Always happy to help

A first year student at Edge Hill University has beaten stiff competition from 3,000 nominees to be short listed for a prestigious national award for volunteering.

Scholarship winner, Vikki Shacklady, 24 of Ashurst, Skelmesdale, has worked tirelessly for a range of charities since the age of 13. Her work for organisations such as the United Nations has seen her travel as far afield as China and Kosovo.

The winner of the Education Volunteering Award 2008 will be announced on Tuesday, 2 December 2008 at Manchester United Football Club. The awards encourage collaborations between universities, local schools and community groups.

It is estimated that more than 90,000 people have benefited from the volunteering efforts of the nominees this year. All have demonstrated significant commitment to volunteering and exceptional execution of volunteer projects.

Vikki, or ‘Smiler'' as she is known to friends and family is currently a student in Health and Social Wellbeing at Edge Hill University. Her inspiration came from an unlikely source at an age when other children are starting to think about what to spend their pocket money on: "I was a very sensitive child and when I was about seven, after switching off the six o'clock news no less, I told my mum that I wanted to spend my life working for the good of others; I honestly grew up wanting to change the World.

"One day in my early teens, whilst having a meal out with my Nan, I told her that I wanted to do something very special with my life to help others, though I wasn't sure what. It sounds strange, but I always felt I had a destiny that went beyond the confines of the estate I grew up in, and as I got older I started to push those boundaries; not just physical, but mental as well.

"At thirteen, I started work in the British Heart Foundation charity shop in St Helens and it was there that I was well and truly bitten by the volunteering bug. From there, I spent time helping newcomers to the school I was at with their reading and writing in school. When I left Cowley High School, St Helens, I knew I could really spread my wings overseas.

"I started by helping children in post-war Kosovo; and then in 2004 I went to Thailand for two months, helping to teach English to Thai children in very poor areas.

"At 21, I made my next overseas volunteering trip to China for what was meant to be a three month stay: two years later I finally returned back to the UK when I married my fiancé, Darren who was still waiting for me.

For Vikki, married life to Countdown champion and professional Scrabble player Darren is far from quiet. She is currently volunteering for United Nations, writing features for newsletters that go as far afield as Africa and India, as well as training in Rainbow leadership, which will enable her to open a group for five-year-olds in her area. Vikki also works with Adoption UK, an organisation providing respite care and family support for those involved with adopting children.

Vikki will not be attending the awards ceremony in December as she is performing with the Sing Live choir in Disneyland, Florida. It is not the first time that she has been abroad with the choir at Ground Zero, New York in September 2007.

On hearing that she had been short listed for the award, Vikki said: "I was delighted to hear that I had been shortlisted for the Higher Education Volunteering Awards. For me, my work is about helping others and what I can do for them.

"I hope that if I win the award, it will inspire others who might have had a difficult start in life, as I did, to use their experience to make life a little better for others.

"I don't think what I do is special. Anyone can put the kettle on and have a chat with someone or give them a little bit of time and encouragement. Volunteering isn't just for those who have had the best start in life, it is for anyone who can give a bit of time to others.

"The volunteering that I have done has given me an amazing life and I have met some wonderful people who have given me as much as I have given them.

When asked what the future holds, Vikki replied: "I am just waiting to hear about my next adventure, a charity trek for British Heart Foundation in honour of my dad, who died nearly 10 years ago. It will either mean climbing boots or walking shoes as I am going to do a charity climb up Mount Everest or a walk along the Great Wall of China!"