Volunteering Overseas
The NASUWT has given strong support to the concept of volunteering, both at home and in developing countries. Teachers who volunteer overseas can gain and further develop valuable skills, and return to the UK with those skills, as well as insight and experiences that directly benefit themselves, their school and the UK economy.
The Union has backed a time-limited scheme financed by the DCSF and other Government departments, allowing teachers and other public servants to volunteer overseas with pensions protected. Public sector workers with the right skills can help to tackle poverty with the Voluntary Service Overseas (VSO) or other major UK volunteer-sending agencies, and get both employee and employer pension contributions made up on return to a UK public service job.
The offer is open to the education workforce, but VSO particularly welcomes applications from primary teachers, teachers with management experience, SEN teachers, heads and deputy heads. These professionals are urgently needed to help make education for all a reality, in countries like Cambodia and Malawi.
This is a time limited offer and there is no time to waste if you are interested. The scheme concludes on 31 March 2011.
Those wishing to take advantage of the pension protection offer should apply now.
Read more about the pension protection scheme at www.vso.org.uk/publicpensions (opens in new window).
Find out more about volunteering with VSO at www.vso.org.uk/educationjobs(opens in new window).
