Aġenzija Sapport facilitates voluntary work experiences with persons with disability. Volunteers can join the Agency’s service – Sharing Lives – to offer some of their time to support persons with disability within the community.

 

Sharing Lives’ volunteers come from all walks of life – students, pensioners, members of other voluntary organisations and individuals offering some of their time.

NEW! – Project ARCH

ARCH stands for Active Responsible Citizen who are Helpful. A name that the members of the group came up with themselves that reflects the purpose of the group. Project ARCH is an ongoing initiative where young people with mixed abilities contribute back to society becoming active citizens in society.

 

Members of the group are young persons with disabilities and volunteers between 16 and 18 years. Meeting are held on a weekly basis and involve identifying and getting to know a charity of their choice, doing voluntary work, plan a social activity and/or fundraiser for the chosen charity. The members of this group will also have the opportunity to have social activities together and involve themselves in campaigns to further promote voluntary work.

 

Project ARCH is ideal for students doing a short voluntary experience who are interested in the disability sector. A Youth Worker from Aġenzija Sapport accompanies the members in this journey. Training and support to volunteers forming part of Project ARCH is provided to enhance their learning experience.

Why volunteer

  • Checkmark To gain experience of volunteering
  • Checkmark To gain a vast array of skills including creative skills, organisational skills, public speaking, etc
  • Checkmark To be given the opportunity to suggest and implement own ideas for activities
  • Checkmark To experience first-hand the satisfaction from contributing to the inclusion of persons with disabilities
  • Checkmark To meet a community of both local and foreign volunteers
  • Checkmark To share experiences and different cultures with other volunteers/employees

Volunteers will be given continuous support and be provided with training and supervision, thus also ensuring that the service provided is of high standard, and safeguarding both the persons with disabilities and the volunteers.

Volunteers that accumulate more than 30 hours of service at the end of their experience will be presented with a certificate from the Agency. There are also other incentives in place to support the volunteers in their work with the service users.

The service is also supported and registered with Degree Plus at the University of Malta.​

LEARN MORE ABOUT SHARING LIVES SERVICES

HOW CAN YOU HELP​

1

One can participate and help organise activities for the persons with the disability in a group context.

Events may be one-off activities or a programme of events.

2

One can act as a social contact where the volunteers are matched with a person with disability who he/she can befriend.

HOW TO APPLY​

Interested individuals who would like to volunteer, must be 16 years old or over, and are requested to submit an application form, together with the following documents:

 

  • A recent police conduct.
  • A reference which recommends the volunteer to work with persons with disability. This may be a professional, priest, teacher etc. who knows the individual.
  • Volunteers under the age of 18 are also required to submit a parents’ consent form. This specific form can be provided by the Sharing Lives’ team upon request.

 

Prospective volunteers will then be called for an interview with professionals of the Agency.​

 

The scope of the interview is for the volunteer to learn more about Sharing Lives, for the professionals to get to know the volunteer and to identify ways how he/she can contribute to the service. Sharing Lives professionals create a plan with the selected volunteers on how the voluntary work will be best offered.

 

Sharing Lives also organise activities for the volunteers.

 

Those interested in applying may fill in the application form electronically, or download the application and submit it via email, by hand or by post at address below.

FILL APPLICATION FORM ONLINE DOWNLOAD APPLICATION FORM

QUALITY MARK

Through the Sharing Lives service, Aġenzija Sapport has been awarded a Quality Mark by The European Solidarity Corps, a European Union initiative that enables young people to show solidarity with communities in their respective country as well as abroad.

Through this award, more foreign volunteers will have the opportunity to join Sharing Lives as volunteers.

ACTIVITIES

Some of the activities organised by Sharing Lives and its volunteers since its inception in 2017 include:

 

  • Rugby sessions
  • BBQs
  • Fishing
  • Trekking
  • Bowling
  • Live-ins
  • Music sessions
  • Art sessions
  • Digital literacy sessions
  • Photography sessions
  • Attending concerts and national events such as Rockestra, Isle of MTV and Military Tattoo
  • Travelling
  • Performing arts

 

​​​​​Service users at Sharing Lives are also given the opportunity to give back, by being volunteers themselves. Such activities allow service users to contribute to society and in turn making them active participants of society.

