Saints Foundation celebrates decade of volunteering with Solent University
Hundreds of students have given their time to support our work since the partnership began in 2014.
Students on Solent University's Sports Coaching degree have participated in a range of volunteering opportunities over the past ten years, supporting projects with both young people and older adults for the good of our local community.
Since 2014, Solent's undergraduates have given more than 1,000 hours collectively to volunteer with us, with more than 150 of them showing their support.
Many of them have made an impressive impact during their placements, with over 25 going on to secure jobs with us following their volunteering. They've supported on a wide range of projects, including our older adults exercise programme Senior Saints and our disability football project SaintsAbility.
Ahead of Student Volunteering Week (12-18 February), we invited Solent students to join us at St Mary's earlier this month, to mark the ten years of collaboration so far and to look forward to more successful years of this partnership.
Speaking about their visit, Ian Butcher, Saints Foundation Workforce and Training Coordinator, said: "It was great to welcome students to St Mary’s as we celebrate the 10th anniversary of partnership working with Solent University, providing voluntary placements to students from the Sports Coaching course.
"Students are placed across a variety of Saints Foundation sessions to gain a better understanding of coaching, development, and gain first-hand experience in engaging with participants from the local community.
"The impact of this volunteering over the years has been a great success, with our employment pathway giving several alumni the opportunity to secure roles at the club or Foundation and many of these were directly due to showcasing their talents within their voluntary placement when studying.”
Sam Fulling, Chief Operating Officer at Saints Foundation, added: "We’re very grateful to Solent University for introducing so many student volunteers into Saints Foundation over the past 10 years.
"Many of these volunteers have gone on to make huge contributions to our community through long and impactful careers at our charity. It’s been a great pathway for developing talent – a real win-win situation. We look forward to receiving more volunteers in the future."
Andrea Dick, a Solent second-year undergraduate who has been a Premier League Kicks volunteer – a programme for 8–18-year-olds – says, "My experience working with the Saints Foundation has been incredibly beneficial for me as well as rewarding, giving me the opportunity to work with individuals within a positive environment.
"I am studying Sports Coaching and it has provided me with experience of working with individuals in a sporting environment, where football is offered as an opportunity to have fun, develop new skills and socialise with new people. Working within the community has helped me build interpersonal skills such as collaboration, empathy and communication."
Dr Kola Adeosun, Senior Lecturer Sport Education and Development at Solent University, says: "Volunteering has a dual impact on both the volunteer and the beneficiary, and the long-term outcomes are many and varied. We’ve seen first-hand how this experience is meaningful for both our students and the community members they interact with, and their experiences with Saints Foundation have become a doorway to employment, which is just one of the many benefits of volunteering for university students."
