Spotlight On Karen McIloney
Karen's started volunteering with the Children's Panel in Edinburgh. She did this role for 3 years.
After taking time out of work to raise her family, Karen began exploring opportunities to return to employment once her children were a little older. However, after being out of the job market for 13 years, she found her confidence had dipped and felt nervous about applying for jobs. To rebuild her skills and self-assurance, Karen decided to look into volunteering opportunities.
When she came across an advert on Facebook from The Advice Shop for Outreach Volunteers at St John's Hospital, she decided to apply. Her application was successful, and after completing her induction training, Karen volunteered in this role for two years. Her responsibilities included promoting the services of The Advice Shop to both visitors and staff at St John's Hospital.
During this time, Karen also completed a counselling course, which she thoroughly enjoyed. Inspired by this new interest, she decided to pursue a role where she could put her counselling skills into practice. In February 2019, she applied to Macmillan @ West Lothian to become an Information and Support Volunteer. Once again, her application was successful, and she went on to complete a two-day training course. Karen said she really enjoyed the training and found shadowing experienced volunteers particularly valuable, as it gave her the confidence to step into her new role.
Karen now volunteers weekly at one of the three West Lothian Macmillan Hubs and has also become involved in the training of new volunteers across both services.
She says her volunteering roles fit perfectly around her family life, thanks to the flexibility they offer. Karen feels valued and supported by staff at both The Advice Shop and Macmillan, and she appreciates being part of organisations that make such a positive difference in the community. Through her volunteering, she has also discovered the wide range of services available to people living in West Lothian.
On a personal level, Karen says her confidence has grown enormously. It helped her feel ready to apply for paid roles and has realised that, with determination and self-belief, she can achieve her goals.
