ISABEL Edwards, Associate Account Manager at Novuna Vehicle Solutions, has been making a difference in her community by volunteering for SOFEA, a charity which supports vulnerable young people.
Every employee at Novuna Vehicle Solutions is entitled to one paid day per year to undertake volunteering and they are encouraged to support a cause close to their hearts.
Isabel, who is passionate about food and a keen cook, spent her volunteering day with the FareShare Thames Valley project, which takes in surplus food from retailers, manufacturers, growers and more, and ensures it is distributed to places like community larders and community centre kitchens rather than being wasted.
“I hate seeing food wasted, especially when we know that there are a large number of UK households suffering from household food insecurity. It was a privilege to support an organisation that helps to prevent around 1,700 tonnes of food per year going to landfill, and who are delivering projects such as ‘Nourish and Flourish’, supporting young people to learn about nutrition and gain lifelong cooking skills.”
Isabel spent the day picking and packing food at the warehouse (main picture), which she says was a “refreshing change” from a sedentary day-to-day role either sat at her desk, driving or sat in meetings.
She was also surprised to learn about the breadth of services that SOFEA offers to young people and to the local community.
“I met their IT rep who wipes and restores old donated devices in order to distribute them to local charities and charity groups to help people get online,” she says.
“It is so easy to take for granted how easily we are able to connect with colleagues, friends, family when we have our phones, iPads, laptops etc. readily available. So many people do not have this privilege.”
It’s not the first time Isabel has taken advantage of Novuna’s volunteering day, which has been in place for many years. She has previously supported a local conservation area with ground clearance and volunteered for West Berkshire Foodbank, delivering food parcels to residents in the local community.
“It is great that there are a variety of organisations that Novuna partners with so people can choose to support somewhere that means something to them personally,” Isabel says.
“My experience of volunteering has been that every organisation has been so grateful for any support offered. I am a true believer that you can make a difference regardless of how much time you can commit to, or how frequently you can attend so if you are put off because you think you might only be able to offer a few hours once in a while, don’t be! I am sure there will be an option to suit.”
Novuna Vehicle Solutions is a funder partner of Broker News.
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Sarah Tooze has been an automotive journalist for more than 15 years, specialising in the fleet and transport sectors. She has held senior positions at industry-leading B2B titles Fleet News and Smart Transport, and led campaigns championing motorists as consumer editor for online used car marketplace Heycar and motoring advice website HonestJohn.co.uk. In 2017 she won the Newspress Automotive Business Journalist award.
