Net Activities ESC Programme: International Training Course for Mentors of European Solidarity Corps’ Volunteers

The residential training course is aimed at developing, improving, and reinforcing mentors’ competences in supporting volunteers during their European Solidarity Corps (ESC) volunteering experience; participants will be offered supporting tools and methods in order to better support ESC volunteers.

The main core of the TC is analysing the role of mentors in European Solidarity Corps (ESC) volunteering projects; the activity will explore and deepen key aspects of mentoring measures: as the European Solidarity Corps Guide states, all ESC volunteers should be provided with personal and learning support through mentoring measures.

This role has an impact on the quality of the volunteering experience offered to the ESC volunteers and on the whole project success.

Objectives: 

• to better understand the role and the competences needed to Mentors of European Solidarity Corps volunteers;
• to develop participants’ mentoring competences in different aspects related to supporting the ESC volunteers’ learning process, as learning guidance, facilitation, communication and active listening, goal setting, monitoring, etc; 
• to improve the mentor role and the quality of support system in ESC volunteering projects, including “reinforced mentorship” to support volunteers with fewer opportunities and all related specific aspects;
• to better explore the use of non formal methodologies, methods, tools and resources related to mentoring, including the possibility of integrating digital tools in mentoring system (mainly in the light of practices and experiences implemented during the pandemic period);
• to offer participants a space for exchanging good practices regarding mentoring within volunteering projects.

Participants’ profile:

Mentors in ESC volunteering projects, with at least a basic experience.

NB: The activity is specifically targeted to mentors (and not ESC volunteers’ supervisors or other persons directly involved in volunteers’ daily activities).

This Training Course is for 25 participants from European Solidarity Corps Programme countries. Arrival day and starting of the activity is on February 20th, end of the activity and departure day is on February 24th.