Microvolunteering is a form of community action whereby people can dedicate small chunks of their time in support of a larger project, enabling anyone to have an impact in an area they are passionate about, regardless of their jam-packed schedule.
Hatch and Microvolunteering
As a part of Hatch’s commitment towards prioritising people we are pleased to provide four volunteering days per year to our staff team. Justine, our Head of People, explains: “Volunteering enables us to connect to the wider community in which we operate and to support and develop the social sector and enterprise development ecosystems.
“Volunteering days are a great opportunity for our team members to share skills and experience with others and also present opportunities to develop new skills and experience. Regardless of the type of volunteering, we believe creating connections to other organisations in the sector is good for team members and good for Hatch.”
To mark International Microvolunteering Day today we want to shine a spotlight on some of the incredible initiatives the Hatch team have been getting involved in, ranging from baking to building and everything in between.
Naomi Nathan, Programme Manager
Baking and Mentoring
I volunteer as a mentor to a young person to help them navigate the first steps of their career and set goals for the future. We meet once a month for an hour online to talk through their challenges and identify opportunities they can take up. It’s been great getting to know her and developing my coaching and mentoring skills.
I also volunteer for a charity called The Cake Initiative, which provides celebration cakes to families under financial hardship. I’m a keen baker and I love being able to utilise those skills for good! It took me half a day to make a four-tiered chocolate cake and drop it off to the child celebrating their birthday.
Tom Humphrey, Digital Marketing Manager
Digital Consulting
I used my digital skills to help a local grassroots rewilding project to plant trees in my local area. I’ve helped the group to connect with local schools, and they’ve planted 30 trees so far – with a plan to start an even bigger campaign in June.
Denait Petros, Programme Coordinator
Community Events
I volunteered at a swap shop and repair event run by Walthamstow Council, led by MP Stella Creasy. At the swap shop, my role was to support by sorting through the donations and ensuring they were fit for use and then putting them into sections for when customers would come and look through the items.
At the repair event, my job was to host and welcome all customers who brought in items that needed repairing and then match them with a volunteer who would repair their items. Both events were great, seeing community support available and also the environmental aspect too in which residents are encouraged to seek second-hand items and repair items before buying new items. It was also great to meet some community members as I am not an active member in that community.
Find Volunteering Opportunities Near You
"I think it's very important for people to volunteer outside their workplace in order for them to get insight into other communities and other initiatives that take place outside work. Volunteering outside work allows you to stay active and productive but in a relaxed way that focuses on giving back and human interaction."
Bevis Man, Head of Communications
Communications Consulting
I do ad-hoc volunteering as an expert consultant around all things comms related with LinkUp London, a charity (and also Hatch graduate organisation) that matches small organisations with expertise and support. I do flash consultancy where I am posed a challenge or question from a London based organisation: ‘How do I get better SEO?’
‘How can I build my brand on social media?’ I have one hour on the evening of the meet to offer some solutions, actions and insights. It gives me a good chance to remind myself what I should be doing in my own day job, and a great way to learn about other organisations and charities too.
Emily Hill, PR & Communications Manager
Building and Youth Engagement
I volunteered on Let’s Build, a project from MATT+FIONA that saw children from local primary schools come together to design and build a temporary performance space at Brixton House theatre. MATT+FIONA is a social enterprise that asks young people how their built environment might be improved and empowers them to bring that vision to life.
I worked on the practical building side of the project as well as rehearsing and performing a dance production with the children to put the space that they had designed and built to its intended use. It was incredibly inspiring to see how engaged the children had been with the entire process, and the connection that they felt to the space after pouring so much work and creativity into the build.
Photo credits: Luke O'Donovan and French+Tye
It was great to use one of my volunteering days to get involved in such an amazing project; I have a lot of past experience in youth engagement and really appreciate that I have the opportunity through Hatch to continue pursuing this interest, despite it not being part of my day job.
Inspired to Give Microvolunteering a Go?
There are a whole host of benefits to microvolunteering: developing new and existing skills, building connections in your local community, and being part of a movement for positive change. If you’re a founder, microvolunteering can be a great way to build your network in a new sector, or find examples of best practice that you can apply to your own business. There are volunteer databases for most areas that help connect those looking to do good with causes that would benefit, or you can take a look through the examples listed above to find inspiration.
Volunteering with Hatch
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