Young People: Manchester

Wendy's passion for volunteering and working with people started many moons ago by volunteering in a youth club setting and for a homeless charity in Manchester. Through these experiences she recognised the value of volunteering as well as developing a strong awareness of social injustice. This spurred her on to return to education where she studied Social Sciences and later completed a post-graduate Diploma in Social Work. Since qualifying Wendy has worked in the voluntary sector; for fifteen years she worked with victims and survivors of domestic abuse in Northern Ireland and various parts of the North West of England. For the last four years she has worked with women involved with the criminal justice system, supporting them to address the issues that led to the offending behaviour as well as encouraging them to identify their goals for the future, many of whom have gone on to volunteer or return to education or employment. Wendy has two lovely grown up children and a very sweet Irish Red Setter called Ruby.