Students at Kilmarnock College have scooped two awards at this year's Scotland's Colleges - National Volunteering Awards.

The Learning by Volunteering - Promoting Excellence Award Ceremony, which took place at Stirling University, saw student volunteers from across Scotland gather to receive recognition for their contributions in 2010-11.

The interactive ceremony included guest speaker, Dr Alasdair Allan MSP, Minister for Learning and Skills, as well as a motivational talk from Dunfermline Athletic's Director of Football and former manager, Jim Leishman MBE. HND Administration and IT student, Nicola Hunter, was presented with the prestigious Individual Learner Volunteering Award and a group of students on the College's PEZ (Personal Empowerment Zone) course picked up the Team Volunteering Award. At the awards ceremony, both Nicola and the PEZ students gave a brief presentation about their volunteering experiences and what they have learned. They discussed the impact that volunteering had on their College and local community, as well as on their own individual learning and skills development.

Nicola said: "I am delighted to have won this award. Having worked in business for 34 years, I wished to get the paper qualifications to complement the practical knowledge. As I had practical experience in many of the subjects, I hoped that I could offer help to other students." "I took time to get to know the students before offering support to ensure that it was appropriate and specific to address their needs. Using this approach, more students sought my help. The lecturers actively encouraged and supported me throughout the year." "Being a mentor within a supportive environment allowed me to develop my own skills in this area. It has given me a huge sense of pride not only to see students do well but also to see them achieve something they may have thought was beyond them. This experience has given me a desire to teach, coach and support on a wider scale and to aim for qualifications in this area." The PEZ students who won the Team Award were involved with Musical Minds - a local music group for people affected by Alzheimers, which was the East Ayrshire Provost's chosen charity of the year. David Stewart, PEZ student at the College, said: "Most Wednesday afternoons we volunteered with the Musical Minds group to join in with the singing and learn signs for some of the songs.

"We were a bit unsure at first but we received lots of encouragement from the staff at the HIVE (Hope, Inspiration and Vision in Education) Centre at the College and at Musical Minds. This is completely different to anything we have ever done before and we were nervous as to how the group would take to us, but they were great and we really enjoyed it. "It was really nice to feel as if we were helping other people. We've learned lots and we all really feel more confident than we did at the start. Some of us continued to volunteer on a Wednesday afternoon through the summer even though our course had finished. We really enjoyed the final event at the Palace Theatre on 17 June 2011 where we performed in front of a large audience at the Provost's Concert." Bernadette McGuire, Director of Learning and Teaching, said: "The students have worked exceptionally hard throughout the last year and these two awards have really given them an extra confidence boost. "I am sure that this will inspire them to continue their volunteering work in the future, and provide encouragement to others."