BGF team provide expert support for young persons charity Oxfordshire Youth

Since 2022, the BGF Foundation has been committed to supporting charities that help young disadvantaged people across the UK, through grant funding, skills-based volunteering, and networking opportunities.

Oxfordshire Youth is a leading youth development charity, working directly with young people aged 8-25, and the grassroots leaders, volunteers and other organisations that support them. With over 75 years of expertise, Oxfordshire Youth targets young people facing multiple hardships with direct mental health interventions, crime prevention and safe, supported housing, reaching over 22,000 young people every year to achieve a smooth transition into adulthood.

In September 2023, the BGF Foundation awarded Oxfordshire Youth with a community grant of £5k. Since then, BGF team members from three different departments have volunteered their skills to support the growing charity.

Addressing funding challenges

Guy Pope, a member of our investment team in Reading, leveraged his extensive financial experience to help the charity navigate funding challenges. Guy’s guidance has already led to actionable changes within the organisation.

The BGF Foundation is well aware of the challenges that charities face, which is why it’s committed to providing them with unrestricted funding that can be allocated at their discretion.

Expertise in knowledge management

Oxfordshire Youth has recently experienced a period of dramatic growth, and subsequently identified the urgent need for a more sophisticated knowledge management strategy. To support this work, BGF’s Head of Research & Intelligence, Natasha Murray, and Research Analyst, James Davis, have applied their specific skill sets to provide expert, pro bono consultation.

During the project, the team spent time on exploration and discovery calls to understand the problem and challenges faced by Oxfordshire Youth, ultimately finding the right solution for the charity. Natasha and James were able to advise on distributing communication and training strategy templates, and linked in BGF’s Business Systems Manager, Adam Hussey, who reviewed the charity’s CRM systems and highlighted potential data points. Adam also introduced the charity to the ‘MOSCOW’ prioritisation method.

Oxfordshire Youth’s Director of Innovation & Growth and Deputy CEO, Emmy O’Shaughnessy, commended the BGF team on its exceptional support: “BGF has somehow, in a very short space of time, gained a strong grasp and genuine understanding for the complex challenges constraining charities from achieving greater impact. Every person at BGF that we interacted with has listened with integrity and exceptional curiosity. The strategic input offered to date has been generous and inspiring.

“Paired with a sense of BGF’s authentic compassion for alleviating societal injustices, this partnership has been one of the most inspiring we have been a part of for a very long time. I hope many others follow their lead in offering high-level strategic input, coupled with the unrestricted funding that can set charities free to deliver on their vision. A huge and heartfelt thanks from Oxfordshire Youth, and ultimately, the young people we serve, who will positively benefit from innovative relationships like this one.”

The value of skills-based volunteering

Feedback like this reinforces the value that skills-based volunteering has on the charity, the volunteer and the business. These three ‘wins’ were recently highlighted in a report from Lloyds Bank Foundation.

Through its relationship with BGF, Oxfordshire Youth gains valuable expertise and support, our team members enhance their skills and derive personal satisfaction, and we continue to foster a culture of social responsibility and employee development through the BGF Foundation programmes.

Natasha Murray, BGF’s Research & Intelligence Manager, sums up her experience: “Helping Oxfordshire Youth with their knowledge management solution was rewarding in many ways. It allowed me and James to use our skills in a different context, collaborate across BGF teams, and learn new skills, such as Adam’s prioritisation model, MOSCOW. A comment from Oxfordshire Youth during the process also deeply resonated with me — they found it invaluable in realising their challenges and solutions were common and manageable. Knowledge management is a continuous journey, and with Oxfordshire Youth’s passion and commitment, I look forward to seeing their progress.”

Contact information

To talk to the BGF Foundation about skills-based volunteering or charities working with young people, please contact info@bgffoundation.co.uk. To engage with the work of Oxfordshire Youth, please contact Emmy O’Shaughnessy, Director of Innovation & Growth and Deputy CEO at emmy.oshaughness@oxfordshireyouth.org.