FAMILIES in Barrhead are being asked to open their doors to young Italians coming to Scotland to work as volunteers in charity shops, writes David Carnduff.

Notes posted through letterboxes in the area say “good, clean and kind host families” will be paid £130 per week per person to accommodate the youngsters.

However, residents have been left puzzled as no details are given about the scheme, other than a contact name, phone number and email address for the organisers.

And one woman, fearing it was a scam, contacted the Barrhead News to ask if we had any information about who was behind the move.

We contacted the company named in the leaflets – Croydon-based GF Work Placements Ltd – to ask for details.

Director Geoffrey Jones told us the company had a contract with Italian schools to bring groups to the UK as part of the pupils’ work experience programmes.

For this, they are given unpaid work – normally about 30 hours a week – in charity shops.

This is the first time the scheme has been tried in the Barrhead area and Mr Jones addressed concerns that youngsters could be placed in unsuitable accommodation with families who had not been vetted.

He said: “A CRB [Disclosure Scotland] check is generally supplied nowadays and there is, or will be, a regional coordinator on hand to look after the needs of under-18s and over-18s alike.

“We have a multi-tier protection system for the youngsters. It consists of the host family and the charity shop - they are of a philanthropic nature and will usually advise of no-shows or problems. It also involves the local coordinator, me as head coordinator and director, and last – never used, I would emphasise – Police Scotland.”

Mr Jones said the company had used charity shops across the UK to find voluntary work for young Italians.

These, he said, have included Marie Curie, British Heart Foundation, Cancer Research and Samaritans.

He added: “We have some regional mandates with some of the shops, but most are done at local level through direct authorisation from the managers concerned.

“The chains concerned have been very positive in their feedback regarding the programme and have found the young Italians a great pleasure to work with and, indeed, miss them when they leave.”

Mr Jones said the youngsters work as volunteers to increase their language, work and life skills. It also helped their sense of independence and discipline.

He added: “It also serves as a vital first line for their CV, which gets them out of the ‘no experience, no hire’ vicious circle when they get home or elsewhere.”

He added: “They have a legal obligation to do this work experience in a project called ‘alternanza scuola lavoro (alternating school and work)’.”

For more information about hosting students call 0749 623 1660 or send an email to gfworkplacementsmi@libero.it.