Volunteering, free labour or a lifeline?

Picture by: Anil Parmer, Poached
Creative's fifth birthday party

It is often argued that volunteers are the backbone of the charity sector, according to the Guardian 91% of charities are entirely run by unpaid staff. However, volunteering is mutually beneficial to volunteers as well as employers, it is a two way stream, and based on my brief experience as a volunteer with Poached Creative I could argue that it is more rewarding to the volunteer than to the company itself.

I would not be exaggerating if I say that volunteering is transforming my life by the minute. 

  

Looking back at my life one year ago, I was in turmoil; depressed, experiencing all sorts of family conflicts, having to drop out of University, losing my flat, being imprisoned twice in the space of one year. My life was a mortifying chapter from a horror book. I was in an utter state of despair; I woke up every day thinking the End of the world is past noon. I would never have envisaged digging myself out of that hole.

However, I was very fortunate to learn about Poached Creative through The Big Issue on line journalism course. A course provided by Poached Creative in conjunction with the Big Issue; at the time I lacked the drive, and the motivation to start something new. I missed two initial induction interviews.  And when I thought that I messed it up for myself. The managing director of Poached Creative Jessica Smith contacted me again, and we scheduled another interview which this time I attended. I am ever indebted to her patience.

I then attended the six week Journalism course, which was a turning point in my life. Not only did I acquire new skills.   The whole experience profoundly impacted the way I perceived my future, it instilled a sense of optimism and hope towards the future, which incentivised  me to work harder and improve myself. The depression and helplessness I was feeling began to fade away by the week.

I successfully completed the course and progressed to a volunteering role within Poached Creative, which is a design and writing social enterprise.

Having something to wake up to makes all the difference, it drives you to work harder and open your eyes to opportunities you would otherwise have missed. It enriches your experience and boosts your morale.

Buy Social showcased to PR industry

The City of London Guild of Public Relations Practitioners and the PRCA held their first ever “Buy Social” forum, on 10 June, which aimed to persuade agencies and in-house teams to buy from social enterprises.

The event, hosted by Lloyds Banking Group, was attended by members from across the PR spectrum and featured a panel discussion and a showcase of social enterprises and networking.

Jonathan Chandler, Master of PR Guild delivered the opening speech and moderated the debate, which focused on identifying actionable next steps and addressing any concerns or issues arising from them.

Among the speakers were Matt Cartmel, Communication Director of PRCA; Suzanne Jones, Business and Support Director of City of London Corporation and  Celia Richardson, Director of Communications and Policy at Social Enterprise UK.

The Director of Poached Creative Jessica Smith also spoke to share her experience of working with the PR sector. She said:

"We work to put creative communications jobs within reach for disadvantaged people. You want to diversify your industry and we can help with that. Social entrepreneurs come from a range of backgrounds with experience in the media, corporate and charity sectors and we're keen to work in partnership with you on issues like this."

"Take a look at the directory and you'll see that there are social enterprises for almost anything you would want to buy. The most powerful way you can support the social enterprise sector is to trade with us."

The Buy Social Directory was launched on 4 June at the Guildhall by the Minister of Civil Society, Nick Hurd MP. To find out more visit http://www.buysocialdirectory.org.uk/ .

Mental Health Awareness at Poached Creative

I joined Poached Creative as a press office volunteer after three years of unemployment due to mental health difficulties.

I’ve been delighted to realise this is an office where I can be open about my diagnosis and some of the ways this impacts me, without fear of prejudice.   I am valued for my work and for what I bring to the organisation, not judged for my historical or current health status.

It’s hard to express how important this is for me, and how lucky I feel to have found such an opportunity.  Put simply, it is everything.

In the past I was told by careers advisors that it would be best if I kept my mental health history a secret from future employers and colleagues.  I know myself, and I know that doing that would only add to my anxiety in the workplace.

Feeling safe in the office, as I do at Poached Creative, removes a massive source of anxiety for me and actually makes it less likely to impact on my work.

I first realised that Poached Creative was going to be a safe place for me when I applied to join the online journalism course that they run with The Big Issue and which I completed in April, prior to starting work with them.  Before my interview for the course I looked at their website, and was impressed to read about Catriona’s experience with them utilizing the permitted paid work scheme, as well as Deputy Director Angela’s story of recovery from depression.

This told me that Poached Creative is a place which recognises the talents of those of us who have had problems with our mental health, rather than dismissing us.  It told me that I could be open with them, without being defined by my diagnosis.  They would look at me as a whole person, not just a label.

I now see this evidenced directly each day in the office.  Having stimulating and worthwhile work to do in a supportive office environment is helping me to regain my confidence and sense of self-worth as well as improving my skills for future paid employment, and I feel extremely lucky to be here.

