FUTURE ambassadors for the borough have been trained up to assist with the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic sailing events.

The final part of a two-day ‘Introduction to Event Stewarding’ took place at Weyline Lounge at Weymouth Football Club, Bob Lucas Stadium today.

Volunteer Centre Dorset, with the support of Southwest forum, is offering the free volunteer event stewards’ training in support of the Weymouth and Portland Ambassadors Programme to help the Games run smoothly.

Course content includes preparing for spectator events, controlling entry/exit and movement of people, monitoring spectators dealing with crowd problems, managing conflict, contributing to teamwork and dealing with emergencies.

Organiser Craig Womble said the course had been inspired by growing interest and the increasing number of events across the region leading up to 2012, particularly within the borough.

He said: “We’ve got around 20 people taking part in the course, which is the maximum capacity. We’ll be running a second course later this month.”

The next event stewards’ course will be held on June 16 and June 23 and includes refreshments plus free lunch.

The course is available to volunteers 16 or over and not in full-time education. Numbers are limited so a booking fee of £30 is being charged which is fully refundable on attendance.

Call Craig Womble or Shaun Hollywood at Volunteer Centre Dorset on 01305 269214, email info@volunteeringdorset.org.uk or visit www.volunteeringdorset.org.uk.