How do older children get involved in volunteering, fundraising or campaigning activities? #iwill want to know: chance to win £300 NOW CLOSED

[AnnMumsnet]

We are working with the #iwill campaign to celebrate young people, aged 10-20, who take part in volunteering, fundraising and campaigning. #iwill would love to hear what your child does or what they’d like to do.

To celebrate #iwillWeek 2017 (which which runs between 20-24th November), we want Mumsnetters to celebrate young people who lead social action and their capacity for building communities by bringing others together. The week is all about shining a light on the impact that young people are having, as well as the great work of the 750+ #iwill partners who’ve pledged to create more social action opportunities.

Share your story below and here are some questions to get you thinking!

What do your children do in any of the following areas?

~ Volunteering - do they support environmental projects, older or vulnerable people or other young people themselves?
~ Fundraising - how do they get involved with raising money for local, national or international projects?
~ Campaigning - are they showing their caring side by fighting for something they believe in?

Why do they get involved?
How do you feel about your child getting involved in these kinds of activities?

If they don’t do this sort of thing, why not and do you think they would like to get involved in things like this? (there’s lots of opportunities to get involved here)

Please share your story below - everyone who does will be entered into a prize draw where one person will win two £150 vouchers for the store(s) of choice (from a list) - and you can keep one for yourself and give the other one to your child!

Thanks and good luck
MNHQ

Standard Insight T and Cs Apply

[HomeFree55]

My DD is only 6 so too young to be included in this but I'm very proud so will tell you anyway

DD has a heart condition, she recently raised £150 by asking for donations instead of birthday presents from friends and family.

We also are involved with Contact the Elderly - hosting tea parties at home for elderly people who otherwise do not get much opportunity to socialise. She loved making cakes and sandwiches and talking to our guests.

[Leeds2]

My DD volunteered from aged 15 - 18 as part of Duke of Edinburgh award, once a week at an animal shelter. Carried on after she had finished the award, until she went away to uni.
In school sixth form, she went and heard local school children read, once a week.
At uni, she has trained to become a Samaritan and is also a "big sister" to a local school child. Think they meet up in the school once a week. She is also very much involved in her uni with campaigning on environmental issues.

[ButterflyOfFreedom]

DS is young still but already says he enjoys raising money 'for poorly children' (think he's thinking Children in Need).
He joins in events at his school / in the community and encourages others to do so.
He's very helpful and I think he'd be good at volunteering etc as he gets older.

[ErinSophia]

Fundraising- grew her hair to donate it to make a wig for a child with Cancer, raised over £350 for the cancer charity, very proud indeed!

[Trb17]

For this years Comic Relief, DD (who was 10 at the time) organised a sponsored silence all by herself. For some reason Comic Relief fires her need to help and she organised the whole thing herself.

She was in year 6 so had to gain permission from the teachers and Head to be silent all day in school, she went round asking for sponsors and asked me to get some of my friends to sponsor her too. She made posters and put them up around School. She flawed me in her dedication and she did a full days silence (a feat in itself) and raised £102.

I’m so proud of her for doing it. It was 100 percent her idea, execution (I paid in the money she collected) and achievement. I’ll never forget how determined she was to help.

[Trb17]

*floored not flawed!

[PugwallsSummer]

My DD (5) gets involved with PTA and national fundraising campaigns through her school.

[foxessocks]

My children are too young but I did duke of Edinburghwhen I was a teen and that encouraged me to volunteer at a charity shop and a local care home. I'd definitely encourage my children to do it and I'd like to do it again myself one day too.

[Sleepysausage]

Our DD is too little to do much atm but I hope she will follow us into being an activist for social good. We've taken her to rallies and hope that as she grows we can discuss these issues in a age appropriate way and that she is encouraged to do what she can

[KeiraTwiceKnightley]

My teen girl is volunteering with local Rainbows pack - part of her d of e.

