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What We Do Eastern Volunteers major programs: Volunteer Transport Service Eastern Volunteers is an accredited Home and Community Care (HACC) provider, with a team of over 60 volunteer drivers providing transport assistance to the frail aged and people with disabilities. This service enables people to attend health care and medical appointments, undertake shopping requirements, visit family and friends, attend activity groups and generally participate in social and recreational activities. The transport program helps people to continue living independently in their homes while still being able to participate in social, recreational and community activities. In 2006/2007 Eastern Volunteers vehicles traveled 354,148 kilometers and transport volunteers worked 17,020 hours. Volunteer Recruitment and Referral Eastern Volunteers conducts regular displays, and also promotes its services and volunteering generally through weekly radio appearances and speaking engagements. Eastern Volunteers also holds regular volunteer recognition events such as National Volunteer Week and International Volunteer Day activities to celebrate Volunteers and the important work they do in our communities. Eastern Volunteers recruits volunteers from across the area, conducts training on rights and responsibilities and duty of care and refers volunteers to more than 300 community organisations. Volunteers are recruited to work with a wide range of agencies in areas such as reception, administration, accounting, children's services, youth work, aged care, emergency services, conservation, arts and heritage, animal welfare and so on. Eastern Volunteers offers training programs for Volunteers and also acts as a resource for community service organisations, helping them to develop best practice volunteering programs, assisting with capacity building and conducting specialised training workshops that focus on agency staff. Demand for volunteers continues to grow but of recent times the number of "traditional" volunteers appears to be decreasing in number. The Outer East Managers Network, convened by Eastern Volunteers, meets bi-monthly to provide a support network for managers of volunteers. Regional Transport Projects Eastern Volunteers acts as the lead Agency and manages funding for regional transport initiatives across the eastern metropolitan region and also within specific municipalities. The Eastern Transport Register coordinates and provides an online booking service for a range of different vehicles, particularly buses that are owned by various Agencies who make them available to community groups and individuals in their down time. Yarra Ranges Community Access Project, bringing together local groups to improve transport options and services for HACC clients across the Shire of Yarra Ranges. Yarra Ranges Transport Connections Project is a 3 year funded project aimed at identifying transport gaps and transport disadvantage across the Shire of Yarra Ranges and developing sustainable community based solutions in cooperation with the state government. The Transport Your Resource in the East (TYRE), convened by Eastern Volunteers, meets regularly to provide a support network for community transport operators across the eastern region. Eastern Volunteers conducts regular displays, and also promotes its services and volunteering generally through weekly radio appearances and speaking engagements. Eastern Volunteers also holds regular volunteer recognition events such as National Volunteer Week and International Volunteer Day activities to celebrate Volunteers and the important work they do in our communities. |
