Volunteers rack up the hours in North East Lincolnshire

YOUNG people in North East Lincolnshire have been praised for putting an impressive amount of hours into volunteering for worthy causes.

Local participants of the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Scheme amassed a whopping 1,287 hours of volunteering between 1 April 2022 and 31 March 2023, benefitting good causes across the region.

The Award, which was founded by His Royal Highness Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh in 1956, to encourage young people to learn new skills and develop themselves.

There are three levels to the Award: Bronze, Silver and Gold, with each level getting progressively more difficult to complete. Each level is made up of different sections which youngsters much complete to achieve the full award. These are Voluntary, Skills, Expedition, Physical and Residential (gold only).

During the last year, local youngsters have completed their volunteering sections by giving their time to things like litter-picking, assisting with children’s sports clubs, working in local food banks and spending time with cadet and scouts groups.

Councillor Margaret Cracknell, portfolio holder for children and education at North East Lincolnshire Council, said:

“This is an incredible achievement on the part of our young people. By working towards their Duke of Edinburgh Award, they are making a significant contribution to our society, benefitting local people, and that is impressive.

“In total, these hours of volunteering equate to just over £6,000 in social value, which is no mean feat.

“This just shows what our young people are achieving. It’s important that we shout about this because there are some incredible young people in our area doing some fantastic work, and I’d like to take this opportunity to say well done to all of them.”