of excellent quality.

In due course the Portobello Trust merged with the Rugby Clubs  and the Clothes Lending Scheme moved from its cupboard in the Kensington Training Centre to its own room in the Rugby Portobello Trust building, where it is still going strong today.

Six year’s on we are no longer able to rely on our close circle of friends to provide the equipment we need, but now solicit from  local  schools to provide the clothes and equipment that are needed for the young and vulnerable in our local community.

It was a satisfying project to be involved with.  It gave me a greater understanding of some of the issues that face the young of today, and an enormous respect for the individuals who help the disadvantaged in our local community.  I would like to think that what we did made a difference to some of those who came to us for help. (Kate has also worked as a volunteer at Walmer Road School and at fundraising events.)

Clothes & Equipment Service

This service forms a valuable part of The Rugby Portobello Trust’s support for young parents, who may be struggling with the expense involved in providing for their children.

We collect used baby clothes for ages 0-6 months and non-electrical equipment, such as pushchairs and slings.

We’re always in desperate need for moses baskets, clean linen, towels and muslins.

Donated clothes and equipment are often returned to the Trust after use, so they can be passed on to others.

All donations must be in very good condition. If you can help, kindly bring your donations to The Rugby Portobello Trust Centre at 221 Walmer Road, London W11.