As we continue preparations for our annual Volunteer Awards, the team has also been making the most of opportunities to get out and about across Oxfordshire.
Last Tuesday, Laura had the pleasure of visiting the new offices of the Dialogue Society Oxford. If you don’t already know them, they are a charity doing vital work to promote social cohesion, interfaith and intercultural dialogue, and community integration across Oxfordshire. It was inspiring to discuss their educational programmes in schools (check out their ‘Life of a Chickpea’ project), community dialogue events, and civic engagement initiatives all delivered in close partnership with local universities, faith and community groups and organisations.
Their friendship dinners and Ramadan Iftar events bring together hundreds of people across Oxfordshire throughout the year and they look forward to their new space on Cornmarket Street serving as a welcoming community hub for dialogue activities, training, and collaborative work.
Danielle enjoyed the summer ROBIN network event, which creates a welcoming space for businesses and non-profits to connect and collaborate naturally.
Each time there is a different host venue and last week’s turn went to OCVA Member, ACE Training in Kidlington. A fantastic insight into their work supporting apprentices was given during a tour of the carpentry and bricklaying workshops. They go far beyond equipping them with construction skills, you can find out more about their community focused environment for students.
Clare met with some of the school students that will join us for Make A Difference week in early July. The group will be working on a project looking at loneliness and isolation among both older and younger generations. Watch this space as we’ll share how the week goes from the students’ perspectives.