The Winners of the Ann Beckett 2024 are Leonie Boland and Sarah Quinn
Project - Supported Volunteering. Working together.
The Ann Beckett Award committee is delighted to announce the winners of the 20th Ann Beckett Award are
Leonie Boland & Sarah Quinn
are the winners of the
Ann Beckett Award 2024
with their project
“Supported Volunteering. Working together.”
The Association of Occupational Therapists in Ireland (AOTI) is delighted to announce that the prestigious 2024 Ann Beckett Award has been awarded to Sarah Quinn and Leonie Boland for their outstanding project titled “Supporting Volunteering. Working Together.” This year’s award holds special significance as it marks the 20th anniversary of the Ann Beckett Award, established to honour excellence and innovation in the field of occupational therapy.
The winning project is a collaboration between the Discipline of Occupational Therapy at Trinity College Dublin and the occupational therapy service in HSE Dublin North City Mental Health Services, in collaboration with Focus Ireland, Volunteer Ireland and Vision Ireland. The project supports individuals with experience of homelessness and mental health difficulties to work as volunteers in local charity shops, by partnering first year occupational therapy students with service users who are interested in voluntary work.
Working with the peer research team in Focus Ireland, findings of a participatory research study provided the foundation of the project. Although persons with experience of homelessness were very motivated to volunteer and had a range of skills and experiences to contribute, a lack of confidence and concerns about health needs made it challenging to start. All interviewees were in favour of the potential support of a student. The model of supported volunteering was designed, delivered and evaluated in partnership with Focus Ireland and Volunteer Ireland.
The nature of this project exemplifies the principles of collaboration, inclusion, and empowerment that are at the core of occupational therapy. Through their innovative approach, Sarah Quinn and Leonie Boland have created a model that enhances the experiences of volunteers by providing them with comprehensive support and resources. Their work not only fosters a strong sense of community but also ensures that volunteers are equipped to contribute meaningfully to the organisations they serve.
The visiting judges remarked how on paper the project demonstrates the outline, reasoning and planning of supported volunteering but when visiting the OT School at Trinity College and then the Vision Ireland charity shop, the whole project came to life. The numerous underlying layers and nuances became more evident, as did the practical nature of the project.
The learning that both the students and service users gain from this project is invaluable. The building of trust, understanding, friendship, as well as socialising enabled the service users to become involved as volunteers. There is a lovely fun aspect to the project which again demonstrates the benefits of practical interventions.
Leonie and Sarah will be presenting a paper on their project at the AOTI Conference in September and later will be presented with the Award during the Conference Dinner.
The Ann Beckett Award Committee would like to thank all the other applicants for their excellent projects. These projects reflect the values of the Ann Beckett Award and follows the foundations that leaders like Ann Beckett have laid, to ensure innovative and life changing practice by Occupational Therapists.
The Ann Beckett Award is kindly sponsored by O’Neill Healthcare.
