Anna Comerford – Youth Justice Service

“Rewarding, challenging, community”

Anna is a volunteer for the Youth Justice Service, she works with young people as a way to keep them away from custody after they have committed a crime. With this role comes challenges as Anna seeks to understand and help create the best possible plan for a young person, who’s probably not had the best time, to begin to make positive changes.

Anna found volunteering as a way to understand what she would want out of a career, and as a way to fulfill her interests. She cares greatly about young people and has a keen interest in understanding behavioral development. Volunteering is a way for Anna to think about her career and her interests without having to devote all her energy to that one thing.

Anna’s volunteering role is one moment in a young person’s experience with the courts system so whilst it’s impossible to understand the impact she can make as a volunteer, the difference she sees in the young people as they move through the process is apparent, and the opportunity she takes to listen and connect with that person has a clear impact in the moment on how that young person is feeling.

Volunteering not only connects Anna to her community, but it gives “a sense of being part of something”, and that’s what all volunteers are, they’re a key part of their own community whilst all being part of the wider community of amazing volunteers.