Shropshire Volunteer Scheme Transforms Redundant Man's Life
Get the Health newsletter
Daily health & science — research, biotech, public health, the studies worth knowing. Free.
- Michael Reynolds, 27, from Shawbury, lost his catering job during the COVID pandemic and began volunteering at Fordhall Farm in Market Drayton nine months ago
- Reynolds said the work helped him "get away from day-to-day life," and he initially needed his mother to accompany him before gaining the confidence to attend alone
- Fordhall Farm youth volunteer and conservation lead Alison Fowler said Reynolds's confidence has "really increased," he attends "every Friday, regardless of the weather," and he now wants a future in conservation
- The Shropshire employability and enterprise programme, launched in 2024 and funded by the Lintel Trust, is delivered by charities including Community Resource, All About Youth, and Shrewsbury Town FC Foundation
- More than 1,350 young people have been supported through the initiative, which targets those facing low confidence, poor mental health, social isolation, limited work experience, and disrupted education
- Reynolds was referred into the programme by his Jobcentre work coach at a point when he was struggling with mental health, confidence, and a sense of direction
Why it matters: The programme provides a third-party-funded employability pipeline — the Lintel Trust, not the DWP — that has moved 1,350 young people off the sidelines, with Reynolds showing the model can convert a Jobcentre referral into a conservation career aspiration for someone made redundant during COVID.
Ask SkimNews
