Posted07.12.16
You can’t change the world before breakfast, or can you?
On Friday 1 April, we had the pleasure of sharing the work that we do at Evolve to help the homeless in London to a room of young professionals who are interested in joining the latest cohort at BeyondMe.
Attendees from Ernst & Young (EY) and PwC, two of the lead partners in the BeyondMe movement gathered in London to learn about how they can give their time, money and professional skills to a charity on the portfolio.
The morning began with organisers, Lizzie Oxborrow and Charlotte Nixon, welcoming guests and posing the thought-provoking question ‘You can’t change the world before breakfast, or can you?’
Lizzie is EY’s BeyondMe Champion and explained why she decided to get involved with BeyondMe and chose a children’s charity, Child of Hope when she joined last year. She said that it was her time spent volunteering at university that motivated her to continue supporting the charity sector in her professional career.
We then got to share our excitement at being a part of the BeyondMe charity portfolio with the group and explained the ways in which this support would make a significant difference to the lives of homeless people. But of course we couldn’t share our work without telling the story of former customer, Peace, who successfully completed qualifications and training whilst staying at Evolve and who is now living independently.
Maurice Moses, EY UKI Independence Leader and Ethics Partner, spoke about his personal experience of BeyondMe and why he decided to give something back through MyBNK, which is a charity helping young people access high-quality finance and business education.
As a homelessness charity, it was invaluable to hear the insights of the generous professionals who are so eager to support a charity in a really impactful way.There are so many ways that a BeyondMe team can get involved with a charity, like Evolve including providing pro-bono support around impact measurement, or supporting the homeless people in London that we work with to develop skills around employment- or team building activities ideas through fundraising or volunteering.
After speaking during the networking section of the morning, we could tell that they were just as excited as we were about being as part of this movement. There was an overall feeling of empowerment and energy in the room as positive links were made between the corporate and charity sector. As a charity collective and as individuals, we felt one step closer to changing the world.