Collaborators

Collaborators of Sharing Lives include NGOs, private companies and other institutions in the community. These are entities willing to share their resources and availability to collaborate with Sharing Lives in joint initiatives targeting persons with disability that make use of the Sharing Lives service.

 

The initiative could be a one-time event or a programme planned over a number of sessions.
Entities interested in collaborating with Sharing Lives can request a meeting with a member of the team to discuss their proposed idea or to create a plan together on how their entity could contribute to Sharing Lives.

Current and Past Collaborators
  • Aġenzija Żgħażagħ
  • The Brain Foundation
  • Youtheme Foundation and YMCA
  • Sedqa: Prevention Programme
  • Plethora Dance
  • HSBC
  • Armed Forces of Malta (AFM)
  • St. Anne Local Band Club
  • Science in the City
  • Malta Rabbit Club
  • Home Economics Association
  • Noah’s Ark

Testimonials

Deborah Debono
Deborah Debono
Role within Aġenzija Sapport
Volunteer
Getting out of my comfort zone. I experienced this back in 2019, when I decided to become a volunteer with Sharing Lives. This provided me with the opportunity to befriend young people with disability and focus on their potential and our similarities. Furthermore, I carried out my University placement with a group of young people, which subsequently became a very full-filling experience.

Caroline Debono
Caroline Debono
Role within Aġenzija Sapport
Volunteer
My experience as a Sharing Lives volunteer involves meeting with a person with disability weekly, on a one-to-one basis. I also participate in organised group events and even had the opportunity to organise an event myself. This voluntary experience taught me how to love unconditionally. My area of studies is in Management and this experience helped me put into practice my studies, such as leadership. Moreover, it is inspiring me for further studies in the social sector.

Alexander Konschu
Alexander Konschu
Role within Aġenzija Sapport
Volunteer
I did an internship at Aġenzija Sapport as part of my course in social work. My role involved organising activities on a one-to-one basis with 4 service users.
Amongst the different activities, I organised a special cooking session with a focus on healthy eating, begining with an introductory session where we discussed together which foods are healthy for us. I felt happy because the clients enjoyed the activity, and those that seemed shy in the beginning, were more open by the end of the session. One thing that makes the work feel useful is that you see changes in the behaviour and the way the clients express their feelings. The experience was not always easy, but it was worth it!

Nicole Bartolo
Nicole Bartolo
Role within Aġenzija Sapport
Volunteer
I joined the Sharing Lives team in July 2021, and so far it has been an amazing opportunity. Sharing Lives offers a wide range of opportunities to anyone. As a volunteer, I learnt a lot about different disabilities. Volunteering has given me opportunities to meet different people, and explore different places both locally and abroad. Apart from this, giving a bit of my time makes me feel satisfied and happy. One cannot express the gratitude that one feels when helping the service users and especially when you see them having fun. This is what Sharing Lives is about.

Brenda Schembri
Brenda Schembri
Role within Aġenzija Sapport
Volunteer
My experience as a volunteer with Sharing Lives has been so fulfilling and I am very grateful. Being a volunteer is not only giving your time and dedication but receiving such love and respect from the service users. It`s a blessing when you have the opportunity to leave a mark on other people`s lives. Their smile, showing their happiness and appreciation towards you is amazing. It enriches your soul and it helps you to grow as a person. The activities are fun and colourful both for the service user and the volunteer.

Annette Agius
Annette Agius
Role within Aġenzija Sapport
Volunteer
I enjoy dedicating my time – I can honestly say that I get so much satisfaction out of volunteering with this group. It is very rewarding and at the same time I am also learning new things. From my experience, I believe that everyone can reach their full potential. Being a volunteer with sharing lives allows me to lend a hand to challenge these young people to achieve their dreams.

Sharing Lives opening hours

Monday to Friday: 08:00 – 16:30

Saturday, Sunday and Public Holidays: Not Available

Address: Aġenzija Sapport, Professional Development Centre, Carob Street, Santa Venera SVR 9018

For location and/or directions click this link

For more information on this service, one may send an email on sharinglives.sapport@gov.mt or call on (+356) 2256 8000 (Malta) or (+356) 2156 9909 (Gozo)

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