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Issue:- 31 October 2013

Liverpool Man Wins Volunteer Of The Year

PAUL Kirby, a Volunteer at Festival Gardens, has been given the award by the Land Trust in recognition of the massive amount of work he has done at the Gardens, which has helped install pride into the community and inspire local children and young adults to take pride in their environment.

Alan Carter, Head of Portfolio Management at the Land Trust, who manages the site on behalf of Langtree, comments:- "The competition for our volunteer of the year was hotly contested. The Land Trust has over 50 parks and open spaces around the country which last year hosted over 3000 volunteers, who do fantastic work to help their communities who and would have been deserving of the award. However, Paul stood out among these because his sheer dedication, enthusiasm and sense of 'giving back' to the community is obvious to see. As such, Paul is considered to be an essential part of The Conservation Volunteers team that manage the Gardens on a day to day basis."

Neil McMahon, TCV Senior Project Officer says:- "Paul has been an excellent addition to the team here at Festival Gardens in Liverpool, he has helped to deliver a number of events including community and school events and can be relied upon to get on with whatever job he takes on and deliver it to a very high standard, this Volunteer of the year award is a tribute to his commitment to Festival Gardens."

Paul remarks:- "Festival Gardens used to be a derelict site, but people really appreciate how it looks. We are helping create a space and a legacy that can be passed on to the next generation and it is great that local children now have somewhere safe to play".

Paul was originally inspired to join the "Festival Gardeners" [the volunteer arm of Festival Gardens, Liverpool] in August 2012. At the time he found himself unemployed and was seeking a new challenge which would enable him to gain new skills and meet new people. Paul has encompassed a variety of different tasks, including gardening, conservation, engaging with the local community and other volunteers. He has also taken responsibility for leading small groups assigned to complete tasks such as compost/habitat construction, gorse management, the restoration of the Japanese Gardens, general maintenance and children's activities.

Alan Continues:- "Paul has also been enthusiastic about encouraging others to start volunteering and has enrolled a number of new volunteers from within the local community. Importantly we are now able to provide extra support to these volunteers, because we have just secured new funding for a project called Green Angels. The scheme will help support Paul and all the other volunteers at the Gardens by providing key training to develop new skills; and introduce a Project Manager and Community Engagement Officer."

The Green Angles project will start in November thanks to a grant worth nearly £139,000 from Big Lottery Fund's Reaching Communities programme. It will develop a support framework to engage and unite communities around the iconic Liverpool Festival Gardens site and increase volunteer opportunities. The project will, encourage social cohesion and provide new skills and training for unemployed and retired people in the area. It will also engage local residents in activities that will provide physical and mental health benefits; creating a sense of pride and ownership in this unique community space.

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