Volunteering gives lawyers invaluable 'real world' training, which is impossible to replicate back in the office, says Reed Smith partner Carolyn Pepper

When firms look at how they can support communities through corporate social responsibility (CSR) programmes, many opt for schemes that try to improve the job chances and skills of the people they're supporting. They hope that in turn this will help the personal development of their own staff. 

There are, however, other types of programme addressing a range of issues that are less typical but equally worthwhile. For example, the less-travelled road of volunteering can still improve the lives of those supported. But it has the added benefit of developing communication, leadership and teaching skills for employees – skills that companies often have to address anyway through in-house training. 

Reed Smith is an international law firm based near Liverpool Street, right in the heart of the City of London. It is impossible for anyone working in the City not to see the sharp contrast between the area's wealth and that of its less privileged neighbours. This juxtaposition is emphasised further by a palpable lack of interaction between the two.

We wanted to make an impact on our local community and help bridge this gap. So we chose to work with a small, local charity that may have missed out otherwise on corporate support. In addition to a strong volunteering programme on social mobility and our award-winning diversity programme (including our disability task force, which focuses on employment opportunities for disabled people) we also wanted to work with socially excluded groups.

Size isn't everything

Smaller charities can often struggle to find corporate partners because they face competition from bigger organisations that have the resources to develop and deliver large-scale volunteering programmes. Measuring any increases in 'social inclusion' or the development of participants' soft skills – such as confidence – is difficult but this does not make it less valuable. 

We decided to work with U-Turn, a charity supporting vulnerable local women who may have learning difficulties, alcohol or substance abuse problems or may have been stuck in cycles of prostitution or domestic violence. U-Turn supports its clients both through a confidential outreach programme and a drop-in centre. The women supported by U-Turn's work have often had their self-confidence completely eroded and are left feeling socially excluded. 

Having this project honoured with a Lord Mayor's Dragon Award by the City of London Corporation demonstrates the importance of working on small programmes with a genuine focus on those participating.

The project is run in partnership with Create, a creative arts charity, and by a number of people from Reed Smith, including me, associate Chloe Rogers and legal secretary Carole Mehigan (who have dedicated a huge amount of time and effort to the cause). Our employees attend group sessions with the charity to help women build up their basic social skills and confidence and enable them to become reintegrated into the wider community. 

In it for the long haul

Given the vulnerability of this group, the women have benefited from our long-term partnership that builds upon the work of each previous year.

Our U-Turn project works in a very specific way, providing a sympathetic ear during creative arts sessions, which involve acting, writing and photography. We also host role-playing sessions that boost participants' communication and, critically, negotiation skills. 

The results are far-reaching. For the women involved the improvement in soft skills such as confidence, teamwork and dealing with conflict, is an important step in their journey. From our side, we found that we had a more motivated team working towards a collective goal – 90 per cent of Reed Smith volunteers said they felt involvement in the project had improved their teamwork skills. 

Feeling the effects

The benefits to our firm are also linked to our target of improving the 'wellness' of employees. 

These types of projects help strengthen morale and boost pride in the firm. The volunteers have been able to develop skills that are directly transferable to their work at Reed Smith. 

By interacting with this socially excluded group, our employees have improved their communication, leadership and teaching skills. Doing this in a real-world environment is always more effective than formal training and gives junior members of the team the chance to take on more responsibility.

So much internal training is based on basic skills such as teamwork and communication – which are crucial in a law firm. But what better way to improve and hone these skills than through building up a relationship with people from an entirely different background and dealing with profound problems?

While we also have a strong social mobility volunteering programme, we are proud of the work we have done on fighting social exclusion. Working with U-Turn has been a wonderful experience and as the charity is small, we have been able to really get to know the participants over the years and make a real difference in their lives.

Much can to be gained when looking outside the box when it comes to CSR projects. So many wonderful opportunities can be found, often on our doorsteps. 

Carolyn Pepper is a partner at Reed Smith. Reed Smith won the Social Inclusion award at the 2012 Lord Mayor's Dragon Award, run by the City of London Corporation, for its work with Create/U-Turn.