At Euromonitor, all staff are entitled to two days of volunteering as part of our CSR programme and we are extremely proud that last year over 40% of staff took on this opportunity. One of our projects in the London Office is an Employability Mentoring programme with Samuel Rhodes School, a special needs school in Islington, delivered by charity partners the BIG Alliance and Inspire!
Source: Euromonitor International
Dora Stefankin, one of the volunteers who took part in the programme, tells us about her experience.
I was privileged to mentor two young ladies with Down-syndrome during a 10 week mentoring programme. The girls both came from a school called Samuel Rhodes and have gone through some significant development during this period. Since their situation was rather unique, it proved challenging to keep them on track with the tasks we had to complete. However, the personal development they both underwent makes me a very proud mentor.
These children often feel uncomfortable and rather closed up within a new environment and amongst strangers. I believe the biggest achievement is their change of attitude towards new things and new faces. The fact that they were able to communicate, hold eye contact and do small talk with our CEO, Tim Kitchin in the lift, the efforts we put in to creating a morning routine list, the regular hot chocolate making tours in the office all made them more confident in interacting within the corporate environment – in a fun, more relaxed way.
I am extremely proud of the opportunity to work with both girls and I hope they will find their dream job one day. Not only has this experience enhanced their communication skills, but formed a strong friendship between the three of us.
Source: Euromonitor International
The Samuel Rhodes Mentoring Programme enables us to work towards the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, part of our commitment as signatories to the United Nations Global Compact.
Source: United Nations