This week marks the launch of our first NEAT Volunteer Week – a Trust-wide school initiative that brings together our pupils, staff, families, and communities through purposeful volunteering. Running from Monday 31st March to Friday 4th April, every NEAT school is taking part, with activities planned across all year groups.
Why are we doing this?
Volunteering plays a vital role in helping young people understand what it means to be part of a community. It builds empathy, responsibility, confidence, and the belief that small actions can make a big difference.
For NEAT, this is about more than just one week. We want to shine a light on the value of community and social contribution – and lay the foundations for a lasting culture of giving back. This work supports our wider personal development offer and helps our pupils grow into thoughtful, active citizens.
What’s planned?
Across the week, pupils and staff will be getting involved in a wide range of volunteering in schools and community-based activities, including:
– Community clean-ups and gardening projects
– Reading and peer mentoring with younger pupils
– Supporting foodbanks, care homes, and local organisations
– Hosting assemblies and awareness sessions on giving back
– Some of our older pupils will be running sports events for our younger pupils – offering coaching and mentoring in line with our focus on personal development
– Staff will also be volunteering – helping pupils with CVs, mock interviews, listening to them read, and running sports activities
We’ve set ourselves an ambitious target – to collectively contribute 4,000 hours of volunteering across the Trust by the end of the week.
Why it matters
Every school is rooted in its community, and we want our pupils to feel part of something bigger. NEAT Volunteer Week is a chance for them to make a positive difference – and for us all to reflect on the power of working together. It demonstrates the value of community engagement in education and contributes to social value in education across our region.
We’ll be rounding off the week with a celebration event at Benfield School on Friday 4th April, where we’ll bring together pupils, staff, and invited guests to showcase what’s been achieved.
This initiative brings to life what it means to be One Trust, working together to create meaningful impact and opportunity for our pupils, our schools, and our communities.
We look forward to sharing stories and highlights from across the week – follow us on social media to keep up with what’s happening in our schools.