Swindon businesses head out to give back to their community on the UK’s largest day of employee volunteering

Business across Swindon went out into their local communities to mark Give & Gain Day 2015, the UK’s largest celebration of employee volunteering, last Friday, May 15.

But new research published by the charity Business in the Community suggests firms are failing to let their staff know they can volunteer in work time.

According to the research, three quarters (76 percent) of workers in the UK either do not know (56 percent) or aren’t aware (20 percent) of their employer having a volunteering scheme.

The Ipsos MORI survey of 2,174 online adults aged 18+ in Great Britain assessed views on business behaviour. Among workers in the South West, it found only five percent reporting that they have used their employer’s volunteering scheme. A further seven percent are aware of their employer’s volunteering scheme, but their primary reason for not using it is a lack of time.

Give & Gain Day aims to addresses misconceptions around volunteering by engaging thousands of people on one day to take part. The initiative aims to raise awareness of the power and potential of employee volunteering and encourage and challenge many more businesses to invest time and in their communities.

In Swindon, staff from facilities management firm, Romec gave up their time to re-decorate Inner Flame’s training rooms. Inner Flame helps people aged 16-25 who are not in education or training to get back into work or education. The young people they deal with are often troubled or having a difficult time.

A team of ten volunteers from Romec, including carpenters, electricians and plasterers, helped renovate the rooms at Inner Flame where the young people do their training.

Also doing their bit on Give & Gain Day were employees from facilities management and construction services company, Carillion.

The team of volunteers visited Whitbourne House, a residential care home specialising in helping dementia sufferers, to help staff there tend to the overgrown gardens, getting them ready for a Summer Fete being held in June.

Stephen Howard, chief executive of Business in the Community, said: “Volunteering is a powerful tool which builds dialogue and relationship between groups of people and organisations who might otherwise not have the opportunity to engage in a community. It also offers genuine mutual benefit – the experience both builds skills and motivates employees, while helping to make a positive contribution that meets community needs.

“Give & Gain Day is all about celebrating what can be achieved in communities through the power of volunteers – and we commend the hundreds of business and individuals involved across Swindon.

“Yet our research suggests there is more to be done to embed volunteering as part of everyday business with three quarters of employees saying they do not know if volunteering in work time is available to them and just 6% taking the opportunity to volunteer if offered.

“We urge many more business to get involved in volunteering and ask those who are involved to use it as a springboard into deeper long term business engagement in their local area.”

David Wreathall of Inner Flame said: “We were absolutely delighted by the difference the Romec team made transforming our office environment. Our job is to inspire young people and this is much easier if our premises are bright and airy, as they are now. We were incredibly lucky to have such a skilled and dedicated team helping us out.”

For further information visit www.giveandgainday.org.uk