A hearty pumpkin-spiced, autumnal hello to you from Team Oxford! We’re an energetic non-profit partnership that connects local employees with organisations in Oxford that depend on volunteers. 

Did you know that volunteering can help you live longer? It's true! A study in the USA published in 2011 showed that people who volunteered lived longer than non-volunteers when their motivations where altruistic or they expressed a desire for social connections. Even with factors like socioeconomic status, marital status, health being adjusted for, the effect was still significant. So there you go, the science says it, volunteering helps you live longer!

Very often the starting point for employees looking to volunteer is to complete our Team Oxford Skills Audit. Sometimes it can be tricky to know where to start when thinking about volunteering so we start by finding out what skills an employee has, so we can match them to volunteering opportunities. Exciting no?

Once a team of employees has completed their Skills Audit, we collate their information into a snazzy Team Oxford Skills Report containing a summary of the responses. This is a great way of learning more about your colleagues' skills and abilities and is a great tool for offering a voluntary organisation with a menu of potential help! 

If you'd like to hear more, do get in touch with Hannah Mackie, Team Oxford Project Coordinator via hello@team-oxford.co.uk  

 

Employees from Bouygues Energies & Services UK recently gave two days of their time to help local charity and Team Oxford partner Aspire Oxford. The volunteers worked hard to clean and decorate some new housing stock that is now housing people who have been homeless. This includes people who have been house temporarily in hotels during the pandemic lock-down.

Brookes University is starting their new academic year and refreshing their staff volunteering scheme to get out and into their community. They will be featuring our fantastic Skills Audit which will enable staff to have their skills and talents matched with voluntary groups and charities.

24-employees at Aspire Oxford have now completed our Skills Audit. We were delighted to see an amazing range of skills and expertise on offer, including: barber skills, phone and tablet repairs, woodworking, admin, IT skills, personal and career development, business development, accounting, website management, recruitment, interior design, and event management!

We’re working with several large brands and local employers who are keen to engage with Team Oxford. It’s too early to tell you the details but watch this space!

Do get in touch if your charity could benefit from some these! 

On 12th September Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust is hosting their online Healthfest! Much like most other events this year, this usually sunny day spent promoting keeping well, keeping active and tapping into nature with an array of stalls and activities has made the jump to online. Team Oxford is featuring with a short video all about the health benefits of volunteering!

Take a look from midday on September 12th at https://www.oxfordhealth.nhs.uk/healthfest/

OCVA is running volunteer coordinator network meetings for colleagues in the voluntary sector. What is a volunteer coordinator I hear you ask? Well these sessions are an opportunity for anyone who manages or works with volunteers. In the sessions, we look at topics of interest in depth and catch up with new developments. We look at ways to support each other through best practice and there's always an opportunity to share your news. These meetings are held on the second Thursday of every month via Zoom and you can sign up to take part here.

Farmability is an outdoor farm-based program for people with learning disabilities and autism in Wytham. They are looking for help with bookkeeping and finance - around half a day per week would be ideal. The most important thing they are looking for is accuracy and attention to detail. Full training will be given, and there is the opportunity to accommodate someone who might be studying for accounting qualifications and wishing to gain experience in other aspects of the accounting process.
 
Would you like to help? Get in touch with me for more details.