Help spread the word on Doncaster's history

Heritage Services, which includes Doncaster Museum and Art Gallery, Archives and Local Studies Library, as well as Cusworth Hall, has already seen the positive impact of volunteering thanks to its Doncaster 1914-18, First World War project.

The project is run by Doncaster Heritage Services, and is supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund with a grant of almost £1 million.

The main aim of the project is to commemorate the centenary of the First World War.

Since the start of the project in 2015 more than 50 people have given their time to the project, however more people are needed across Heritage Services for 2017.

People aged between 16 and 75 plus have already volunteered in a range of roles, including helping take the project on tour and helping deliver the project to schoolchildren and adults alike.

The volunteers have given their time for a number of reasons, including students who are looking to build their own skills, jobseekers who want to gain relevant experience and those who are looking for a different way to spend their retirement.

The roles available include helping run education programmes, researching museum objects, marketing for events, and scanning pictures and documents.

Lynda Regan, one of the volunteers on the 1914-18 project said: “I volunteered to work as part of the research, digitisation and events team. I’ve learnt a host of new skills and made use of the ones I already had. Volunteering got me out of the rut I was falling into after my parents died, giving me a new interest and a new enthusiasm.”

Coun Chris McGuinness, cabinet member for communities and the voluntary sectors, said: “Volunteers make an enormous contribution to the borough and they work hard and give up their time to support a lot of worthwhile projects.

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