Role: Youth Development Officer
Company: Society of St Vincent De Paul
Track Record: The challenge of working with young people is a reward in itself.
‘One of the reasons I always wanted to work with young people is because of their enthusiasm. I love how they have a different way of looking at things and have ideas that we, as adults, do not always see,’ says Claire.
What does your job entail?
The Society of St Vincent de Paul (SVP) is one of the longest-established and largest charities in Northern Ireland with 1,600 active volunteers.
My role is to help encourage more young people to become involved in our work and in-spire them to become responsible members of society.
I work with schools, youth groups, universities and colleges giving talks, taking workshops, providing educational resources and offering young people the opportunity to have their voices heard.
I help to set up SVP youth groups and projects across NI through which young people can help their communities through befriending, education and direct aid, as well as undertaking research into social justice issues.
Is it 9-5?
Technically yes but often I find myself working some evenings and weekends as I collaborate with many out of school youth groups.
Also, my work-load can increase in the run-up to major events in our calendar, such as our Annual Youth Day conference which involved 300 young people.
We have also just had ‘Camp Vincent’ which allows young people to share their ideas, learn more about SVP’s work through workshops and take part in outdoor team building activities over a weekend.
As we are a volunteer led organisation, it is usually all hands on deck whenever large events such as these are happening.
How did you get into this line of work?
After graduating with a politics degree, I completed my PGCE at Queen’s in 2008.
I then taught for five years, mainly history, government and politics with citizenship before deciding on a change of career.
I knew that I still wanted to work with young people but in a different context.
I applied for SVP last September and haven’t looked back since.
What qualities are required for your Job — personal and professional?
Being organised and able to prioritise tasks is key, as there are many different elements of my role to juggle.
Further-more, as the Youth Programme is still being defined as such, I think the ability to say ‘yes’ to many things and being adaptable does help.
Being able to speak in front of and engage large groups of people is very important — it’s never easy
What are the biggest challenges of your work?
The biggest challenge is developing new and interesting ways to engage with young people, but when you do and they complete a project, this becomes the reward.
One of the reasons I always wanted to work with young people is because of their enthusiasm.
I love how they have a different way of looking at things and have ideas that we, as adults, do not always see.
What is your organisation’s role in the local community?
SVP is an entirely volunteer-led charity that works to alleviate poverty and tackle social injustice irrespective of creed, ethnic or social background or political opinion.
Although the Society has more than one million members worldwide, the work we carry out is very much at a local level.
Each year, our 1600 volunteers make around 130000 visits to individuals and families in need across Northern Ireland to provide spiritual, financial, material and practical assistance.
In some areas, SVP also delivers local childcare facilities, breakfast and after-school clubs as well as managing 29 charity shops.
Did you always want to work in this sector in some capacity?
I was always interested in social justice at university and when I graduated I worked for a short time with Victim Support, so this interest grew.
Teaching citizenship and politics also gave me the opportunity to examine various issues and I am privileged to be able to still work with and educate young people in this area in my current role.
What do you like to do in your spare time?
Spending time with my husband, family and friends.
I love music and played the oboe with the Ulster Youth Orchestra when I was younger.
Now, I enjoy playing the flute and learning the piano.
Tell us an interesting fact about your life.
I always wanted to take a road trip across America and last year I did.
We went to New York, Washington DC, San Francisco, Las Vegas, through Death Valley up to Mammoth and through Yosemite National Park.
It was a holiday of lifetime.
Who has inspired you most In your life?
I would have to say Donald Woods who was a journalist from South Africa during apartheid.
At school, we heard his story first-hand and I was instantly inspired.
He was very passionate about the civil rights struggle and supported Steve Biko’s Black Consciousness Movement.
Woods was banned from writing and placed under house arrest after Biko’s death.
He later smuggled his family out of South Africa to London where he spent the rest of his life.