A Toast for Our Volunteers
People who volunteer for The Bread and Butter Thing amongst the most dedicated 17% of UK adults
Last year, TBBT benefited from over 100,000 hours of volunteered time
Benefits of volunteering include building employability skills and the reduction of social isolation
The Bread and Butter Thing celebrates national Volunteers’ Week, 1 – 7 June
According to the latest ONS Opinions and Lifestyle Survey[1], people who volunteer their time to support The Bread and Butter Thing are amongst the most dedicated 17% of adults in the UK.
Whilst almost 30% of adults gave unpaid help to clubs or charities in 2022, just over half of them (58%) helped more than once a month. Whereas, TBBT’s 600+ volunteers regularly give between 2 – 3 hours every week - making them amongst the most dedicated and reliable charity volunteers in the UK.
In 2022, TBBT benefitted from over 100,000 hours of volunteered time in its community hubs, warehouses and behind the wheel of its vans, not to mention the extra time put in by people at their desks and the board table supporting the administration and governance of the award-winning food charity.
As TBBT CEO, Mark Game explains: “By showing up week in, week out, for 52 weeks of the year, our volunteers are at the very heart of our operation and at the heart of their communities. Their commitment and determination to support the delivery of TBBT’s affordable food service to their friends, neighbours and local communities is unparalleled. Simply put, we couldn’t do it without them.”
One of the most significant impacts of volunteering is its effect on combatting social isolation. In its annual survey, people volunteering for TBBT said that 89% of them have made new friends through their work for TBBT. Volunteers also said they feel more involved in their community with 73% feeling less alone as a result.
People like Graham and Fiona who volunteer specifically because they wanted to connect with people locally when they moved to Old Leake in Lincolnshire.
Fiona explains: “We've only been here [in Old Leake] two and a half years. I've sort of semi-retired and am not doing very much work. So to meet people, I thought ‘where can we go?’… We went to the community centre and it started from there. And we're really enjoying being a much bigger part of the community. Now we know so many people who we wouldn't know otherwise.”
Graham continues: “Where we are is really a very rural community. We don't have a great deal of services and the bus service is non-existent. So having the hub, The Bread and Butter Thing, is a hugely important thing… I think the volunteers get as much out of it as anybody else. It makes me feel better that other people realise that they're not alone.”
Or Marie from County Durham who volunteers as a driver. Marie said: "I love driving. It gives you a chance to get out and just clear your head. It's a bit of freedom, bit of independence. I actually started out as a customer of The Bread and Butter Thing. And then … I started volunteering. Whether you give five minutes, or five hours, you make a huge difference in people's lives.”
Fiona, Graham and Marie are all guests in the new national Volunteers’ Week special episodes of TBBT’s podcast, A Slice of Bread and Butter. Hear them in action from Thursday 1 June at Podcast — The Bread and Butter Thing.
Anyone interested in volunteering - at their local hub, a warehouse or as a driver - can find out more and get in touch through TBBT's website Volunteers — The Bread and Butter Thing.
[1] Estimates on relationship with others, volunteering, sense of belonging to a neighbourhood, and say in what the government does, Great Britain: 22 June to 17 July 2022 - Office for National Statistics