Bath and North East Somerset Third Sector Group (3SG) celebrates another successful Volunteer Fair, which saw over 300 people attend visiting 43 charity stalls showcasing their services at the Apex Hotel in Bath.

Alongside charity stalls, the event saw various talks and workshops be held throughout the day, which included digital technology and volunteering, the power of storytelling, discussing the changing landscape of volunteering, a special Q&A session and the launch of the B&NES Community Awards.

3SG had also held a special breakfast networking event prior to the event’s opening, which was attended by over 70 people. It looked at balancing purpose with profit, and why volunteering can boost productivity and job satisfaction.

Becky Brooks, director at 3SG, said: “We suspect that there are many businesses who are keen to support local charities, but don’t know where to start. We hope that this was the beginning of a much closer dialogue between both the local business community and the Third Sector in B&NES, so that we can have really honest conversations about what is truly needed to do good in communities.

“The Volunteer Fair was hugely successful and we will be looking to see if we can run the event in 2025, building on the progress we have made over the past two events and to see if we can make this an annual event in the B&NES calendar that everyone looks forward to.

“I’d like to say a huge thank you to the charities who came along and created such wonderful stalls - the whole room had a brilliant energy and we hope that you found some fantastic new volunteers.

“3SG is a charity itself, existing to strengthen the Third Sector in B&NES through 1:1 support, advocacy work, events and training. We have a membership network of around 250 local charities, social enterprises and community groups and a staff team of just five.

“We’ll be looking for anyone interested in sponsoring next year’s Volunteer Fair to please get in touch and help support the Third Sector in B&NES.”

Feedback from stallholders who attended on the day was strong, with comments including: “The organisation was excellent and the event was very productive for us”

Becky added: “We had a lot of interest.” “It was an exceptionally well-organised event. My colleague and I agreed it was the best Volunteer Fair we’ve attended, with great engagement from the public.”