The minimum ages to work?

Volunteer work & participating ages etc?

• i am currently 15 and in the final stages of completing my GCSES,i have 6 months left of school. i have a history of things i have done at my senior school such as: - charity fund raising - member of school council - helping out at open evenings etc - currently teaching disabled children Drama for 1 hour a week. when i am older i would like a career in these sorts of fields: -public services -social work -youth work -working with disabled children -working with youth offenders just generally helping people less fortunate in the world,people that may have no one to turn to etc and make them happy etc...and i would like to take my volunteering outside of school. i have found a very good website: http://www.do-it.org.uk/ which is to do with volunteering,but my main question is....can i not do much until i am 16 years of age? (i turn 16 in February 2009) i would like to volunteer in the following sectors: -children -disabilities -youth work -domestic violence -Elderly -homeless and housing do i have to be a certain age to volunteer in those sorts of sectors? because i would just like to help people in the community,and in the future show that i have a passion for this sort of career, etc. thanks for your help

• Answer:

  hi! I think its fantastic what your doing, I think the website asks you to be 16 for legal reasons so your aware of the rules with working with children and whatever but i'm sure at fifteen you can go into a local nursing home and ask if you can do anything for them or another place, even if its just helping to get rid of the rubbish to save the staff having to do it! Good luck with it though and let me know if you find anything :) i'd love to hear about it. :)!