Volunteer Thank You Event

Each year hundreds of fantastic volunteers freely give their time to support ReachOut and the young people we work with. Last Thursday 19^th March we celebrated our volunteers’ achievements, commitment and general all-round brilliance at our Volunteer Thank You Event. The event was hosted by our long-term supporter, the Macquarie Group Foundation, who provided a space in their building with stunning panoramic views across central London.

After a drinks and nibbles reception, Rachel Engel, Chair of the Macquarie Group Foundation opened the event by highlighting how important ReachOut’s volunteers are to the organisation and the young people. She also described how the partnership between ReachOut and Macquarie was initiated a number of years ago by Richard King, a Macquarie employee and ReachOut volunteer.

Georgie Whiteley, ReachOut’s fundraiser, was the second speaker of the evening. Georgie outlined how vital our volunteers’ fundraising efforts are to ReachOut. In particular, she highlighted how a group of our volunteer mentors who work in the Civil Service have brilliantly raised over £3000 for ReachOut by taking part in sponsored runs, organising fundraising events around their office and running a charity Karaoke night.

The Thank You Event gives us the opportunity to thank all of our volunteers for the time, effort and commitment that they put into mentoring, the fantastic energy which they bring to each mentoring session and the determination and patience which they show when working with the young people.

Have a look at our 2014/15 Impact Report to see the effect our volunteers have on the young people they work with

After the speeches we awarded certificates to mentors who had completed 30, 60 and 100hrs of volunteering with us.

Awards and prizes were given to volunteers who went above and beyond what ReachOut expects from them as mentors, fundraisers or exceptional leaders. The award categories, nominees and winners are listed below.

In particular we created a new award this year in memory of a volunteer mentor who sadly passed away in October last year, the Kieran Dhaliwal Inspirational Student Award. Kieran was a committed volunteer and outstanding mentor on the ReachOut Club and we wanted to make sure that he is remembered as the inspirational student he was. His brother Arun joined us to present the award.

The evening was a wonderful recognition of the hard-work, commitment and enthusiasm which all our volunteers have shown on the mentoring projects. Without the dedication of our volunteers 2014-15 would not have been such a wonderful year!

Congratulations to all the winners and thank you to all of the wonderful people who have mentored with us in 2014-15!

Keep up the good work so we can make sure we have another amazing year in 2015-16!

ROC Volunteer of the Year - David Zhao

ROC Volunteer of the Year 2015

Nominees:

Jason Smith

Orla Merrick

Tomi Ashaye

Louise Nicholls

Eva Herle Schaffer

Harvey Ellerby

Harriet Bradshaw-Smith

Megan Stone

David Zhao

Anu Gulati

Krysta Yan

Toby Sansom

ROJM Volunteer of the Year - Helen Hunter

Winner:

David Zhao

ROA Volunteer of the Year 2015

Nominees

Tim Birtwistle

Ben Weidmann

Alexander Millwood

Matteo Lagonegro

Winner:

Alexander Millwood

ROJM Volunteer of the Year 2015

Nominees:

Mowlni Uthayakumaran

ReachOut Project of the Year Mentors

Liam Calderbank

Helen Hunter

Winner:

Helen Hunter

ReachOut Project of the Year 2105

Nominees:

Redlands Primary School ReachOut Club for Boys

The Petchey Academy Year 8 Boys

Winner:

The Petchey Academy Year 8 Boys

ReachOut Project Leader of the Year 2015

Nominees:

ReachOut Project Leader of the Year - Alex Pitchford

Katy Belben

Tom Reid

Jessica Millner

Alex Pitchford

Charlie Tebutt

Chloe Holness

Justin Pickett

Alice Beck

Renuka Rawlins

Winner:

Alex Pitchford

Kieran Dhaliwal Inspirational Student Award 2015

Winner:

Melissa Emmett

Melissa Emmett presented the Kieran Dhaliwal
Inspirational Student Award by Fran Ellis and Arun Dhaliwal

Outstanding Contribution Award 2015

Winners:

Jo Deagle

Will Rhodes

Sohko Fujimoto

Jamie Broom

Nick Whitbread

Steve Maplesden

Michal Kreft

Sabrina Lee

Zoe Reeve

Outstanding Contribution Award Winner
- Zoe Reeve

Outstanding Contribution Award Winner 
- Jo Deagle

Outstanding Contribution Award Winner 

- Steve Maplesden

Outstanding Contribution Award Winner 

- Jamie Broom

Outstanding Contribution Award Winner 
- Sabrina Lee

Outstanding Contribution Award Winner 
- Michal Kreft

Bronze - 30hrs volunteering - certificate recipients

Silver - 60hrs volunteering - certificate recipients

Gold - 100hrs volunteering - certificate recipients

Volunteer Spotlight: Megan Domas

My name is Megan Domas and I am a first year law student at Queen Mary University of London. I am originally from Germany but I have always wanted to study in London because of how exciting and dynamic the city is. There is always something new to discover and enjoy; something which is reflective of my own spontaneous nature.

