Case Studies of Volunteers

Recent Successes for Our Volunteers

Finance skills

Mrs Abimbola Lawal has a background in accounting. Reach found her an ideal voluntary placement with the Aberdeen & District Disabled Multisports Coaching Group where she helps to maintain their financial accounts. The charity was set up to give young people with disabilities the opportunity to take part and compete in friendship games with other young people with disabilities from countries abroad. Mrs Lawal said “ I am delighted that Reach was able to find me this voluntary opportunity in such a wonderfful organisation where I can use my finance skills".

Website management

Volunteer Paul Webster, with an extensive background in IT, has taken on a number of voluntary projects, including the Dystonia Society, which promotes the welfare of people who are affected by this neurological movement disorder. Paul manages the Society's current website and is helping the group move to a new system. "I am delighted that I have been able to make a useful contribution and give something back to the charity".

Governance and fundraising

Bristol Refugee Rights provides a place of welcome where asylum seekers and refugees can be helped to play a full part in the life of the wider community. The charity offers British culture and language classes, advice and advocacy, social activities and provides links to other organisations that work with new arrivals and new refugees. 

Dr. Jitendra Shah, Reach volunteer and trustee, worked on governance issues for the group which recently gained charitable status. His legal experience and his extensive career in management sciences has enabled him to help with fundraising for both its practical and campaigning work.

Governance expertise

The Woman's Trust, which provides counselling and support to women who are affected by domestic violence, asked for a trustee with governance expertise.

Reach found the perfect volunteer.  Lesley Duff worked for ten years with the Charity Commission and when deciding to volunteer mentioned she was particularly interested in mental health and women’s issues "so Woman’s Trust ticked both boxes," she said.

Website design

Barnet Refugee Service works to improve the quality of life for refugees and asylum seekers in the Borough of Barnet and surrounding areas. To publicise the charity BRS needed a fresh and professional website. Reach found them Vi Bang, a freelance web designer, who created a new website and trained another volunteer to maintain the site. Says Nazee Akbari, BRS Director, “Vi created a fantastic website and was a fantastic person to work with.  I have received such positive feedback.” 

Administration and training

Having come to this country from Ghana, Yvonne Akoto asked Reach to find her a volunteering opportunity that would help add UK experience to her extensive C.V. She is now working with Action for Refugees in Lewisham helping with the administration and training as an adviser to support refugees with welfare, employment, housing and educational issues. "I am grateful for the service I got from Reach," said Yvonne. "The volunteering opportunity they provided really gave me an in-depth understanding of the work I want to do."

Trusteeship

Helen Delnevo has extensive management experience having worked for GlaxoSmithKline. In addition to other voluntary work with the Prince's Trust and a local hospital she became a trustee of the Careers Development Group, a charity providing training services for disadvantaged people. " My tip to other volunteers is to make sure that whatever cause you volunteer with fulfils something in you, and is something you are really interested in. I have certainly broadened my volunteering experience through Reach".

IT support

For more than 20 years Terry Fitch has worked in or around I.T. He has implemented several I.T. projects and gained extensive practical experience in manufacturing. 

More recently though life became a lot more difficult for him. In the space of four years he suffered the loss of his father and his 21-year old son, was made redundant and endured a difficult divorce.

Terry found two roles through Reach, which seemed tailor-made for him. One was with the Disability Information Bureau in Macclesfield where he ran computer related training courses for groups of disabled people. The other was with IT Can Help, where he joined a network of support volunteers who go to the houses of registered disabled individuals to help out with IT problems. Said Terry, "I found the process of volunteering very worth while, it enabled me to get back into the work environment, giving me back my confidence that I could still do it!"