Unlock Meaningful Impact: Empower Your Employees and Strengthen Your Community Through Volunteering
In today’s fast-paced world, volunteering offers a rare opportunity to slow down, connect with others, and make a lasting difference. Megan’s experience with our Reading Partner’s Programme is a powerful example of how businesses can create positive change while enriching their employees’ personal growth.
“Being a Reading Partner has helped me develop patience.” Says Megan, an Ablaze volunteer and employee at Mott MacDonald. Her time as a reading partner has not only been personally fulfilling but has also sharpened her professional skills like listening, patience, and support. Megan recalls how, at first, her instinct was to “jump in and correct my partners’ mistakes.” But through training and experience.
I have learned to slow down and appreciate the learning process, allowing them to work through the book at their own pace.
Megan who recently moved to Bristol started volunteering as a Reading Partner in September 2024. A passionate advocate in the importance of reading for young people, she had volunteered in primary schools before and was eager to continue. Through her employer, Mott MacDonald, and their partnership with Ablaze, she found a simple and accessible way to continue her volunteering during her working week and make a meaningful impact. The weekly face-to-face reading sessions are incredibly rewarding.
Reading is massively important for young people. It builds confidence, boosts learning, and can bring real joy. This programme gives children an opportunity to improve and gain confidence, especially those who might not have the chance elsewhere.
Ablaze matched Megan and her colleagues with a local primary school in Easton, Bristol, a culturally diverse, low-income area where many families face barriers to education and opportunities for upward social mobility. Witnessing the children’s excitement and growth every week has been one of the most fulfilling aspects of Megan’s volunteering “It’s incredibly fulfilling to witness this progress, and it’s lovely to have someone who is always happy to see you.”
While the experience has been overwhelmingly positive, Megan shares that there were occasional challenges, such as when children were disengaged with reading. However, she quickly adapted by taking short breaks to play educational games or simply have a chat, which often helped re-engage the children. This flexibility and creativity are qualities that have enhanced her professional and personal growth.
For Megan, the volunteering session is a lovely way to start her working week, and she always looks forward to it.
It has given me a greater appreciation for the hard work schools do and the importance of charities like Ablaze who give such incredible opportunities and also help to support the school in providing these additional reading opportunities for the children
The school is very appreciative for the volunteers “Our pupils benefit both socially and academically from the programme and they would not have been able to make such progress without it. The volunteers are positive, friendly, flexible and used their initiative to make the sessions fun and engaging and we are so grateful for this.”
Megan encourages other businesses to get involved with Ablaze: Employees grow personally and professionally, and businesses can make a tangible, lasting impact in local communities.
By helping children build confidence and develop essential skills, your business will not only contribute to the future of the children but will also improve employee engagement and morale.
Get involved today and be a part of something that’s bigger than just business! Help your employees grow while making a real difference in the lives of children who need it most.