Chairman Tony Pruss

    In many ways the Vocational committee of any Rotary Club can be considered its most important. Rotary was conceived in the early twentieth century as an organisation where its members could meet and do business with each other and where trade, vocation and profession could be discussed and encouraged by fellow Rotarians.
     In the Rotary Club of Lymington  today most of the members are retired and so their vocations and business interests are largely things of the past and thus the Vocational committee concentrates mostly on the opportunities and aspirations of the next generation which means getting involved in a big way with the local schools.
    The committee has an inexperienced but keen chairman, Tony Pruss, ably helped by experienced vocational members such as Derek Mills, Ray Thompson and Ron Palmer. We have already established a good working relationship with Chris Willsher, the Head Teacher of Priestlands School, the only large Comprehensive School in our area.
     In the current Rotary Year, we hope to continue with previous projects such as the Young Chef Competition and the Youth Speaks competition and also with Work Experience Awards and Presentation of Shields for pupils who excel  in any particular subject. In addition we hope to add some new projects such as aiding students to find out more about any chosen trade or profession by arranging short visits to various businesses and facilitating people in trades and professions to talk to chosen pupils at the school. Liaison with a Public School in Essex is also planned with an award to a particularly suitable student to visit an Indian Ashram and Primary School is also a possibility.
      We also like to keep in contact with local primary Schools and will continue the presentation of Dictionaries for Life to all year 4 children, which has proved very popular.
       Visits to places of Industry and commerce will also be arranged over the next couple of years, in addition to some social events such as walks for good causes.
          Lastly the committee has agreed for its medical member to assist Priestlands in matters of occupational health, and advice on young people's problems with alcohol, drugs and diseases such as anorexia and sexually transmitted conditions.
      Thus the committee will have a very active and hopefully productive year and advice and suggestions from fellow Rotarians will be very welcome.

See below for full report on the year's activities.

We sponsor students at the Rotary Youth Leadership Awards.  This gives young people the chance to improve leadership and communication skills, learn about businesses and institutions, explore career paths, share ideas and experiences, learn how to coordinate youth activities and community service projects in the community, and discuss creative approaches for resolving family, social, and professional conflicts

AGM Report  2012/13

Introduction        This Committee has 8 members, met monthly throughout the year, and attendance by most members was good, interrupted only by illness and the occasional clash of commitments.

Children’s Dictionaries        Enough copies of the Usborne illustrated dictionary for children ( aimed at about age 9 ) have been ordered to be presented to all children of this age group at local schools at the end of the School year, & plans made for their presentation.
  
Rotary Competitions      Local competitions were organised for entry to the nationwide Rotary “Young Chef” and “Youth Speaks” events, both run to the national rules.  Sufficient entries came from Priestlands School for both events, which ran smoothly.  A chef entrant reached the Regional final, and a speaker team the District final, and both performed creditably notwithstanding intense competition.
 
School Awards       The numerous (some 20 )  Club awards, mostly in the form of shields, were presented at Priestlands School, mainly at their end of year or school leaving events.  The David Cummins community contribution award was included.

Hi-Viz Vests      This year saw the successful completion of the programme to donate high-visibity vests, with school name and the Rotary logo printed on the backs, to all primary schools in the Lymington area, in sufficient numbers for distribution to all children in one school year.   Some were also given to other young people’s organisations.

Club Visits       Although members were sounded out on a selection of possible vocational visits, sufficient numbers signed for only one visit ( to the RNLI national training centre in Poole ), and for a tour of the Berthon Boat Co. in Lymington, thanks to a Community Service Comimttee initiative.

Speakers      The speaker programmes for the months of September and February took place as planned, and included outside speakers, young people ( including a Youth Speaks team and the David Cummins award winner ) and Club members.

Rotary Day      Some Committee members offered their help at the public display at the United Reformed Church, whilst a small team sourced and planted additional “Polio plus crocuses” at some of the original sites but also on new sites at Woodside, Pennington and by the roadside at the entry to the town.  Unfortunately the weather prevented a good display this year.  

Club Walks       Again the weather, coupled with extremely unpleasant ground conditions, combined to make interfere with most plans, but a successful guided walk on a warm early Autumn evening on the Lymington marshes did take place as planned.

Future Projects       As well as a hoped continuation of most of the above projects in future seasons, two others are still under active consideration:(1) arranging a programme of Vocational talks by local employer representatives for the senior children at Priestlands School and (2) offering an opportunity for a local youngster to join with pupils from a school in Essex on a liaison & fact-finding visit to a school in a poor part of India (a scheme actively supported by Tony Pruss). 

Contact Vocation Committee

e-mail via Club Secretary.
Postal: See below.Chair of Youth and Vocation, The Rotary Club of Lymington,
c/o The Community Centre, New Street, Lymington, SO41 9BQ