Why Volunteering Is One of the Most Powerful Things a Young Person Can Do

We live in an age that tells young people their value is measured in grades, followers, and future earnings. But there is a different kind of currency that builds something far more durable — contribution, connection, and the knowledge that your actions made a real difference to someone else's life. Volunteering gives young people exactly this. And in communities like Newcastle and Gateshead, where so many young people face barriers to traditional routes of achievement, volunteering can be genuinely life-changing.

Unity Through Action: A Living Example

BEST Initiatives' Unity Through Action programme brings together young people aged 13 to 18 from different cultural backgrounds for weekly volunteering sessions. They deliver care packages to elderly residents, clean up public spaces, support food banks, and help with community projects. The results go far beyond what they accomplish in those hours. Participants build genuine friendships across cultural divides, develop leadership skills, grow in confidence, and discover that they are capable of far more than they were ever told.

The Hidden Benefits No CV Can Capture

Volunteering teaches young people empathy — the ability to step into someone else's situation and respond with care. It teaches resilience, because not every project goes to plan. It teaches teamwork, communication, and decision-making in real-world conditions. For young BME people who may have experienced discrimination or self-doubt, it provides a space where their contribution is valued without question. These are the foundations of future employment, further education, and positive citizenship — and no classroom can replicate them.

Every Young Person Deserves This Opportunity

Not every young person has access to sports clubs, music lessons, or enrichment programmes. But every young person can volunteer, and every community has unmet needs that young hands and willing hearts can address. The challenge is creating the structures, the safety, and the encouragement that make it possible. That is exactly what BEST Initiatives does — and the results speak for themselves in the changed young lives we see every week.

Is your young person aged 13-18 in Newcastle or Gateshead? Sign up for Unity Through Action

BEST Initiatives · Empowering BME Communities in Newcastle & Gateshead ·