I first learned about ReachOut at the QMUL Welcome Fair at the beginning of my first year. Like many freshers, however, I was soon overwhelmed with all the new clubs and offers and I only followed-up on the mentoring scheme when I heard that there were still spaces available at St.Peter’s Primary School. I knew I wanted to get involved because I love working with children and I wanted to have a positive impact on a young person and consequently, on the local community as a whole. At high school, I had done something similar. I was a mentor to a younger student for nearly three years. To this day we are still good friends and we remain in touch despite being at other ends of the world. While I did not expect the same thing at ReachOut due to the scheme’s more professional nature, I was pleased to find out that I was to be assigned to a single individual whom I could focus my full attention on.

My mentee is a lively young boy, who unlike most of the other mentees, is far from shy or quiet. His boisterous nature was difficult to work with at the start - not in the sense that it was unwelcome but more because it was difficult to transfer his positive energy and spirit into his classwork without dampening it. I could always sense that he loved socializing and it was difficult being firm and insisting that he sit long enough to finish his exercises. However, from week to week I was extremely glad to see improvement in his behaviour. I started off slow by making us do short exercises and then taking a break to play a game or talk for a few minutes before resuming. Soon, I was able to see him focus more on his schoolwork as well as having more staying power in general. This was what made me enjoy mentoring the most - seeing the fact that my mentee took in the advice I gave him and to see, at the same time, our bond getting stronger. It is for these same exact reasons I would highly recommend ReachOut to anyone who wants to make a positive difference.


It is also a great opportunity, outside of just adding it to one’s CV, to hone skills very much needed in any practical aspect: responsibility, patience, empathy and leadership. It is a maturing role that increases one’s capacity to be a positive role-model in the public as a whole.

London Junior Mentors Outward Bound Adventure 2015

The London ReachOut Junior Mentors Project traveled to the Lake District for our annual outward bound adventure this year. Over the weekend of 13^th – 15^th February, we attended the Ullswater Centre in Penrith, Cumbria. We took 12 of our brightest young people from Bishop Challoner school  to pit their wits against new challenges and a new terrain.

Having barely put our bags down, the young people faced possibly the hardest challenge of the whole weekend: A DIP IN THE LAKE!!! Now unlike last year , where there was much fuss about hair and mobile phones getting wet, this year’s cohort where straight in the water as a team (see below - as they enter the water with arms linked). You’ve gotta respect that!!

Saturday morning saw the young people a bit sickly and delicate (it was very cold in the lake).

Despite their ailments, though, the Junior Mentors hit the water running (or rather floating) as canoeing challenges commenced:

Having made it safely to shore, we then negotiated a couple of maps and a mountain (literally) to make it to our log cabin. Some of the young people (very bravely) risked a midnight walk to the top of the mountain in what can only be described as very difficult conditions. Those who made it to the pinnacle, though, described the experience as ‘spiritually enlightening’ and ‘a life changing experience!’

We awoke very early Sunday morning for return hike back through mountainous terrain. Though pretty exhausted by now, we had to dig deep into our energy reserves for our final challenge: The team row back across the lake.

Much like last year, the London Junior Mentors acquitted themselves with distinction. They were attentive and supportive of each other and displayed courage and leadership in equal measure. An indication of their success this year could be found in the fact that two of our young people have been invited back by the Outward Bound Trust to participate in a week long outstanding leadership course during the summer. We are very proud. Many thanks to Bishop Challoner School for their support and to the team at Outward Bound Centre in Ullswater.

Politicians, teachers and mentors celebrate ReachOut's Impact

Last night we threw a fantastic event to launch our 2013-14 Impact Report. Over 80 of our supporters joined us to hear some fascinating speeches and meet others involved in character education, against a panoramic backdrop of London on the 11th floor of Macquarie Group’s offices.

Our CEO, Xavier, kicked off the event by explaining ReachOut’s mission.

‘ReachOut was set up to teach both character and competence to children and young people living in disadvantage. The important word here is “both”, because both ingredients are necessary if we really want to help young people grow to become publicly spirited individuals, with high aspirations, able to make a positive contribution in society, able to lead flourishing lives and able help others to do likewise.’ This idea was explored and emphasised in the rest of the evening's speeches. In addition, Xavier took the opportunity to thank all ReachOut’s mentors who help us work towards this goal.

Baroness Clair Tyler, co-chair of the APPG for Social Mobility gave our keynote speech outlining why character education plays such an important role in improving young people’s life chances. She started by pointing out how depressing it is that ‘in the UK, your circumstances still determine your chances’. Noting that social mobility has flat lined since the 1970s, she described character education as the missing link in changing this trend. ‘Character and resilience are not just instrumental tools, they are closely linked to emotional health and wellbeing…That is why organisations like ReachOut are so precious.’