[TellMeItsNotTrue]

They have seen us volunteering, and attended things with us when they were younger and 'helped' and it's rubbed off on them. Things they do are largely based in school but between them include -
Being a friend finder at school (playing with children who are on their own or getting them involved in playing with others depending on age etc)
School council
Local veg garden
Reading with younger children
Helping teacher with younger classes during wet playtime (they stay inside when weather really bad)
Fundraising themselves (sponsored to do things that are difficult for them, making and selling things)
Baking for school cake sale once a month after school, I supply ingredients and supervise oven use

I am really proud of them for what they do, and especially because it all comes from them. They enjoy all that they do, especially when they see results like fresh veg dug up, money being raised, their cakes being eaten etc, it makes them feel proud and I love seeing how excited it makes them

[motherstongue]

My DS started volunteering at age 14 with our local council doing an active kids programme during the Easter and Summer holidays for 5-12 year olds.

My DS was at Boarding school from aged 14 so so he couldn't do volunteering on a weekly/monthly basis anywhere other than activities organised through the school but during the holidays he thought it was a good way to fill his time as his school friends were not local, however, he got so much out of it that he has continued every year and has now being doing it for 6 years.

We come from an ex mining town which is quite deprived, he won an academic scholarship to a big name public school which afforded him lots of opportunities so he feels he is giving back to the community that supported him at his state school and the wider community. He is acutely aware how privileged he has been and is keen to give something back.

[UpOnDown]

Mine volunteers with brownies for her dofe.

[WinnerWinnerChickenDinner0]

I have a 3 year old and am already trying to mound him that way.
It’s his job to pick one thing to go in the donations box in the supermarket (with a little guidance so it’s not paw patrol stickers )

[defineme]

My dd, age 12, volunteers as a swimming lesson assistant with the little children, it's a swimming club staffed entirely by volunteers.
My ds1 has done lots of charity work with his local scouts, everything from canal and footpath clearance to sponsored swims.

[daniel1996]

When my eldest daughter took part in the National Citizenship Service, when she volunteered into a new community project which involved a day centre for the elderly. It is purely run on donations and a grant, she loved her time there so much, that she now has done a sponsored swim, sponsored walk with her friends and organised a 'curry night' at the centre and raised nearly £550. Not only has it given her much needed UCAS points, it has made her into a very community minded young lady.

[mumstaxi2]

DS 18 currently teaching English in a school in Cambodia. NCS, D of E, and Explorers have all given him the confidence to go in his own and do this - not through an expensive gap year company. Six weeks in and he's absolutely loving the experience - planning to reschedule flight home until the new year. We are very proud of him

[LunasSpectreSpecs]

I have a 14 year old who gives up 4 hours every Saturday to volunteer in our local Oxfam shop. He enjoys it and helps with things like social media, sorting stock, serving customers. He does have one eye on doing D of E at some point but isn't one of those volunteers who does the bare minimum to tick the charity box then no more.

My daughter organised a bake sale in her last year at Primary all by herself and raised £150 for a local cancer care centre.

I'm very prooud of both of them.

[voyager50]

I don't have older children but my friend's 13 year old son did a sponsored bike ride for a local charity and got all his friends involved - they all really enjoyed the fundraising experience.

[mrsdeedow]

My 10 and 11 year old boys are Young Carers, the do a lot for me and rarely get time to themselves, they also help run the PTA and always jump to help out at events. Thanks to funding, they are able to go to a group once a week who treats them and other Young Carers but also gives them a spot to talk and be children

[strikingstarlet]

All 3 of my children have taken part un various fundraising campaigns over the years from silly sock day for Children in Need to raising funds for Forces vetarins (Daddy is in the Navy)

While I suppose I’m quite protective of my children’s innocence and I would like them to live in a world where there is no suffering, cruelty, illness I think it’s important that they grow up as givers rather than takers and that their voice and actions can make a difference to some.

[footdust]

My daughter has done supermarket bag packing to raise funds for her Brownie group. football teams etc.). It's a great way to get young people directly involved in fundraising.

[glennamy]

DD has helped picking up litter on many occasions and even when we walk our dogs over the farmers fields takes a bag to fill if we should come across any! :)

[NeverTwerkNaked]

My step daughter does a lot of volunteering through guides, she gains a huge amount from it and has a whole separate set of friends from guides and has learnt all kinds of new skills.

I’m passionate about encouraging my children to volunteer. I did lots in my teens and twenties; once the youngest child is a bit older I will volunteer again, which will hopefully set them a good example too

[TracyKNixon]

Both sons regularly do supermarket bag packing to raise funds for their football club. I always support any groups doing the same (scouts, football teams etc.). It's a great way to get the young people directly involved in fundraising and helping out in their spare time!