Poached Creative Timeline

2009

• Jessica Smith (director) is awarded an UnLtd Level 1 grant to run a pilot programme for her idea to help long-term unemployed people gain work in the communications industry.
• Poached Creative is incorporated as a Community Interest Company.
• Angela Williams is recruited as Poached Creative's first trainee and the first training session with two trainees is held in Wood Green library.
• Poached Creative is offered a free space to train one day/week with Careers Development Group (CDG). Eight trainees complete the pilot training programme.
• Poached Creative forms a partnership with Lucy Ferguson of What’s Up Information (later YH! World and Mediorite) and take on former Poached trainee, Chris, as editor. Poached moves into their office in London Fields.

 2010

• Poached Creative and YH World take on their first member of staff, Kayla Whiting, through the Future Jobs Fund.
• Kayla receives funding for the Hackney Hounds project. With four young girls who were not in employment, education or training (NEET) she successfully delivers a short film, gaining local and national media coverage.
• YH World introduces Poached Creative to Hackney Council’s Discover Young Hackney festival. We produce the programme and deliver video training as part of the festival.
• Grant Kingsnorth (now writing and communications mentor) joins Poached as a trainee. Grant Kingsnorth begins writing for local independent newspaper, The Hackney Citizen and takes on paid part-time work with Poached Creative. We take on a junior writer for six months through the Future Jobs Fund.
• New clients include: Hackney Council, NHS Confederation and Plan UK.
• In total, 30 trainees gain skills and experience in writing, media and communications.

 2011

• Poached Creative delivers training for Hackney Council's Hackney Hosts ahead of the upcoming Olympics. Poached and YH World begin work with housing association Peabody, creating campaigns with young Londoners as part of its Staying Safe project.
• We also work with Heart n Soul's media team to co-create a website for people with learning disabilities about the upcoming Paralympics. Lem Leon, a YH World volunteer takes on a freelance role assisting with Poached training projects.
• We employ YH World's deputy editor, Michelle Stannard, as our writer and content producer.
• New clients include: Westway, African health charity AMREF, Dorset-based social enterprise Seamless, The Foundation Group and FARM Africa.
• Poached and Mediorite move into the office at Celia Fiennes House on Well Street, Hackney, where we still work today.
• Our in-house writing programme and volunteer cohort continues to grow. We reach a total of 65 long-term unemployed or disadvantaged people through in-house and external training.

2012

• Former trainee Appiah Sackey takes up full-time work with the NHS Confederation.
• In partnership with Mediorite, Poached Creative delivers journalism training as part of the BBC Radio 1 Hackney Academy ahead of the Olympics.
• Poached Creative begins working for Social Enterprise UK, creating the Buy Social campaign.
• Poached Creative takes on Lara Swansbury as project manager and writer to deliver key ongoing projects including Staying Safe and Discover Young Hackney. We now have a total of four paid staff.
• We join arc, BITCs support programme for social enterprises, where we meet new clients including Transitions, LKMco and Intercontinental Hotels Group.
• In total, we train 77 people through our in-house programme and partnerships with Hackney Council, BBC Learning and Peabody.

2013

• We start working in partnership with The Big Issue to deliver a series of photojournalism training courses for the homeless and vulnerably housed.
• Poached Creative South West is launched in Dorset, headed up by Michelle Stannard.
• Former trainees Angela Williams and Emma Sawyerr join Poached as Deputy Director and Proofreader & Quality Officer respectively, while Cardine Martin comes to us via DV8 Training to work as a Digital Media Assistant. 
• Poached Creative is listed on the RBS SE100 Index for UK social enterprises. We’re ranked at no.1 for marketing and communications and in the top 15 social enterprises in London.
• We work with several new clients, including iMPower, Clarity, NHS England, The Key, The Albany and City of London Corporation.

2014

• Poached marks its fifth birthday on 15th April with a party for friends, clients, staff, volunteers and trainees at Dalston Eastern Curve Garden.
• Former trainee Catriona is hired as a copywriter while volunteer Chris Hutchins joins Poached as Website Manager & Policy Officer.
• Our client list continues to grow. So far, we’ve worked on projects with new clients such as School of Hip Hop, Short Breaks, Hackney Health Hubs, Poole Passion, Iridescent Ideas and Richmond Park Fellowship.
• We form a partnership with Agile Collective, a web development cooperative, to work on SEUK’s Buy Social web procurement portal.
• We work closely with CAN to produce our first social impact report, due for publication in May 2014.
• And it’s not over yet…!

Poached Creative - celebrating five years

It’s Monday. Deputy director Angela is putting the finishing touches on a quote for a client and our designer Khaleeda is advising a young illustrator about a job application. Our writer, Catriona, is interviewing someone from an NHS trust while our writing mentor, Grant, is penning a letter on behalf of someone at his hostel. Press office volunteer Billy is tweeting about our upcoming party. All this sounds like a normal, productive office.

Looking back five years, I’m amazed that we have an office at all. Then, we were squatting in someone else’s building with a couple of computers and a dictionary. I was the only person you could call ‘staff’ and I was unpaid. We had two trainees, one of whom was Angela.

Poached Creative was born out of my desire to put communications jobs within reach for long-term unemployed and disadvantaged people. As Editor at Shelter and the NHS Confederation I had hired many people into our editorial team but none of them had experienced homelessness or serious health conditions. This was what I wanted to change.

