How our colleagues are changing lives in communities

Here at Schroders Personal Wealth (SPW) we understand the importance of helping our local communities in more ways than one. That’s why this year, SPW has hosted two dedicated volunteering weeks, with seven events across the country for our colleagues to get involved in.

Volunteering helps us bring to life our business purpose ‘changing lives’. But it’s also a great way to give back to and make a difference in the areas surrounding where we work.

Each of the volunteering events this year had a link to at least one of our Diversity Networks, such as Salford Women’s Centre (SPWomen), Leeds Mencap (DAN) and Kings Cross Neighbourhood Centre (Unity).

At SPW, we have six employee networks who all seek to drive change for the causes they are passionate about. These are our women’s network (SPWomen), our Disability Awareness Network (DAN), our LGBTQ+ colleague network (Prism), the Armed Forces Network, the Responsible Business Network, and Unity, SPW's network for colleagues of all cultural backgrounds and identities, ancestral origins, faiths, or nationalities.

We are proud that our networks continue to grow, with over 300 colleagues now being a member of at least one network.

June Volunteering Week

During our first volunteering week in June, 35 SPW colleagues in Leeds, London and Bristol dedicated their time to support three charities. Our people painted, planted, cleaned and more, improving the spaces used by the beneficiaries.

September Volunteering Week

During the second of our volunteering weeks, 39 SPW colleagues in Leeds, London, Manchester and Edinburgh spent their time, painting, gardening, cleaning, untangling wires, packing boxes and more. All of the beneficiaries expressed their gratitude for the commitment and impact SPW colleagues made, showing just how much can be achieved in one day.

Why volunteering is important to us

So far, in 2024, 146 SPW colleagues have used at least one of their community action days to volunteer, such as the Finance Team spending their day volunteering in Leeds, or the North & Midlands Region volunteering at the National Memorial Arboretum. In total we have completed 970 volunteering hours this year, and we plan to make it well over 1,000 by the end of the year.

Volunteering is a fantastic way to give back to the community and is proven to have wider wellbeing benefits, too. Hear from a few of our colleagues on why volunteering is important to them:

• “These days are fantastic for understanding the challenges that our local communities face, and being able to help them in any way possible just feels like the right thing to do”

• “I had a lovely albeit challenging day with the team clearing some prickly thornbushes. We finished the day with a great sense of satisfaction of a job well done and lots of smiles.”