The Power of Volunteering

Irwin Mitchell employee helps Holbeck Together to secure £20,000 investment from Irwin Mitchell Charities Foundation.

When Victoria and her colleagues came along to volunteer at Holbeck Together’s lunch club they were so impressed with the support and activities that we provide within the community they wanted to help further.

Fast forward a few months and their employers, the law firm Irwin Mitchell invited colleagues to nominate charities close to their hearts to receive a grant from it’s charitable foundation.  

Having stayed in touch Victoria knew that our team would really benefit from continued investment to support our existing Volunteer Programme. Our current Volunteer Co-ordinator has been in post for over a year and has established an amazing cohort of volunteers who support the team in many ways – from meal deliveries to befriending and running activities.

Following her nomination, we were invited to apply for funding to secure another year of investment to enable the Volunteer Co-ordinator to continue her work.

We are delighted to announce that we have secured £20,000 investment from Irwin Mitchell Charitites Foundation.

Elissa Newman, Director of Holbeck Together highlighted: “This grant is testament to the power of building relationships between local communities and local businesses. From the seed of volunteering at one of our lunch clubs, the Irwin Mitchell staff have gone on to support us in making the case for additional funding to support our Volunteer programme. With this £20,000 investment from the Irwin Mitchell Charities Foundation we can recruit and train new volunteers to expand our services and support existing users and volunteers. 

Adrian Budgen, a partner and founding IMCF trustee at Irwin Mitchell, said: “It’s great to see that, after nearly 30 years, Irwin Mitchell colleagues continue to help the IMCF deliver vital support to the good causes which are close to their hearts and make a big difference in the communities in which we all live and work.

“The help these charities have given to many of our colleagues and to our communities really brings home how much these wonderful organisations do for all of us on a daily basis and how much harder life would be without their valuable work.

“Given the current cost-of-living crisis, these community grants have never been more important. We remain absolutely committed to playing our part in ensuring these charities receive the support and recognition they deserve.”

Irwin Mitchell is a leading law firm with a nationwide network of offices – including Leeds. They have a long-standing commitment to supporting local communities through fundraising, volunteering and providing pro-bono legal advice for those who cannot access justice.

They encourage their staff to maximise opportunities to use up to 14 hours of paid time (community allowance) to take part on skills-based volunteering aligned to their ‘Responsible Business Strategy.’

Photo of Irwin Mitchell Team.