Building the right fit: How businesses and charities can create meaningful partnerships

One of our development team spoke to Heidi Mulvey, Head of Community Engagement at Cambridge University Press & Assessment, about her colleagues’ experience of volunteering with charity partners.

This blog shares highlights from their conversation

For many organisations, supporting charities and communities is about building genuine, mutually beneficial relationships. These relationships are built on shared purpose, mutual respect, and a willingness to explore different ways of working together.

At Cambridge University Press & Assessment (CUP&A), employee supported volunteering (ESV) is not just about giving time — it’s about building meaningful, long-term relationships that benefit both communities and the organisation itself.

Why CUP&A engages in employee supported volunteering

We see this as part of our educational mission — a contribution we can make that goes beyond our products and services.

Volunteering enables colleagues to extend that mission beyond their day-to-day roles by supporting local schools, charities, and community initiatives.

This creates real benefits for communities — but also for the organisation:

• Colleagues develop skills in new environments
• Teams can build stronger relationships through shared experiences
• Employees feel more engaged and connected to the organisation
• The organisation gains deeper insight into the communities it serves.

The main purpose is to help organisations achieve their aims — but it’s also good for us …It’s good for people’s sense of wellbeing and how they feel about their employer.

 

 

Working together in a completely different context is great for teams.

 

It helps us attract and retain talent — people’s attitudes towards this kind of work have a significant influence on how they feel about us.

For example, CUP&A colleagues working with a youth organisation have helped support programmes designed to keep young people engaged in education and away from risky pathways — directly aligning with the organisation’s wider mission.

 

How CUP&A selects partners and the relationships it builds

A key principle at CUP&A is that partnerships should be meaningful.

It’s about going beyond the transactional and building genuine relationships.

Charity partners are selected through a colleague-led process:

• Employees nominate local, education-focused charities
• Shortlisted organisations are invited to outline how a partnership would make a difference
• Employees vote on the final choice.

It’s transparent, it’s fair, and it involves people — which is really important for buy-in.

 

It introduces you to organisations you might not otherwise know about, who are doing incredible work, often with very little resource.

This ensures strong alignment and ownership across the organisation.

Flexibility in partnerships

Although partnerships are typically planned for two years, CUP&A recently chose to extend several relationships for an additional year because they were delivering strong impact and momentum.

This reflects a broader mindset of being responsive to what is working — and prioritising outcomes over rigid timelines.

The breadth of volunteering at CUP&A

One of the most striking aspects of CUP&A’s approach is the range of ways colleagues can get involved. The organisation offers colleagues two paid volunteer days a year, which can be broken down into hours if required.

There are many, flexible ways our people can volunteer. They can join centrally organised team volunteering, but they can also use their time to support local initiatives they’re personally passionate about.

Team volunteering

Teams often support events or community initiatives together.

Example:

At the Cambridge Beer Festival, around 20 CUP&A volunteers spent time engaging with attendees and encouraging them to donate their glass deposits to the Red Hen Project in 2025 and the Samaritans in 2026. This simple activity helped raise a significant amount for both charities.

Fundraising and practical support

Fundraising activities range from informal to large-scale.

 

Examples:

 

• Hosting a fire walk event to raise funds
• Running bake sales and craft fairs internally
• Producing a charity calendar sold through CUP&A’s bookshop
• Providing meeting space for charity activities.

These activities often combine financial support with awareness-raising.

Skilled volunteering

Employees use their professional expertise to support charities in targeted ways.

Examples:

• A data specialist helped a youth charity better analyse and use its information
• An employee provided IT support to a charity, offering expertise that would otherwise have been costly
• A designer created branding for a charity anniversary campaign.

Sometimes the most valuable thing is expertise that charities would otherwise have to pay for.

Trustee and governance roles

Employees are encouraged to take on trustee roles, contributing to governance and strategy while building their own leadership and problem-solving skills.

Mentoring

Mentoring takes many forms and is mutually beneficial.

Example:

Senior leaders at CUP&A have mentored school leaders, shared leadership experience while also learning from those working in high-pressure service delivery environments.

We learn as much from the charity as they benefit from our support.

 

 

It’s not one-sided — going in on an equal footing makes for much better conversations about how we can work together.

In-kind and creative support

Some of the most impactful contributions are unexpected and arise through relationships.

 

Examples:

 

• Offering office space for events or meetings
• Hosting creative workshops or awareness sessions.

Some of the best opportunities are not planned for and evolve through conversations you have as part of an ongoing relationship.

How volunteering is communicated and celebrated within CUP&A

CUP&A takes a proactive, multi-channel approach to engagement.

Communication

• Internal platforms share opportunities
• Targeted staff networks promote relevant activities
• Presentations at team meetings and leadership forums highlight opportunities.

Example:

Volunteering opportunities for family-focused charities are shared through staff networks for parents and carers, ensuring they reach the most relevant audiences.

Celebration

Celebration plays a key role in building momentum.

• Stories are shared internally and externally
• Activities are promoted through social media and corporate channels
• Success is highlighted to inspire others.

This helps create a culture where volunteering is visible, valued, and encouraged.

Tips for creating successful business–charity partnerships

CUP&A’s experience highlights several principles that are key to making partnerships work.

1. Prioritise relationships over transactions

The most effective partnerships go beyond simply giving money or hours. They are built on understanding, dialogue, and shared purpose.

2. Be open, flexible, and responsive

Some of the best outcomes are unplanned. Regular communication helps identify new opportunities as they arise.

Be open to regular discussion — that’s how you spot where you can really help.

3. Recognise mutual value

This is not a one-way exchange. Businesses and charities both bring expertise and insight — and both learn from each other.

Be humble — and remember you’ll learn as much as you give.

4. Start small and build

You don’t need a large programme to begin. A single activity or connection can grow into a strong partnership over time.

5. Avoid being overly demanding

Businesses should be mindful of the capacity of smaller charities and ensure requests genuinely support — rather than burden — their work.

Don’t be inappropriately demanding — small charities don’t always have capacity for everything you might want to do.

6. Empower employees

Giving staff flexibility (such as volunteering days) and encouraging participation is critical to success.

7. For charities: be confident and proactive

Charities bring deep expertise and should:

• Be clear about their needs
• Suggest opportunities (including smaller or flexible ones)
• Maintain ongoing dialogue with potential partners.

Recognise your power — you are the experts in your field.

 

Be confident about saying when something won’t work.

 

Try things and share opportunities — even if nothing happens immediately, it gets you into people’s thinking.

Final thought

Partnerships grow through connection, openness, and shared intent.

Even a small opportunity can open the door to something impactful.

 

Just find one small thing you can do together and build from it.