After a successful year-long pilot project, Veterans in Volunteering, we are launching more ways you can get involved as a volunteer at Step Together across our different programmes.
Volunteers' Week is a UK-wide campaign to recognise and celebrate the fantastic contribution volunteers make in our society. The theme this year was 'Volunteering For All', highlighting the diverse range of people that give their time in so many different ways.
Lucinda manages our young people programme in Bristol, which is celebrating its first anniversary this month. She chatted to us about her role at Step Together and reflects on her proudest and most memorable moments of the past year.
Ahead of International Women’s Day tomorrow, we are excited to announce that our programme is expanding to support more young women, aged 16-25, to engage in volunteering and social action opportunities in Greater Manchester.
Every year, Step Together helps over 300 wounded, injured and sick Service Personnel and Veterans across the UK rebuild their lives, through one-to-one support and active engagement in the local community. In partnership with the Ministry of Defence and Help for Heroes, Step Together provides volunteering support to all Personnel Recovery Centres.
While I was handling criminal cases as a barrister, judge and in the Court of Appeal, I was aware that the critical time for offenders is the period straight after they leave the system. People with a history of convictions must find an ‘anchor’ to make that change to a life without crime. And the longer it takes them to find this anchor or purpose, the more likely it is they will return to prison.
This week is #iwillWeek and we are celebrating our support for the #iwill campaign. We are sharing our pledge and highlighting the impact of our programme supporting disadvantaged young people to change their lives through volunteering.
This week we are participating in the #SpiritofMcrStory week, a week of inspiring stories from the voluntary sector in Manchester. As part of this, our client Tom has shared his story.
Lorna is based in Tedworth House and works on our programme supporting wounded, injured and sick (WIS) service personnel and veterans. She talks to us about her role at Step Together, as well as sharing a few interesting facts about herself!
Every month an estimated 14.2 million people in the UK formally volunteer, improving our communities, supporting others, and together making a phenomenal contribution to the country’s economy. Volunteer’s Week is a national annual campaign to celebrate the difference volunteers make and thank them for their contributions.
Congratulations to Elaine, our Volunteering Project Manager and a previous client, who has received a Community Safety Award from Dorset & Wiltshire Fire and Rescue for her valuable voluntary work on their Safe Drive Stay Alive roadshow, which she has been a part of for the last 4 years.
Step Together was created in 1994. We chatted to our founder and trustee, Roger Potter, who tells us his inspiration behind setting up the organisation and how volunteering, as a catalyst for change in people’s lives, has always been at the centre of everything we do.
Step Together is pleased to announce our participation in Oodles Charity Credits. Oodles is a micro donation platform that rewards donors for helping charities and showing their support on social media.
This week we are launching our new project helping highly disadvantaged young people in Bristol to take positive action to change their lives through volunteering in their community.
We are proud to be supporting women to take action and make positive changes in their lives and the lives of others in their communities. On International Women's Day, we are celebrating women's journeys, the challenges overcome and applauding their achievements.
Sue has managed our work in schools and with disengaged young people in Dumfries and Galloway since 2010. She talks to us about her role as Volunteer Project Manager, including memorable moments and achievements. We also asked her about her New Years reolutions!
1. More than 650 vulnerable people received intensive 1:1 support. Step Together clients are those at the margins of our communities. Isolated and disengaged from society, your support has meant we have been there to help them build a more positive future.
Jill has been working for Step Together since February 2015. Alongside her day job, Jill also volunteers at a homeless night shelter. Jill will be trekking the Great Wall of China next week to raise money for Step Together and the Greater Manchester Homeless Night Shelters.
Earlier this year, Jim was nominated to be the recipient of the funds raised by the BBC programme, Street Auction, sending him and his family on a dream holiday to Canada in recognition that despite significant challenges, Jim has turned his life around and helped his local community through hours of volunteering. Totally unaware that he would be the beneficiary of the money raised, Jim immediately offered to help on the day and was running the cake stall with his family when it was announced during filming.
Over the next couple of months our Volunteer Project Manager, Jill, will be completing her final preparations and training for the ‘Charity Challenge’ trek, before flying to Beijing on the 22nd October. She will be climbing over 10,000 steps and covering a distance of over 100km of the Great Wall of China to raise money for Step Together and the Greater Manchester Homeless Night Shelters, where she volunteers during the winter months.
Last week we held a very successful staff conference at our head office in Bristol. Our outreach team travelled from all over the UK to attend the two-day event, which provided a brilliant opportunity for the whole team to share knowledge and experiences and discuss the future direction of Step Together.
WWV has relocated our central office to central Bristol. This is an big change for us, as alongside significant cost savings we will be more accessible to staff and visitors and better connected with other voluntary, community and social enterprise organisations.
