Volunteering to help others
'Remember, remember the 5th of November' - well the people of Bridgwater in Somerset certainly do through the staging of their annual carnival parade which celebrates the failure of Guy Fawkes to blow up the Houses of Parliament over 400 years ago.
Although the origins of the carnival itself have been lost in the mists of time, records show that November 5th festivities have been held in the town for centuries. Initial celebrations were focussed around a huge bonfire which was built in the centre of the town. Here the townsfolk congregated for an evening of merrymaking during which time, thousands of home made fireworks were ignited. The revellers themselves dressed in costumes to disguise their identity, allowing them to get up to all sorts of harmless mischief. Over the years, these costumes became increasingly elaborate and colourful, so much so that groups of revellers began parading to the bonfire on farmyard carts in order to show off their clothes to greater effect.
Following a near riot in 1880 when, much to the annoyance of the late night revellers, the local fire brigade arrived on the scene to douse the flames of the bonfire, it became evident that the celebrations should be organised on a formal basis. So, the following year a committee was formed to do just that and the first official Bridgwater Guy Fawkes Carnival took to the streets, where it has remained ever since, making it the oldest carnival in the country.
Now, as then, every one of the thousands of participants and organisers are volunteers, working freely not just to ensure the annual parade runs smoothly but also to create a truly amazing spectacle of dazzling lights, amazing floats and stunning costumes.
Little wonder then that, in 2009, Bridgwater College introduced the NCFE Level 2 Certificate in Volunteering to its curriculum area which is specifically designed with carnival people in mind. Carnival Support Coordinator, Chris Hocking, and his colleagues consider that this award encompasses the extensive volunteering skills practiced by carnivalites in the region.
"The south west is famous for its English style autumn carnivals but these could never be staged without the hours and hours of unpaid work which our learners put in throughout the year," he said. "This course records the skills of the learners in their volunteering roles and endorses the value of achieving their goals as individuals as well as through working in teams."
The Marketeers Carnival Club, based in Bridgwater, is just one of the clubs whose members signed up for the course last year. Club chairman, Steve Wright, has no doubts about the value of this award.
"Our members work voluntarily on all sorts of fund raising projects throughout the year on behalf of the club," he said. "They then complete the thousand and one tasks needed to ensure our entry takes part in the carnival parade, with their only reward being the knowledge that their efforts have helped Bridgwater Carnival raise substantial sums of money for local charities.
"This course acknowledges our members volunteering skills and efforts and it is a fantastic way of achieving a qualification, instilling the learners with a great sense of pride in the work they do, year in year out."
In 2009, Bridgwater College promoted this award through many of the carnival clubs based throughout Somerset, Devon and Dorset. A total of 475 learners enrolled on the course demonstrating the value of the award and its suitability to the volunteering sector.