Reflecting on the positive impact BGF colleagues make by sharing their time, skills and expertise with local communities and the BGF Foundation’s charity partners.
5 June 2026
National Volunteers’ Week is a moment to celebrate people who give their time to strengthen communities. But at BGF, we don’t limit this to just one week in the calendar. So, it’s also a chance to reflect on the year-round contribution that our team makes.
Every employee has two Social Impact Days each year to support charitable activity, from hands-on local volunteering to skills-based support for the BGF Foundation’s charity partners.
It’s an approach building real momentum. Over the past three years, BGF volunteering has increased more than 60%, signalling a genuine culture shift.
What we’re most proud of is how engagement is evolving to focus on skills-based volunteering, where our professional expertise helps charities strengthen their organisations. We’ve seen an 11% increase in this kind of support in the last year alone.
This year, that focus was recognised when we won Employee Engagement Initiative of the Year at the Business Charity Awards 2026, highlighting a depth-over-breadth approach that prioritises targeted, skills-based support and long-term resilience.
A charity-led, impact-first volunteering model
The BGF Foundation supports charities working with disadvantaged young people through a combination of funding, strategic advice and skills-based volunteering.
That skills-based volunteering works best when it starts with the charity: a partner identifying a priority need – often a capacity or capability gap – so that the BGF Foundation can facilitate the right support from our team, at the right time. This can be transformational for an organisation’s direction and sustainability. As our support is relational, projects don’t run to fixed templates or timetables. That flexibility means we can respond to real-world pressures and deliver practical help when it matters. We’re seeing momentum in a range of skills-based projects, including business development training, SharePoint systems support and more technical collaboration.
For example, we recently delivered pro bono GDPR and data protection support for BGF Foundation charity partner, Leadership Through Sport & Business (LTSB). As LTSB scales delivery across regions, strengthening data protection processes was essential for good governance and organisational assurance. Our Head of Technology reviewed LTSB’s draft Data Protection Handbook and policies, identified gaps and shared practical templates and examples aligned with best practice. This bolstered LTSB’s compliance approach and helped build a clear roadmap for embedding data responsibility across the organisation.
Della Hill, Director of Operations at LTSB, said: “The support we received from BGF was incredibly helpful, practical and timely. It has improved both our ability to comply with legal requirements and build a robust roadmap for empowering our team to manage data responsibly and effectively.”
Supporting local community initiatives
Alongside volunteering, our team can nominate local charities to receive £1,000 through the BGF Foundation’s community grants programme. It’s an initiative that’s designed to be simple for charities, but also supports causes rooted in our team’s own communities, which often becomes the starting point for deeper involvement. Our Technology team, for instance, recently nominated and volunteered at Hackney Food Bank.
Adam Hussey, Business Systems Manager at BGF, said: “Being able to nominate a local charity for a staff grant – and then back it up with hands-on support as a team is a real win-win. The charity gets both funding and dedicated guidance, and we get a shared experience that brings the team together. As a result, we can encourage others to get involved too, which helps widen awareness and support.”
We’ve also seen colleagues supporting the BGF Foundation’s charity partners by helping to deliver impactful local initiatives – a great way to connect directly with the communities they serve. For example, our HR team recently volunteered at Access Sport’s multi-sports festival, helping to create inclusive, welcoming opportunities for disabled young people to take part in sport. Events like this can be a powerful ‘first door’ into physical activity, confidence-building and community connection.
Why this matters
Charities supporting young people are operating in a challenging environment underpinned by rising demand, tight resources and increasing scrutiny. In this context, the most valuable support is often focused on improving long-term resilience.
That’s why, with the support and volunteer time of our team, the BGF Foundation prioritises a model that is:
Needs-led (the charity defines the priority)
Skills-based where it matters (expertise is applied to real gaps)
Sustained (building capability, not just a tick-box activity)
If you’re a business looking to strengthen your social impact strategy or explore skills-based support that charities genuinely value, the BGF Foundation is always happy to share learnings and discuss opportunities to get involved. You can reach out to the BGF Foundation team here.
