Volunteering @ The Mix

by The Mix Staff

Friday 7th June 2019

Akua talks about her experience of volunteering for The Mix.

I wanted to ensure young people’s voices were being heard 

I joined the Mix in 2017. I stumbled upon their website in search of a volunteering role as I wanted to ensure young people’s voices were being heard. I was also keen to find out how youth charities operate as I’d like to set up my own one day. Two years down the line, I can honestly say, it has been an amazing journey. There have been so many opportunities and I have grown so much as a result. This post is to give you an insight into what my journey has been like so far and also just to say thank you to The Mix for all they have done for me!

My job is to highlight how amazing and powerful young people are

My role with The Mix’s Youth Council enables me to empower both myself and others, especially those who may not have a chance to voice their opinions. This is something The Mix does really well. My role as part of the Youth Council is to help The Mix understand young people more in terms of the hurdles we face, but it is also to highlight how amazing and powerful young people are. This has been achieved through co-creations, virtual meetings, coming together at events and simply by voicing opinions and making suggestions whenever the opportunity arises.

Another huge part of my role as part of the Youth Council is defining and recreating the youth panel model, in order to increase its impact. Plans for this began in Manchester, during our residential and led us all the way back to London to begin our 100 day project where we split into teams to bring it to life. It has been so rewarding being part of an organisation that is so passionate and determined to get it right and give back. I am excited to see all of our work come to fruition and to see the panel grow even more. My only wish was that we were all more local so that I could see other members more often!

There have been so many opportunities 

I have been extremely lucky with the opportunities I have been given, here are a few:

1. UK Largest Mental Health Festival – I took charge of The Mix’s social media accounts to journal and promote all the powerful things that were happening at the event. I got to meet the legendary Hussain Manawer who has done such great things to increase mental health awareness.

2. Chatbot Creation – I worked with the Deputy Director of Digital at The Mix and a team of developers at JP Morgan to develop a chatbot which is going to do lots of super great things! I am really excited to see the end results!

3. Brand Co-Creation – I helped to design and create a video about what The Mix does to help increase their brand awareness.

4. Mentoring – I have been given powerful mentoring sessions by the head of Fundraising and Philanthropy. I will treasure the pool of wisdom and advice I was given during these sessions!

5. Training – I participated in consulting sessions with Real Insight. I also led a few sessions which made me feel very valued.

I would encourage you to volunteer

I have been showering The Mix with praises in this blog post because that’s how much of an impact they have made. My public speaking skills have improved. I have been given a voice. My awareness of the several issues facing young people has increased. They have cheered me on and have been a listening ear when needed. This is what volunteering should be about! It has been a great way to gain an immense amount of experience, especially for someone like me who hasn’t taken the conventional career route.

I would encourage you to volunteer in general, simply because of how rewarding it can be. Lastly, watch out for the Mix! There are always so many exciting things happening. So be on the look out and try to keep up!