Senior Communications and Engagement Manager, Sara Price, shares with us her experience of volunteering for the charity Against Breast Cancer. Sara tells us how the impact of volunteering should not be underestimated...
Just over a year ago, I moved house to Radley, just south of Oxford, for a better working and living environment to support hybrid working. It was that house move, combined with reading in the staff newsletter about the volunteering opportunities provided by NHS SCW, that got me thinking. I wanted to give something back to support my new local community and share my skills to benefit others. But where? I wondered.
I did some research on local charities and community groups in my area and noticed that a local charity in Abingdon called Against Breast Cancer was looking for help with photography, which happens to be a hobby of mine. The charity’s cause also resonated with me as, like many others, I've had close family members affected by breast cancer and wanted to see if my skills could be used to make a difference.
I volunteered for one week, spread over the summer months. However, after I had an initial meeting with the charity and they got to understand my skills further, I was instead invited to do a 'deep dive' into how the charity engaged and communicated with volunteers and fundraisers.
They invited me to look at all aspects of their charity where they engaged or communicated with their stakeholders and ask any questions that I wanted. I was surprised at the immediate level of trust and insight they allowed me into their organisation but felt that I wanted to honour that with tangible things they could do to improve engagement.
I looked at how the charity engaged with those people taking part in their public fundraising events and how surveys could be used to understand more about what was working well and what could be improved. I shared advice on survey design and created their first feedback survey, in their new survey software, for use at Breast Walk Ever Oxfordshire which took place in September. They contacted me a couple of days after the event to say:
As planned, the survey you helped to create was sent out at 9.30 a.m. the following day. We're still getting responses but thought you might like to know the response rate is currently 30%. That's triple what we saw last time! Congratulations! - Rob Fleming, Head of Development
The event survey also gathered lots of great content and quotes which they now use on their website and social media to promote future events and further increase engagement.
The deep dive also included their social media sites with suggestions as to how they could increase the visibility of their posts, targeted links and messages. I did some research and let them know that they were entitled to CanvaPro licences for free as a voluntary organisation. As a small charity of less than 10 people, this meant everyone in the organisation could now have this software for free.
I reviewed the ‘Get Involved’ section on their website and advised it was refreshed based on the perspective of the volunteers and fundraisers, rather than what the organisation wanted from it.
I created a 'Volunteer - you make a difference' section where people could share their stories, just like this one, about what they did to support Against Breast Cancer. The blogs provide some real examples to read for those who want to get involved but are a little unsure as to where to start or what that would be like. It promotes volunteering from the voices of people who have actually done it, in their words – what they enjoyed, what worked well and things that helped.
Remember I mentioned photography? I got involved with a bit of that too, taking pictures of donations such as clothes and bras for sale online in their eBay shop. Changing a mannequin had me in giggles sometimes as I fought to put some of the tighter clothes on it!
The impact of volunteering should not be underestimated. As a small charity, sharing my engagement knowledge and expertise with Against Breast Cancer has had a huge impact. It has enabled them to drive forward lots of techniques and ideas over the coming months that we at NHS SCW use with customers on a day-to-day basis. In doing so, they will be able to reach more volunteers, fundraisers and supporters so that they can continue to raise awareness and funding for the charity.
And for me, it has really reaffirmed my expertise in stakeholder engagement and communications and that we can apply this knowledge in so many industries and types of organisation, not just in health. What a difference a few days can make.
- Read more about Life at NHS SCW
- Read about our colleague Kate Knight's experience of volunteering for the Samaritans
