As part of National Volunteering week, colleagues at FSCS wanted to get involved in some team events – Spitalfields City Farm seemed like an excellent choice! Laura Powell (Business Manager to the People Team) who organised the whole day said: “it was important to me to choose a charity close to our office, and also somewhere we could help out and really make a difference (especially in light of recent times).”

Throughout the pandemic, the majority of us have been working from home and haven’t had the chance to interact with our colleagues face-to-face. Spending the day as a group at the farm was a great way for all us to re-connect, and as we were all from different areas of the business, it allowed us to work as a team with people we wouldn’t necessarily work with in the office.

The day itself was really varied and we were able to get involved in a variety of tasks including weeding, clearing pathways, litter-picking, shifting compost and grit, painting signs and were even able to get involved in some conversation work to support the local newt population – we were certainly kept busy!

It was a very rewarding experience – it was great to have the opportunity to support a local initiative right on the doorstep of our office and spend a day with our colleagues outside of the working environment.

Following our day volunteering on 2 June, Laura has received interest from other teams across the organisation asking how they can take part in helping out at the farm which is great to see!

A huge thank you to all of the team at the farm for organising the activities and supporting us on the day – we really enjoyed the experience!