Staff

Stuart Garland, Manager
Stuart Garland is the Manager of Fingal Volunteer Centre, he joined us in June 2010.  Stuart has worked in a wide range of roles in the voluntary and community sector since 1993 and has a background in youth work.  As well as leading the National Volunteer Development Agency for a number of years he has direct extensive Volunteer Management experience with managing volunteer teams from 3 to 190 people.  He is committed to volunteerism, and to fostering a vibrant and active community, where everyone can volunteer without restrictions, regardless of background or capacity, and achieve full participation and citizenship by their voluntary activity.

Stuart is a national accreditor for European Voluntary Service (EVS) since 2005 and has played a key role in development of volunteer management standards in EVS.  He is a member of the Associate Faculty of the National College of Ireland and is Lead Tutor on the Managing Organisations in the Voluntary and Community Sector Course.  He was previosuly a board member of a number of youth and volunteer involving organisations.  Today he is still involved as a volunteer leader in a Dublin Scout Group.  Stuart holds a Diploma in Human Resource Management and a Diploma in First Line Management and has also studied youth work and graphic design.   This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Glynis Dunne, Placement Officer
Glynis has worked with us since 2008. After working abroad for many years she returned to Ireland in 1998 to study. This involved a B.A., an M.A. in Sociology: "Understanding Social Change" and also a Higher Diploma in Community Work. As part of this new direction Glynis worked as a Youth Worker for at risk young people in a disadvantaged area of Dublin, also a project worker for homeless women in Dublin's inner city.

Her commitment to social justice and active citizenship inspired her to volunteer both at home and abroad. In India working on projects for street children and the homeless, in South Africa with a project aimed at combating the rural disadvantage and within Ireland in various capacities for fundraising and helplines. Glynis continues this commitment to support the non-profit organisations within the county through encouraging more people to become involved in volunteering across the county through the work of Fingal Volunteer Centre.  This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Daiga Ancikovska, Placement Officer
Daiga started working with us in 2012.  She first came to Ireland in 2004 when she was taking a year off from studies. Having worked and travelled extensively across the island, she returned to Latvia in 2006 where she completed BA (Honours) in Political Science from University of Latvia. Inspired by Irish culture, history and people, she carried out a comparative political-economic research on Ireland and Latvia as part of her undergraduate thesis.  Since her return to Ireland in 2009 she has completed various further education courses and volunteered with Carlow Citizens Information Services and Carlow District Credit Union. Daiga thoroughly enjoys her volunteering experience as she always had a great interest in social inclusion and interculturalism issues and most importantly because she has seen peoples’ lives being changed for the better. Daiga started her internship with Carow Volunteer Centre in 2011.   This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Volunteer Centre Board of Directors 2012

Michela Benassi
Michela has been on the committee since 2010 and has recently become a Director.  Michela is the manager of the Blanchardstown / Dublin 15 Citizens Information Centre, a not for profit organisation providing free, confidential and impartial information, advice and advocacy services to the people of Dublin 15.  Citizens Information has a strong volunteer ethos and participation, and Michela manages a team of 15 volunteers in various positions including information providers, language assistants, administration and IT support, as well as a small team of employees.

Michela’s background ranges from languages, intercultural studies, training and finance. She has been managing the Blanchardstown / Dublin 15 Citizens Information Centre since 2004.

Noreen Colgan (Chairperson)
Profile will be online shortly 

Bryan Gavin
Bryan joined the board in 2009. Bryan is a Senior Youth Officer with Foróige.  Foróige is a leading National Youth Development Organisation. Bryan works with local communities across the Fingal area to develop youth initiatives and services.  Foróige is a voluntary organisation which engages over 5000 volunteers in various roles. Bryan joined Foróige in 2006 and his role involves the recruitment, training and support of volunteers involved in volunteer led youth work.

Bryan also worked in homeless services for over 3 years, providing information and support to vulnerable people experiencing, or at risk of homelessness. Bryans background is in social and urban geography. 

Philip O'Callaghan
Philip joined the Board of Directors in 2011. Philip previously sat on two academic welfare Boards at the National University of Ireland Maynooth. He was also the Chair of the Student’s Union Constitutional Board.  Philip has undertaken many volunteering opportunites mainly with the LauraLynn Children’s Hospice foundatation. For his work with this foundation Philip was awarded the, ‘Pramerica Spirit of Community Award’ in 2007. 

