Wimbledon Volunteers Awarded For Work With Local Older People


Law firm staff have been offering help with electronic gadgets

Volunteers from a Wimbledon-based law firm have won an award for their work at the Wimbledon Guild to help older people get the most of their electronic gadgets.

The annual Team London Awards, run by the Mayor of London’s office, celebrates the individuals, teams and corporate volunteers who make outstanding contributions to their communities. The Awards are one of the ways the Mayor recognises some of those volunteers who go above and beyond to create better local communities.

Capsticks Solicitors LLP (Capsticks), won the Team London Awards 2018 Outstanding contribution to volunteering, for the mobile and tablet workshops they have been running over the past three years every Wednesday lunchtime at Wimbledon Guild.

The sessions are aimed at older people who have problems using electronic gadgets and staff from the local legal firm are on hand to troubleshoot and teach customers how to get the most out of their devices.

Both organisations are thrilled their hard work has been officially recognised and demonstrates the versatility of corporate volunteering as Wendy Pridmore, chief executive, Wimbledon Guild explains: “We are so proud the incredible effort put in by both our community engagement team and Capsticks’ Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) group has been recognised by Team London and the Mayor of London’s office.

“One of our organisation’s key aims is to reduce social isolation and loneliness. By putting on sessions like the mobile and tablet workshops we are helping older people become digitally savvy and able to communicate with friends and family in a more interactive way.  For example, showing someone how to text, take and send pictures on their phone, use Facetime or connect to the internet. Something that may seem a simple everyday task to many of us can be a huge hurdle to the older generation.”

But it’s not just about older people re-connecting with family and friends, it’s also about building a relationship with local businesses to support charities with volunteers on a regular basis.

Pridmore continues: “We are always very grateful for any volunteering support but Capsticks have shown that by making a long term commitment to Wimbledon Guild,  they are able to make a significant contribution to our service delivery. The model we have developed with Capsticks is for them to put together a rota of volunteers who give up half an hour of their lunchbreak to attend the workshop. This gives them flexibility and ensures that volunteering doesn’t rest with the same people each week. It’s been a resounding success and one we have used to engage with other companies wanting to give something back to the local community on a regular basis.”

Team London awards

Pictured above are the volunteer team from Capsticks at the awards ceremony

Commenting on the award, John Tippett-Cooper, senior lawyer at Capsticks and head of corporate social responsibility, said: “This Team London Award means so much to us as a company as well as the team that have been involved directly with the mobile and tablet workshops. Our staff get so much out of the volunteering, building relationships with an older generation and really making a difference to them. We have regular attendees to the session as well as those who just come in with a specific problem.  The social intergenerational integration benefits not just the local community but the well-being of our staff too. Those who regularly volunteer look forward to taking the time out of their day to do so and get so much back from it too.”

If you are a company or individual interested in volunteering at Wimbledon Guild you can contact their volunteer manager, Adam Butler, abutler@wimbledonguild.co.uk or call him on 020 8946 0735.

If you, or someone you know, is interested in attending the Mobile and Tablet Workshop call 0208 946 0735 or email activities@wimbledonguild.co.uk to book a space.

For more information on Wimbledon Guild and the services they provide to people who live or work in Merton visit: www.wimbledonguild.co.uk.

November 13, 2018