This morning over 135 runners took part in Team London and GoodGym’s biggest ever ‘Run to do Good’. The event kicked off Volunteers' Week 2016 and coincides with a month of volunteering events which celebrate London's year as European Volunteering Capital.
The runners left Tower Bridge and ran to a wide range of local speed volunteering opportunities. Charities benefiting from the run included Providence Row in Shoreditch who provides support services to the homeless and Downside Fisher Youth Club in Shad Thames who provides services for socially excluded children. Other charities who benefited from the run included Historic Royal Palaces, Bliss, Siblings Together and Bermondsey Community Nursery.
At Age UK’s Yalding Health Centre in Southwark, 25 of the runners took part in an inter-generational volunteering event which was attended by the Mayor of London. The volunteers helped to spruce up the centre’s gardens whilst others chatted and played games of pool with residents.
During the event, the Mayor quoted research by City Hall which shows that Londoners perceive a strong connection between volunteering and a sense of community, with 86 per cent saying that volunteering plays an important role in bringing communities together to improve their quality of life. In addition, he said:
I will be supporting more great events like Run to do Good and I encourage more Londoners to get involved in volunteering for, and connecting with, others in their community. There is no doubt that these kinds for initiatives lead to greater social integration - the way to a more productive, healthier and ultimately more prosperous city for all Londoners.
Today’s event helped to kick off Volunteers’ Week and marks the start of a month of activities to celebrate London's title as 2016's European Volunteering Capital. Activities include the Big Recruit on 7 June with 23 volunteering centres across the capital opening their doors to support unemployed people to use volunteering as a route to work. In addition, Big Advice Day, a speed networking event for charities to meet with business volunteers, is taking place on 14 June.
