Upbeat Volunteers: Richard's Story

Richard joined the Upbeat Volunteer team in 2022. He told us about his experiences supporting students in our English classes.

Tell us a bit about yourself, and why you volunteer at Upbeat English classes.

Hi, I’m Richard and I’ve been volunteering at Upbeat since September. I reduced my hours at work, so it gave me a bit of spare time to do other things from my normal job, and a couple of my friends told me about Upbeat (they were volunteering here) and it sounded really interesting, so I thought I’d like to come along and help out with English classes.

We sit in and help the participants take part in learning English. Sometimes there might be somebody who’s struggling a bit more, so I can go along and work alongside them, and try and help them to understand. Google translate is a great thing!

English lessons are so important for people who’ve come to seek refuge in our country. They’re an essential way for us to give a warm welcome, and help people get integrated into community, so they know how to get around, how to go to the shops, or to get the things that they need. It really builds their confidence of living here and feeling part of the community.

What do you get up to in Upbeat English classes?

We do a lot of roleplay in English classes to make things more interesting. The teacher might use one of the volunteers – such as myself – and engage in a conversation. One time we acted out a wedding to demonstrate what an English ceremony would look like!

How do English classes create community?

Often, we ask participants about aspects of their own culture. In the lesson on weddings, we talked about how you might celebrate a wedding in your own country. That gave people confidence to speak about something they knew about, but also gave others listening the chance to learn about a new culture. English classes aren’t just about learning the language, but learning about the people who are there with you.

What have been your highlights?

It’s really nice to see people begin to grasp things a bit more as they move along and gain confidence in actually speaking out in the classes. But also, for me, I receive a lot when I come here, being part of a community – a family, really. Some of the participants have been coming here for a while but they welcome me, and are really appreciative of what’s being provided through Upbeat. I really enjoy my time here and I’d certainly recommend it to anybody else.

We’re currently recruiting for more volunteer to join our team, supporting our friends seeking refuge with language-learning, befriending, childcare (so students with children don’t miss out on learning English), temporary accommodation, kids’ work, communications, and fundraising. Find all you need to know at upbeatcommunities.org/volunteer.