The summer term is when ALL of our full time study programme students start thinking and planning how they can help others and give something back to the local community.
This is your big chance to show your community who you are, and that together, you can make a difference by helping others.
The key to delivering a successful community action project is ensuring that you follow a number of steps:
- Get to know the community and environment that you live in.
- Be realistic, plan an achievable project that helps your local community.
- Identify what resources you may need to deliver your project.
- Celebrate and enjoy your achievements.
- Put the key skills you have developed onto your CV or UCAS personal statement.
Types of Projects
Your community action project should include at least ONE of the following categories. A good project will include many, if not all of these.
A Marketing Task
To raise awareness about an issue that has an impact on your local community, or to
work with community groups to tackle local problems.
A Manual Task
Something that will help to improve a local building, park, play area, street,
riverbank or community space.
A Creative Task
To create something that can be added to your local area. Creating artwork, taking
photos, making something safer, helping renovate something – these are all creative
ideas.
A Social Task
To deliver an event to enable different people in your area to come together to
share an experience.
Examples of Community Action Projects
Here are just a few examples of the amazing projects that East Durham College students have completed.
- Students from Creative Industries supported the Ukraine appeal by organising a large-scale donation which was sent directly to the people affected.
- Animal Care students decided to raise awareness around loneliness among the elderly. They used photographs of Houghall animals to design their own postcards to spread positivity with uplifting messages. The postcards were then sent to Age UK.
- Childcare students volunteered their time at a local charity 4Louis. They helped assemble memory boxes to support families who have had stillborn babies. This charity relies on people giving up their time.
- Equine students collected donations of food and toiletries for homeless people and all donations were then sent to the People’s Kitchen in Newcastle.
- Students worked together to fundraise for their local veterans and carried out a range of fundraising activities including a sponsored walk and sea dip.
An Award Winning Programme
East Durham College won the Pears #iwill Award for Social Action and Student Engagement in the Association of Colleges (AoC) Beacon awards 2021 - the Oscars of the further education sector - for our Community Action Project.
Enrichment