Who said community spirit was dead! On Friday 18th March a number of different businesses spent the morning at Shepherds Down School in Compton, Winchester, to prepare a woodland walk for children to enjoy in the summer term. The event was organised by Community First as part of their Employee Volunteering Scheme. Janet Duggan, from Community First says “The 3rd Friday Community Day came about after attending the 1 around Winchester didn’t have the same opportunity to volunteer as a group, unlike larger corporations. By bringing together a range of businesses they got to make a difference to the community whilst having an opportunity to network. Shepherds Down School has a core purpose of meeting the needs of primary aged pupils who have a wide range of complex learning needs. We hope that the businesses have made some small contribution to the fantastic work the school is doing and will enable the children to have full access to their woodland path”.
Corporate volunteering has been around for a few years and is a great way of bridging charities, schools and other community groups with the business sector. In times of constant cuts of funding and grants it is more important than ever that companies support their local community. Linda Stiles, Commercial Manager from HB Technology says “I decided to volunteer my time to make a difference as part of a team to the local community. We spent the morning cutting back unruly brambles on the woodland walk to be accessible and enjoyed by all the wonderful children at Shepherds Down School. I have thoroughly enjoyed today and I strongly encourage any small business to get involved in volunteering”.
Jane Sansome, Head teacher of Shepherds Down School says “we would like to wholeheartedly thank all the businesses that attended the 3rd Friday Community Day. Taking time off from work to volunteer at our school has helped us to keep our woodland walk accessible for all of our children to enjoy”.
The businesses that took part in the event were: Abbotstone Financial Solutions, Denplan, Greenhouse Graphics and HB Technology. If your business would like to get involved with the Employee Volunteering Scheme contact Janet Duggan the Business & Community Project Lead at Community First: janet.duggan@cfheh.org.uk or telephone 0300 500 8085 ext 9722.