Nick Soar, Headmaster of Bishop Challoner Girls’ School, spoke about the impact of character education on his students. Character is taught in all areas of school life at Bishop Challoner, including at our ReachOut Junior Mentors project. Bishop Challoner is in one of the most deprived boroughs in London and Nick Soar noted that this affects all the pupils in his school in some way, leading to low levels of aspiration, low expectations, poor literacy and numeracy levels and lack of cultural enrichment. Nick emphasised that character focused education can help young people overcome these obstacles to social mobility.

‘We can teach character and to do that we need outstanding organisations like ReachOut. One of the great things I’ve seen, is that the first cohort of girls who got involved in ReachOut, who fought and truanted, came back to volunteer on our Summer Project and role modelled good behaviour to other pupils.’

Finally, we heard from some of the boys and girls involved in our Junior Mentors programme at Bishop Challoner. They outlined some of the fantastic things they've done over the last few years including volunteering packing bags and running bake sales, planning events like a quiz night and silver service dinner and going on an outward bound trip. In addition, they have been fundraising for Meningitis Now this year as part of their project. They will also be volunteering on the ReachOut Summer Project at their school this year. Several of the young people pointed out how much they had gained from the project.

‘Mentors help us improve as people and learn leadership skills. They help us become mentors in the future.’

‘I’m more assertive and confident and I can work in a team.’

‘ReachOut gave us the opportunity to do something called an outward bound trip. It made me more confident and open minded. I wouldn't have done it before. In fact, they offered me a scholarship to come back to the outward bound trip next year!’.

There is no better evidence for the impact of our character education programmes, than 10 of our young people putting in the time and effort to do so much great work and even volunteer for ReachOut. On top of this, they have the confidence to stand up in front of over 80 people and speak about their achievements and goals. As Xavier said at the start of the evening, ‘The greatest testimony to our work is the desire of former participants to give back through volunteering, bringing the process full circle.’ We’d like to thank the Junior Mentors and everyone else who came along to make the event such a success and we’d also like to thank Macquarie Group, for kindly hosting the event for us.

Please read more about our impact by downloading the report here.

Case Study of a Corporate Partner

The Macquarie Group Foundation is the philanthropic arm of Macquarie Group, an Australian investment bank with offices based in London.

In 2009, an employee from Macquarie Group began mentoring at the ReachOut Academy. He encouraged his colleagues to volunteer as well which kick-started an exciting partnership between our organisations.

In 2012 the Macquarie Group Foundation began funding the ReachOut Junior Mentors project. The benefits over the past 5 years have gone far beyond the financial support and in 2014 we were shortlisted for a Charity Times Award in recognition of the fruitful ReachOut-Macquarie partnership.

ReachOut young people at a recent workshop to Macquarie.

Funding - The Foundation has donated £105,000 since 2012 towards the ReachOut Junior Mentors programme, enabling us to expand our delivery from Manchester to London.

Staff fundraising events - Macquarie Group staff raised an additional £6910 through running in the London Marathon and Hackney Half Marathon, and organising “Keepy Uppy” and “Rowathon” events during Foundation Week.

Pro-bono support - The IT team volunteered over 100 hours developing our office IT infrastructure, providing additional hardware, improving our website and offering on-going IT support, saving ReachOut £12,000 this year. In addition the Corporate Communications Executive provides ad-hoc advice and support in PR.

Volunteering with young people - Every Wednesday evening the Foundation organises taxis to Hackney to enable employees to volunteer weekly as mentors to our young people.

Staff also give up time during their day to run workshops at their offices where young people learn about the organisation and gain new skills, such as coding and presenting, through fun and engaging activities.

Event, Training and Meeting Room Space -Macquarie Group has hosted our Impact Report Launch for the past two years and provides space where we can hold inter-office meetings and training sessions for ReachOut staff and volunteers.

The on-going support that we receive is invaluable, but it’s good to know the benefits of the partnership are not just one-way:

“ReachOut’s programme gives our staff the chance to contribute to the local community teaching academic skills and character to young people. In addition, teaching character has a knock on effect on the mentors who develop communication skills and staying power through volunteering on the project.” Rachel Engel, Vice President, Macquarie Group Foundation

“I have learnt to connect with a greater range of people which has helped me when dealing with different personalities at work. ReachOut has also taught me ways to motivate individuals and to communicate effectively with them. At first, there were occasions where I felt out of my comfort zone but these turned out to be times where I was gaining new life experiences.” Jamie Broom, Client Onboarding Senior Manager at Macquarie Group and volunteer mentor at the ReachOut Academy

Jamie Broom volunteering at a ReachOut workshop at the Macquarie Group office.

Thank you to everyone at Macquarie Group for their on-going support.

This case study featured in our recently released Impact Report for 2013/14. Click here to read the report or to hear what our inspirational speakers had to say about ReachOut at the Launch event click here.