Philip holds a B.A. from the National University of Ireland Maynooth as is shortly commencing his Postgraduate Dipolma in Education. Philip also works closely Dr Leo Varadkar T.D as his Youth Officer for the Dublin West Constitency. Philip has a passion for working with youth in the volunteering sector and looks forward to his time spent on the Board. 

Monica Lawless
Monica joined the Board of Fingal Volunteer Centre in 2011 has been working as a community worker with Blanchardstown Area Partnership since 2009 years. She came to Ireland in 2005 from the UK after completing a BSc in Criminology and Criminal Justice. She worked in the private sector for 2 years before working for the Local Drug Task Force and eventually joining BAP’s community development team in 2008. Monica holds the Trinity Certificate in TESOL and is fluent in Polish and Italian.

Jennifer Feeley
Jennifer joined the Board of Fingal Volunteer Centre in Janaury 2012.  She currently works in Cappagh National Orthopaedic Hospital as the Financial Accountant.  She is a Chartered accountant who trained in PwC.  She has worked with GOAL in Africa for two years in Kenya and Uganda.

Volunteer Centre Interns & Volunteers
Most importantly a very big thank you to all our volunteers, current and past:

Volunteer Centre Interns & Volunteers 2012
Leah Carroll (Photography) www.leah-carroll.com
Dave Davis (Graphic Design)
Grainne Evans (Accounts)
Paula Merity (Placement Support)

Volunteer Centre Interns & Volunteers 2011
Leah Carroll (Photography) www.leah-carroll.com
Dave Davis (Graphic Design)
Grainne Evans (Accounts)
Padriag Faughnan (Event Assistant)
Michelle Gurdis (Volunteer Expo)
Deirdre Kavanagh Scott (Volunteer Expo & Placement Support)
Katia Lacerda (Events Assistant)
Paula Merity (Placement Support)
Barbara O'Reilly (Events Assistant)

Volunteer Centre Interns & Volunteers 2010
Louise Moloney (Accounts)
Lorraine Norton (Placement Support)
Sherifat Toke Raji (Placement Support)

Volunteer Centres provide a placement service between individuals and groups who want to undertake voluntary activity and organisations that are seeking to involve volunteers. Their primary function is to match individuals and groups interested in volunteering with appropriate volunteering opportunities. To do this, they offer advice and support to both volunteers and volunteer-involving organisations through a range of services that include information provision, consultation, training and Garda Vetting.

Local Volunteer Centres provide an invaluable link between individuals wishing to undertake voluntary activity and organisations seeking to involve volunteers. Volunteer Centres believe passionately in the value of volunteering and the benefits of volunteering for all: the individual, the volunteer-involving organisation and the wider society. They contribute to community development, active citizenship and social capital and are a vital component of any national volunteering infrastructure, providing local support at the same time as informing future initiatives and national policy. In addition to placing volunteers, Volunteer Centres stimulate and encourage volunteering by promoting volunteering at local, regional and national events and in local, regional and national campaigns.

They work towards breaking down the barriers to volunteering, targeting specific groups of people who are under - or unrepresented in volunteering. Volunteer Centres develop volunteering opportunities through consultation with local voluntary and community organisations. They recognise the potential of volunteering and encourage groups and organisations – be they private, statutory or voluntary and community – to think creatively about volunteering roles and to develop imaginative, non-traditional opportunities for potential volunteers. In addition, Volunteer Centres work to promote good practice in working with volunteers through the delivery of training and support.

They campaign and respond to legislation that may impact on volunteering and, as local experts on volunteering, inform planning and policy at regional and national level. Volunteer Centres would never claim to ‘own’ volunteering. Rather, they take a pro-active approach to facilitating and enabling volunteering. They will work with any organisation that seeks to do likewise.

The Irish government is committed to developing the volunteering infrastructure in Ireland, including through supporting local Volunteer Centres. This is outlined in Towards 2016 and the National Development Plan, 2007-2013. In June 2009, the Department of Community, Equality and Gaeltacht Affairs issued its Policy on Volunteer Centres.