In five years we’ve built a solid client base of about 30 clients, more than 75 per cent of whom have come back to work with us again. We’ve settled into a permanent office in Hackney and opened a satellite office in the South West. We employ eight staff.

We’ve created an international campaign for Social Enteprise UK and partnered with The Big Issue and BBC Learning to deliver journalism training. Charity clients include Peabody and Plan UK and we continue to work with a range of smaller charities and social enterprises at discounted rates.

The RBS SE100 ranks us as No 1 marketing and communications social enterprise and among the top 10 in London. This year we’ve also become an accredited London Living Wage employer.

Many of our past trainees and volunteers still work with us and it’s this two-way street, of both learning with and contributing to Poached Creative, that I’m most proud of.

The people we’ve worked with over the last five years have not only benefitted from our work but shaped our future. Take a look at their case studies.

Surviving the first five years

If there's one thing we've learnt about surviving the first five years of social enterprise it's that we wouldn't be here without our friends.

Our partnership with Lucy Ferguson from Mediorite (formerly YH World) has been the difference between success and failure for Poached. Without our shared office space, staff, clients, ideas and plans, Poached Creative would not be here today.

Thanks to:

• All our dedicated staff, freelancers, trainees and volunteers who've contributed so much to our development.
• Our brilliant clients, who've supported us and with their business, enthusiasm and feedback.
• Funders/in-kind supporters: Careers Development Group (CDG), UnLtd, arc/BITC, Future Jobs Fund, Social Enterprise UK, Cranfield Trust, Mediabox, Hackney Council, Hackney Libraries, Lighthouse (Poole).
• Partners: Mediorite, MCR Print, Agile Collective, Pixel Parlour, Hackney Citizen, The Big Issue, St Giles Trust, Art Against Knives, Off Centre.

We’ve come a long way in five years and we couldn’t have done it without your support.

Special thanks to Dominic Rose and Michael Quinn for their unfailing support and superb catering skills.

The atmosphere at Poached Creative

Emma, our Proofreader and Quality Officer, shares her thoughts on the welcoming atmosphere of the Poached Creative office

There is something in the air that says “you’re welcome.” This might sound like a cheesy ad slogan but it’s definitely true at Poached Creative. Since day one, I felt the warm welcome and now, months along, I feel like a valued member of the team. Warmth and hospitality permeate the air. This is really tangible.

There are multiple reasons why I enjoy working at Poached Creative. It’s not just appreciating its ‘uniqueness’ (Doesn’t every organisation think they are ‘unique’, ‘special’ and ‘original’!?).

Well, here at Poached, I think the gentle, inclusive atmosphere is truly unique.  It feels relaxed and friendly in this office even though it’s a busy environment. There’s always something going on. Sometimes all I hear is the tapping of keys on multiple keyboards when people are absorbed by their projects, in their own worlds. The silence is gentle. I think it’s a productive climate and the energy is upbeat  whether anyone is talking or not.

My colleagues, I call them comrades, are hard-working, down-to-earth people.  They look you in the eye, acknowledge your presence and engage in eclectic chit chat on a variety of different topics. This happens periodically when we have time.

Trust me, knowing that you ‘belong’ to a team, that you are ‘one of the guys’ and ‘there is a place for you’ in the office, is a great feeling.

You’re welcome.

I’m welcome.

Everyone is welcome.

Feeling welcome is not about someone telling someone.  It’s all about showing: I think it’s a look, an acknowledgement of your presence, eye contact, a nod, a smile and a gentle tone.  Even a simple hand gesture, in my case a beckoning hand gesture, can convey that message.

When I first arrived, I was invited to sit down, check my email or have a banana! 

“Just take one from that bowl on the kitchen table.”  

I appreciated those words.

I know that visitors and volunteers feel the same way.  They feel that warm welcome.

How do I know?  Because they have told me. 

You will always be invited to sit down, have a cup of tea and wait (if whoever you’re seeing is engaged on a call.) Unlike many London offices, you will not be ignored.

There are an interesting variety of projects, groups, clients and individuals who come through the office door. I get to observe the comings and goings from my seat by one of the big windows.  This dynamism is one of Poached Creative’s key strengths. 

Just today, nine people have come into the office to work on completely different projects. ‘Film Club’ leave uneaten chocolates or crisps in the office after their Wednesday night meeting. These leftovers can be gobbled up by the team on Thursday.

Pomposity is conspicuous by its absence. We operate in integrity, follow our briefs and meet deadlines.  Yet, there is always time to celebrate a birthday, drink a cup of tea, (if unlike me you’re a tea drinker) or eat a slice of cake.

Sometimes, music is played on the large Mac. Selections may not be to everyone’s taste, but I enjoy hearing melodies in the background. Even a surly teenager (who was on reparations) cracked a smile at the prospect of having to listen to Justin Bieber’s latest album.

Poached Creative is a welcoming organisation.  Yes, indeed.