Project Trust was founded in 1967 as an educational charity on the Hebridean Isle of Coll in North West Scotland. Since then we have sent over 5,500 volunteers overseas. Project Trust sends about two hundred volunteers to twenty-five countries annually and is widely respected as one of the most experienced and professional gap year organisations in Britain.

Our main philosophy is to provide young people with an opportunity to understand a community overseas by immersing themselves in it; living and working there for a year. All our projects are vetted for their suitability for volunteers, and none deprive local people of work. We have the expertise and the infrastructure to ensure all volunteers are given a challenging and exciting opportunity to develop themselves, and all the support available to them when they need it.

All of our staff are based on Coll, in a well-equipped modern office, and this is where all of our administration takes place. Most of the staff are Project Trust Returned Volunteers, and are desk officers, i.e. responsible for the volunteers in one or more countries in our programme. As a volunteer, you will remain in close contact with your desk officer throughout your year. In addition, we have an extensive network of overseas contacts, all working together to give unrivalled support to our volunteers.

Over five thousand volunteers have spent time abroad with Project, every one of them returning with unique and valuable experiences.