Ryan FowlerThe specialist lender and savings bank, OSB Group, is celebrating its volunteering achievements for Volunteers Week 2024.
By the end of May, colleagues have logged over 1,700 hours of volunteering in 2024, equating to 243 working days of support for their communities in 46 organisations across the UK. OSB Group is over halfway (52%) through their target of 3,300 hours for 2024.
OSB Group is committed to ‘being better neighbours’ through the donation of time, skills, and expertise of its colleagues. All OSB Group employees are entitled to 14 hours of volunteering time per year and are encouraged to use the full allocation to give back to local communities.
Colleagues have supported a wide range of causes with their volunteering time, from gardening to food banks to animal sanctuaries. One ongoing relationship is with Friends of Di’s Kitchen, a food bank in Wolverhampton. Victoria Bladon, an underwriter for the group, has organised 177 hours of volunteering support for Friends of Di’s Kitchen and manages the relationship between colleagues and the organisation. Victoria also organises regular food donations to the charity.
Victoria Bladon, underwriter at OSB Group, said: “We are all experiencing the impact the cost-of-living crisis is having but some members of our local community are really struggling to feed themselves and their families and that’s where Jan and her wonderful team of volunteers at Friends of Di’s Kitchen come in providing food to people in need across Wolverhampton.
“Luckily OSB Group gives us the opportunity to help our local community with 14 hours of volunteer work each year, which we have been putting to great use. Our team of volunteers at OSB have been giving a few hours each week to help deliver the food and it’s having such an amazing impact on the community. As of 23rd May 2024, Friends of Di’s Kitchen have supplied food to 100,000 guests!”
