Community - Neighbourly

Helping to make a difference in Bristol, one volunteering day at a time

BID members take part in Volunteers Week to help local community initiatives

05/06/2024

BID Lead

Louisa Briggs

To celebrate Volunteers’ Week from 3-9 June and support local community initiatives, our Project Manager Louisa volunteered at Woodcroft Community Orchard facilitated through our partnership with Neighbourly.

In the run-up to Volunteers’ Week, we teamed up with Neighbourly to offer exclusive volunteering opportunities to our business community, allowing businesses to get involved with local good causes and make a positive impact in Bristol.

Based in Brislington, Woodcroft Community Orchard is a community-led and self-governed grassroots project established to benefit the local community and its wildlife. Their main focus is on biodiversity, food, and community, as they strive to engage as many people from the local area as possible.

Louisa volunteered alongside Chris from Vaarst to prepare the entrance area of the orchard for the installation of a future shelter. Louisa and Chris got to work clearing the area of debris, moving materials, and cutting back brambles, weeds, and vegetation. They levelled the area to create a flat terrain for the structure and helped to construct guttering for an existing greenhouse.

This volunteering session was part of an ongoing project at Woodcroft Community Orchard as they work to transform the space and create a permanent structure in the orchard. They aim to use this future space as a zone for shelter and storage, where visitors have a dedicated area to store and access tools, shelter from the elements, and host community workshops and events. You can be a part of the project by getting involved in their upcoming volunteering sessions.

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Louisa Briggs, Project Manager for Redcliffe & Temple BID, said:

“I had such a rewarding day volunteering at Woodcroft Community Orchard. I came away with a huge sense of accomplishment, a full body workout and just a few nettle stings! I encourage everyone to take a volunteering day. It’s so easy to get involved and so rewarding for both the community and your own mental wellbeing.”

Chris, Software Delivery Manager for Vaarst, said:

"I had a great time helping out at Woodcroft Community Orchard as part of Volunteers' Week! It can be quite challenging to find and access volunteering opportunities, so I was thrilled to find this through Redcliffe & Temple BID and sign up so easily. Partnerships like this will make it so much easier for others to get involved and utilise company-supported volunteering leave as part of their Corporate Social Responsibility activities.”

During Volunteers’ Week, our Events Project Manager Laura volunteered with Bristol Dementia Action Alliance (BDAA) to assist with their fun and lively Happy Days Memory Café. BDAA hosts monthly sessions on Friday afternoons across Westbury-on-Trym, Shirehampton, and Avonmouth, providing entertainment, refreshments, and encouraging conversation for people with dementia and their carers.

Laura volunteered alongside Teresa from NatWest to assist with the session, including welcoming visitors, making refreshments, and getting involved with the afternoon’s activities. The session provided a lively and sociable environment for attendees with entertainment including bingo and a group singalong.

BDAA strives to make Bristol a dementia-aware city by raising awareness, encouraging positive attitudes, and broadening public understanding of dementia. You can get involved by volunteering at an upcoming session.

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Laura Knight, Events Project Manager for Redcliffe & Temple BID, said:

“I thoroughly enjoyed my time volunteering at Happy Days Memory Café. The work the BDAA does is wonderful and provides a valuable respite for both clients and their carers. The Memory Café offers support for those affected by dementia, an illness which I have witnessed first-hand take away people I love. It was a truly moving experience and one I would recommend to anyone”.

With over 8,000 local good causes available on the Neighbourly network, Redcliffe & Temple BID businesses can get involved with opportunities all over Bristol. Simply browse the available opportunities and get in touch with the provider to arrange a volunteering session to suit you and your team.

For those who prefer to work remotely, Neighbourly has recently teamed up with Microsoft to launch their DigitalBridge campaign. Volunteers can offer their digital expertise with help relating to administrative, strategic, and creative tasks. Learn more about DigitalBridge and view the digital opportunities that you can get involved with.

Whether you’re looking to help make a difference in Bristol, take part in an away day with your team, or get stuck into something different, Redcliffe & Temple BID businesses can get started on a volunteering journey today by signing up.

Learn more about neighbourly

Our Sustainability Commitment

We identified six SDGs which we will focus on during this BID term.
This project primarily supports SDG3 – Good Health and Wellbeing

Community - Neighbourly

Helping to make a difference in Bristol, one volunteering day at a time

BID Lead

Louisa Briggs, Project Manager for Redcliffe & Temple BID, said:

Chris, Software Delivery Manager for Vaarst, said:

Laura Knight, Events Project Manager for Redcliffe & Temple BID, said:

Our Sustainability Commitment

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