Mustard Tree

Today, some of the Foundation Recruitment team have been volunteering at the Manchester charity; Mustard Tree. Mustard Tree was formed in 1994 and has since been striving to transform the lives of people in Greater Manchester who are trapped in poverty or homeless. They have a whole portfolio of work and support they provide to enable individuals to gain the skills and self-confidence they need to reach their full potential.

We volunteered in their Manchester retail destination based in Ancoats.  We spent the morning working on the shop floor, alongside their staff, volunteers and clients; helping customers purchase furniture and clothes. We also ran their food club scheme – a great opportunity for those needing support to come, choose the food they prefer, and be able to purchase £15 worth of goods for just £2. In addition, they have a great team upstairs providing a freshly cooked lunch for all the individuals involved in the charity.

The afternoon was spent in the warehouse sorting through donations and pricing them. The amount of support they are receiving from the public and local retail stores including the Arndale centre is brilliant to see, but if anyone has any old clothes, furniture, or anything that could be reused please do consider taking it down.

The entire team all have fantastic, positive attitudes and have done a brilliant job creating a colourful and welcoming community atmosphere. It was a great experience, really rewarding and informative. If anybody has any spare time to volunteer I would highly recommend getting in touch with Mustard Tree – the work they are doing is really making a difference to Greater Manchester.

Kat Whitehead, Senior Marketing Executive, Foundation Recruitment