SHS Group ‘Give and Gain’ Through Volunteering Challenges

‘Give and Gain’ is a celebration of the incredible power of employee volunteering. For one day, every year, thousands of people around the world give up their day jobs and roll up their sleeves to support a local community organisation or charity.

There is strong evidence that volunteering brings benefits to both the person volunteering and to the people and organisations that they support. It’s very much a mutually beneficial exchange, helping volunteers to build their skills and confidence, whilst making a positive contribution to local community groups and charities. Group HR Director, Chris Lillie from the SHS Group, said:

“We want to make a real difference in our local communities.  In our business, we recognise that our people are stronger when they work together and the same principle applies in our community.  When we come together and work with a shared purpose we can truly make a difference.  We rely on our local communities and it’s really important that we do our part and support them where we can.”

A team of ten volunteers from SHS Group spent some time at Leadhill Primary School in Belfast working in the gardens and around the grounds. Anne Millis, Principal of Leadhill Primary School, thanked the team saying:

“Having SHS group in school gave us a fantastic opportunity to tidy up some fences, walls and flowerbeds – all jobs that we have planned but never seem to have the time to carry out. The work gave some key areas in the school grounds a much-needed facelift and it was lovely to have such a great team of volunteers working with us. They are welcome to come back any time!”

Chloe Hardisty, from Business in the Community (BITC) congratulated SHS Group for playing an active part in ‘Give and Gain’ week:

“Social responsibility is a fundamental ethos in business.  Being part of the community and making a positive contribution to helping others assists in the overall goal of building strong communities. ‘Give and Gain’ week was organised by Business in the Community to showcase the importance of volunteering while also encouraging businesses to develop meaningful relationships with their local community. It’s great to see large organisations such as SHS Group actively getting involved and supporting local people.”