It's All About People - 29th May 2025

READ TIME - 3 minute read

Outside of Gateway HR, I volunteer as a Trustee for two organisations: a Multi Academy Trust and Citizens Advice. It’s something I take real pride in – giving back to the community, using my experience in a way that helps others, and learning a huge amount from the people I meet and work with in these roles.

Volunteering is often seen as something ‘nice’ to do. But in reality? It’s so much more than that – for individuals and for businesses.

Let’s talk about the business benefits.

Encouraging and enabling your team to volunteer – whether as Trustees, mentors, charity helpers or reading with pupils in school – isn’t just altruism. It’s smart strategy.

✅ Upskilling: Volunteering helps people build leadership, problem-solving, communication and project management skills they might not easily develop in their day job.
✅ Engagement & retention: According to Deloitte, 89% of employees who volunteer through work say it boosts their job satisfaction.
✅ Stronger brand reputation: Companies seen to support community causes are more trusted – by customers and candidates alike.
✅ Wider networks: Volunteering opens doors. I’ve met people from different sectors and backgrounds who’ve broadened my thinking and even led to new opportunities for Gateway.

And let’s not forget – 76% of people aged 18–34 say they’d prefer to work for a company that supports social causes (source: Forbes). Offering paid volunteering time or structured CSR initiatives isn’t a ‘nice to have’ anymore – it’s something employees are actively looking for.

If you’re already encouraging your team to volunteer – brilliant. If not, National Volunteers’ Week is the perfect time to start the conversation.

And if you’re wondering where to begin – I’m happy to share how we do it at Gateway. Each team member gets a day per quarter to volunteer.

Until next week…

Best wishes,
Emma

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