Throughout the week we had 40 colleagues volunteer. Together they gave a total of 136 hours of their time to help at:

• Fareshare North East, Middlesbrough - sorting food for dispatch across the local area
• The Edible Forest Garden, Middlesbrough - working with Boro Doughnuts to prepare the garden for their celebration event
• Waverley Terrace allotments, Hartlepool - tidying the area by planting, mowing and weeding
• Christ The King Primary School, Stockton-on-Tees - maintaining the forest school, gardening, and adding wildlife houses
• Primrose Hill Community Centre, Stockton-on-Tees - interacting with residents and completing leaflet drops

Volunteering plays a significant role in our communities and support comes in all different shapes and sizes. It's a great way to gain new skills and improve your wellbeing.  

Sam White, senior project manager at Thirteen said, "I think it's a great opportunity to get some time with other colleagues in the business, show our appreciation to the communities in the areas we have properties and work, and it just gives us a chance to refresh your mental health."

"It lets you get away from the day job in some respects and do something different for the day." 

Emi Imai, director of Boro Doughnut CIC said, "Volunteering is really important to me, it's great to meet so many people and make connections with the community to make a positive difference. 

"It makes you feel good, it's good for your wellbeing and I recommend it."

We'd like to thank all our colleagues who took time out of their week to help make a positive impact on our local area. 

Get involved

We provide volunteering opportunities for our communities, colleagues, and local businesses all year round.

In the last financial year, we have had 448 volunteers take part in 61 opportunities. This has contributed more than £25,000 to Thirteen’s social value goal.

If you’d like to get involved, you can email us at community.resilience@thirteengroup.co.uk or check out our upcoming events here.