It's estimated that there are over 3,000 voluntary sector groups in the borough of Southwark alone. All of these organisations provide vital resources, networks and support for their local communities and the scope for businesses to contribute to these programmes is huge.

 

Whilst London Bridge is a truly advanced business environment for corporate responsibility and volunteering, there is always more that can be done. TLB are committed to supporting cross-sector capacity building between our members and the wider community via new and innovative partnerships.

Why volunteer?

There are so many ways businesses can work with local organisations and volunteering is a fantastic first step! Volunteering is a great way to drive staff engagement and team building as well as support development of new skills. It's also an excellent way to build partnerships with local organisations and support causes that are meaningful to your team. Many local businesses are well aware of these benefits and allocate a set number of annual volunteer days for staff. If you are thinking about implementing something similar but are interested in getting some guidance, please email sofia@teamlondonbridge.co.uk.

We can also recommend a host of interesting and worthy local groups who would enthusiastically welcome input from our business community. Click here for a directory of local voluntary sector groups who we work with in the area.

 

 

Helping with large improvement projects like gardening and maintenance can often be useful for helping local groups prepare for a busy season or new wave of service users. However, what local community groups tell us they most need from businesses is advice and support. This doesn't have to be a big commitment (often just a one-off afternoon works!) and can be essential to the sustainability of a local group. It's also not limited to a specific experience or expertise level and can include marketing/social media training, financing or legal advice, strategic planning or anything else an organisation needs to stay robust.

 

Becoming a trustee is an excellent way to support a local organisation's sustainability and have a real say in the direction it goes. It's also a really great way to develop new skills, develop networks and drive meaningful changes in the local community.

A little goes a long way - funding small projects
You may also want to consider supporting a local group through funding.  We have a selection of projects that are ready to go. With just £2,000 these groups can make a little bit of money go a very long way as well as making an enormous difference to a number of local people.