05DEC International Volunteer’s Day
It’s International Volunteer’s Day and we are delighted to announce that we are introducing some new benefits to support volunteering with GroceryAid and the wider community.
From the 1st January 2020, we will be encouraging our team to volunteer as Welfare Assessors with GroceryAid, giving them the relevant paid leave to help some of the most vulnerable of our retail colleagues. In addition, all our team will be able to apply for a paid volunteer day each year to support causes close to their heart.
Tom volunteering for the Scouts in Iceland.
For Tom Hylands, volunteering is something that is a way of life. “There is barely an evening where I am not volunteering, whether with the Scouts, my local rugby club or delivering the Duke of Edinburgh Award.
“Personally, I volunteer because growing up these organisations gave me so much in terms of my own personal development and I was given so many opportunities that I would not otherwise have. This is my way of giving back and to be honest it is great fun! I get to climb mountains, visit different places around the world and most importantly work with incredible young people, giving them skills for life.”
The introduction of these benefits followed previous employee engagement, with the team suggesting that they wanted new ways to support local causes outside of the standard corporate donations.
“This is a big step forward for the business and it is great to see them moving forward in this area” Tom added, “For me it reduces the amount of leave I am having to take to support the Scouts and allows me to use that day for some ‘me time’ – which is something that can be hard to schedule when giving up so much time.”
The ability to support GroceryAid in a new way is also important for us as we look to build on being a ‘Gold Supporter’.
Justin Rigden, Group Operations Director, explained “GroceryAid is one of our corporate charities as it is important we support colleagues across our industry, whilst knowing that they are there to support our team whenever they need it.
“The Welfare Assessor volunteers are a vital part of the process for GroceryAid, ensuring that their beneficiaries are getting the right support. We wanted to offer our team the chance to support their wider colleagues, develop skills and get the reward of giving back – all without the worry of taking their own time off to fit it in.”
Tom concluded, “Volunteering is part of who I am, I would encourage everyone to try and find a cause that means something to them and to give as much time as they can to support it. Whether it is GroceryAid, a charity shop or a youth group – there are so many worthwhile charities that simply need time, which is why I think this is a big step forward.
If you want to find out more about welfare volunteering with GroceryAid, follow the link below.
https://www.groceryaid.org.uk/get-involved/volunteer-your-time-and-talents/help-our-welfare-work/