European Voluntary Service (EVS) is a ‘Youth in Action’ Scheme, and fully-funded – 10% travel contrubution It’s designed to encourage 18-30 year olds who might otherwise not be able to afford to volunteer to undertake long or short term volunteering in Europe. The projects are unpaid and, importantly, volunteers do not replace paid workers or financially profit the hosting organisation. The Long Term EVS programme offers projects of between 6 and 12 months. There is also a Short Term EVS programme, with projects of between 2 weeks and six months, designed as an introduction to volunteering for those who don’t have the opportunities most of us do. If you work with young people from disadvantaged backgrounds who might benefit, we’d be happy to tell you more about how EVS can be an ideal stepping stone to longer term volunteering. To apply, you must be between 18 and 30 years old and a UK resident and an EU citizen, or have the right to live and  work long term in Europe. Volunteering through EVS could provide you with a real-life international learning experience. You’d learn to get on with a mixed group and gain valuable work experience in a challenging environment, which could help you when you’re looking for a job. You’d have the great experience of working alongside young people from other countries, too - it’s an aim of EVS to encourage tolerance, active citizenship and mutual understanding. You could be working in…

• Conservation (wildlife, environment, renovation, gardening, agriculture)
• Health (drugs/alcohol, HIV education, care work)
• The social field  (children, adults, older people, special needs, learning difficulties, physical difficulties, support for refugees, homeless people)
• The arts (arts/crafts, theatre, media, festival)