Staying connected to the mission – Anita’s volunteering story
Anita is a former teacher and 2015 ambassador who found new ways to stay close to the Teach First mission – from mentoring to building communities of ambassadors committed to equity. Her volunteering journey shows how impact doesn't stop when you leave the classroom; it evolves with you and the difference you want to make. This story is told in her own words.
I am currently working within the Customer Strategy & Experience team at a major London Airport as the Engagement Lead for the business planning process. I’m from London and became a Teach First ambassador in 2015 when I taught English at a Secondary School in the West Midlands.
After two very formative years of teaching, I stepped away from the classroom to move back to London and focus on completing my Masters in Educational Leadership (with Teach First). I then secured a place on the airport’s graduate scheme in 2019, working in various roles across the organisation since.
Though I am no longer teaching or working directly within the education sector, my alignment with the Teach First mission remains strong.
Volunteering with Teach First has helped me build the foundations of social impact that sit within many of the values that are important to me, such as diversity and inclusion, careers education, and community.
Anita’s volunteering journey
Whilst on the Teach First programme in 2016, I signed up to secure a coach and benefitted greatly from our conversations about professional development. Earlier this year I was able to pay that dedicated support forwards by taking the opportunity offered by the Teach First Coaching Programme to train up as a coach myself, through a series of online learning modules and virtual workshops. I’ve been assigned my first coachee (a Teach First trainee teacher) and look forward to seeing how this new endeavour progresses.
I’m also currently a member of two of Teach First’s Ambassador networks. I regularly join the virtual gatherings of the Women’s Leadership Network and attended their first-ever in-person meeting earlier this year in the Midlands. It is always so inspiring to get to know other members, listen to invited speakers, and discuss important topics of the day in the breakout sessions.
In addition to this, I’m a member of the Teach First Business Network, connecting Ambassadors who no longer work in the classroom but are still championing the Teach First mission through alternative means and/or via their current employers.
In previous years, I’ve also been a Network Lead of the Teach First Ambassadors in Business Network (a previous iteration of the Teach First Business Network) – where we launched a podcast for students called ‘The Career Sphere’, a Teach First Taster Mentor, a Summer Project participant and a Group Leader at the Futures Easter school at Cambridge University.
Anita co-hosted ‘The Career Sphere’ podcast as part of the Teach First Ambassadors in Business Network.
Motivations
Initially, I signed up to volunteer to keep connected with Teach First, to encounter new experiences and to challenge myself in new contexts by taking on new responsibilities. Now, it’s more to meet like-minded people who also want to use their time for the benefit of others, and to pay forward the support and guidance I have received throughout my career to date.
I feel strongly about passing on my own knowledge, skills and expertise to those in need of it, and not gatekeeping!
Impact and enjoyment
What I have enjoyed most about volunteering is meeting and getting to know other people; finding out their stories of how they have become associated with Teach First and the different ways in which they champion the mission. Exploring the possibilities of collaboration and joint intent to further extend our impact through innovative means and alternative settings. This has spilled over into the volunteering I do through my employer too.
I like knowing that I’m a part of a widespread community of individuals who willingly dedicate their time for the betterment of society, especially for the next generation.
Staying connected
Volunteering allows me to keep up to date with the evolving landscape of the education sector and the needs of young people – it already seems quite different to when I started teaching over 10 years ago!
Voluntary work also helps inform my decision-making on the future commitments to social impact that I would like to carry out, and how I wish to evolve my own career journey to reflect this, allowing me to lead with greater purpose and positive intent. I’m excited at the thought of what might come next...
Volunteering advice
If you’re considering volunteering then I would say just get started, just sign up – you’ll be glad you did.
One day you will look back with a smile at the fond memories you created and the warm feeling of knowing you hopefully helped make another person’s life glow a little more brightly.
Reflections
The most rewarding part of volunteering is the people – from the Teach First staff who organise and facilitate the volunteering opportunities; to the fellow participants you meet and go on the volunteering journey with; to the young people that make every moment of your time worthwhile; to the wider community, beyond Teach First, who indirectly benefit from your efforts to rewrite the future for the better.
Inspired by Anita’s story?
Use your time and skills to help shape a fairer future for children. From coaching to community networks, there are flexible ways to get involved.