Martin, our new Hon Treasurer and former Learning Mentor

On 15h September 2021 Martin become Katherine Low Settlement’s new Hon Treasurer, after Nick Stopford’s recent retirement. Martin has been a Trustee of KLS since 2019, and a volunteer Learning Mentor with our Love to Learn education team for 2 years before that. Here’s Martin in his own words.  

“I first got involved with Katherine Low Settlement for selfish reasons. It was 2016 and the UK political climate had descended into nastiness following the Brexit vote (as it turned out, it still had a long way further to descend!). I decided to volunteer as a Learning Mentor with KLS’s Love to Learn education programme because I thought it would cheer me up. It seemed more constructive than being furious on Twitter. Thankfully, supporting young people from refugee backgrounds with their school studies was the perfect antidote, and I thoroughly enjoyed working with a number of students over the years that followed.

I got to know the KLS team and I was so impressed by their commitment to helping families in my community. So when an opportunity arose to apply for a trustee position, and help at a more strategic level, I jumped at the chance. I became a trustee in January 2019.

So far, it has been interesting, varied, inspiring and humbling. As trustees, we are ultimately responsible for ensuring KLS carries out its mission to support the community properly and appropriately. In reality, that means we wear any number of hats: enthusiastic supporter, critical friend, sounding board, fact-finder. I’m in awe of the valuable work carried out at KLS, particularly the way they have managed to keep the show on the road during the current Covid nightmare. I feel genuinely proud to be contributing to it, albeit as one small spoke in the KLS wheel.

I can’t recommend volunteering highly enough. Getting started is easy. Just find a charity supporting something you care about, and offer to help. I’m sure you will find it as rewarding as I do.”

Come and volunteer with us

Our volunteers are truly amazing. They help us run all of our community services.

If you’re interested in volunteering then please fill in our ‘Volunteer Application Form’.

Our volunteers help with:

  • mentoring for an hour a week to support a refugee young person
  • supporting one of our GCSE study groups that meet for 2 hours a week in Battersea
  • helping out at a Homework Club on a Wednesday or Thursday from 4.30pm-7.00pm
  • being an escort for older people on and off our minibus during the day Tuesday – Thursdays
  • supporting older people as a ‘Fone Friend’- a telephone befriender with local older people
  • teaching in our ESOL (English/Maths/IT) classes as a volunteer teaching assistant 
  • help with fundraising
  • strengthen our communication and marketing 
  • and so much more.

Do get in touch. We’d love to hear from you.

 

About Katherine Low Settlement

Katherine Low Settlement is a much-loved, busy charity that has been at the heart of the community in Battersea, south-west London, since 1924.

With a few staff and a lot of volunteers, Katherine Low Settlement runs a range of its own popular community projects including educational courses and wellbeing activities. The charity supports children, young people and their families, older people, refugees and newly arrived communities of all genders, nationalities and religions.

The Katherine Low Settlement building in Battersea High Street, opened in 1924, is used for community activities and events, usually – until the arrival of Covid-19 – by over 500 people a week. Its rooms are available for hire at affordable rates.

Katherine Low Settlement is grateful for the funding received from supporters, trusts and foundations to enable the charity to continue to reduce poverty and isolation and bring Battersea together.

 

Press contacts

Aaron Barbour
Director
Katherine Low Settlement
Telephone: 020 7223 2845.
Email: [email protected]
Web: www.klsettlement.org.uk

Pictures
High resolution digital images available from Katherine Low Settlement press contacts.

Support our family

We are committed to building stronger communities and enabling people to challenge themselves and find ways out of isolation through our varied community projects. There are so many ways you can support our work and help us to deliver our services to even more people.

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