Selfless Mansfield teen wins special award for his volunteering work

Joel Bailey, aged 18, spends his Thursdays every week volunteering at Jigsaw, a charity based at Mansfield Fire Station which helps people with hoarding issues and other mental health problems.

And Alison Waring, head of Jigsaw, says he is “the best student she’s ever had”.

She said: “Joel chats with the clients and they all love him.

“Sometimes he helps in the tea bar and with the activities and then in an afternoon we go up to our allotments, so he’s helping them there.

“He also spends time in people’s houses and helps them with hoarding and their gardens – there’s nothing he won’t tackle, he’s just amazing.”

The selfless teen’s work over the last two years has seen him named the winner of this year’s Bringing People Together award, one of Nottinghamshire Police’s Live Our Best Life awards.

Alison said: “He really deserves this award and the recognition, he’s brilliant.”

Joel said: “The first year I was volunteering as a care worker in Mansfield, I thought, ‘I really enjoy this’, and it got me into it.

“Then the second year I joined Jigsaw and met Alison and loved it even more.

“I’ve organised a food bank at college where I raised quite a lot of food and it’s all just continued from there.

“When I’m volunteering with Jigsaw and the support group on Thursday, people will come in for a drink or a coffee and conversation and sometimes we’ll go out to service users’ houses and we’ll help them to move stuff around, clean things they don’t need and make it a better and safer place to live.

“I will use my time even when I’ve got days off to come in and help out where I can.

“When I’m helping people it’s not about going just to go and say I’ve been.

“When we’re working with these people you have a start and an end – you go into somebody's house, clean it, and you can see the final result in the end because you can walk through.

“You’re also giving them a chance to speak about their feelings because nowadays in today’s society especially with the older generation people don’t want to talk about their feelings and it’s good to try and prompt them to speak.

“I feel happy that they’ve spoken to me and if I can help I always will.

“When I go to placement on a Thursday it does also help me mentally.

“I love working at Jigsaw and volunteering because I can see the difference that we all make in people’s lives.

Joel hopes to join the army after he finishes his course and is well on his way after passing his fitness test.

But helping people comes naturally to him and working with elderly people, veterans and those who attend the sessions is what makes him an asset to the Jigsaw team.

Alison said: “I’ve had many students over the years, but Joel is a natural.

“He’s the best student I’ve ever had, he’s so natural with people with mental health conditions and is so caring and non-judgemental – I can’t say enough good things about him.”