Discover more about ReachOut

We are thousands of young people, volunteer mentors, alumni, ambassadors, fundraisers, project leaders, programme managers, trustees, teachers and support staff. Together we work to build character and improve attainment in all the young people we work with.

ABOUT REACHOUT

ABOUT US

We are a charity who partners with schools in disadvantaged communities to support young people aged 9 to 16 referred to us for one of the following reasons: low academic attainment, low confidence, behaviour issues, or because their teachers believe they would benefit from the support of a role model.

We deliver one-to-one mentoring projects in London, Liverpool and Greater Manchester.

Our Mission Statement

REACHOUT MISSION STATEMENT
ReachOut is a mentoring charity working with children in disadvantaged communities to raise aspirations and help them grow in character and competence.

We improve self-confidence and develop Numeracy, Literacy and Communication Skills, whilst reinforcing our core values of Fairness, Self-Control, Good Judgement and Staying Power.

We do this through one-to-one mentoring with positive role models and team activities, to promote leadership, trust and responsibility.

Staying Power

resilience, grit, the ability to stick at something, to honour commitments, to see tasks through to the end.

Self-Control

the ability to keep emotions in check and to choose to act (or not to act) in a certain way despite how we may feel.

Fairness

to treat others with respect and empathy, honouring rights and responsibilities, and being honest.

Good Judgement

the ability to consider consequences and make decisions that benefit both ourselves AND those affected by our choice.

REACHOUT
CLUB

ReachOut Club projects run straight after school for Years 5 and 6. Each project supports 10 young people for 20 weeks. The sessions involve one-to-one Maths and English activities focusing on building academic confidence, character and growth mind-set, combined with fun group activities such as sports, arts and crafts.

Mentors encourage their mentees to reflect on their use of good character in and outside of school.

Providing young people with their own mentor whilst in Year 5 and 6 helps them to prepare for the challenging transition into secondary school for Key Stage 2 assessments (SATs).

REACHOUT ACADEMY

ReachOut Academy projects run in the evenings for Year 7 – Year 11. Each project supports 16 young people and runs for 30 weeks.

Each two-hour session includes an hour of one-to-one individual academic mentoring focusing on Maths and English and group activities all centred around developing character. The second hour is an extra-curricular group activity also centred around character, such as football coaching, drama or yoga!

Our mentors help young people navigate through challenging teenage years and ultimately prepare them for crucial GCSE exams and transition into further education and work.

Importantly, our mentoring programmes can also help young people following the Covid-19 pandemic, through a focus on emotional wellbeing, communication skills and confidence.

REACHOUT Home

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ReachOut Home is our new online mentoring programme developed as a response to COVID-19. We work with our partner schools to deliver online projects which support 10-16 young people. 

Our programme – facilitated over Zoom – runs for 20 weeks in primary schools and 30 weeks in secondary schools, with each 1 hour and 15 minute session including a combination of one-to-one individual mentoring and group activities.

Our programme is designed to support our young people’s emotional wellbeing, with a particular focus on developing character and building the necessary skills to navigate the challenges of our ‘new normal’.

REACHOUT+

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ReachOut+ projects run in the evenings to help 16 – 19 year olds transition from secondary school into adulthood with the best possible opportunities to lead happy and healthy lives.
This is an online project that focuses on one-to-one mentoring to cater to the individual needs of the young person. We also offer workshops to develop the skills and experience of the mentees.
Our mentors on this project offer support with current studies, options, finding work, apprenticeships, CV building, soft skills development and character development.

WHAT MAKES REACHOUT WORK

OUR VOLUNTEER MENTORS

Our mentors are volunteers are from all walks of life, backgrounds and ages and are driven to help young people.

After attending a compulsory and comprehensive 3-hour training, and passing our safeguarding checks, volunteers become our mentors. They show up every week during the academic year to support their mentee, both with their academic work and in developing their character strengths.
Find out about becoming one of our amazing volunteers

OUR PROJECT LEADERS

Project Leaders are sessional staff who facilitate our weekly ReachOut Club and ReachOut Academy sessions. This is done through the ReachOut Leadership Development Programme, a one-year scheme designed to support their professional development and provide direct experience leading groups of young people and volunteers.

Interested in becoming a project leader?

Find out more about being a project leader and how to apply
“At first, I was really hesitant to take on the Project Leader role, despite having mentored with ReachOut. However, with the support of the team I’ve really developed my skills. For example, at the Mentee Graduation, I stood up in front of 200 people and presented an award which is something I would never ever have been able to have done before, and isn’t an opportunity I could gain in my other situations.”

Amy McCutcheon
Project Leader at ReachOut Academy, Dean Trust Ardwick, Manchester

OUR AMBASSADORS

ReachOut Ambassadors must have attended at least one year of a ReachOut Programme. Aged 16-25, they volunteer with us as mentors, fundraisers, corporate champions and as mentors of our Youth Panel.

They also speak on our behalf at events, ranging from lunch and learn presentations through to keynote speeches.

They are powerful advocates for young people, mentoring, character development and ReachOut. We’re lucky to have them represent us.

“To me, ReachOut is a place where children can not only develop academically but also open their mind to the wider world, explore what the future may hold and develop lifelong relationships with their peers and mentors. ReachOut has shaped my life post 16 as it gave me a goal to work towards, a career to aspire to and general guidance on how my life would change after school.”

Shervann
ReachOut Ambassador

OUR TRUSTEES

Our Board of Trustees is responsible for the overall control and strategic direction of ReachOut. They meet regularly to review, discuss and agree on our strategies and receive reports and updates from senior managers. Our trustees work for ReachOut voluntarily to make sure we are doing all we can to help disadvantaged young people to achieve their potential.

Edmund Lehmann, Chair

A former mentor, Ed became a trustee in 2009 and Chairman in 2011. In his very early career Ed was a youth worker for the London Borough of Camden, and is a qualified mountain leader, climbing instructor and Duke of Edinburgh's Award expeditions assessor. After 15 years in commodities trading and business development at Shell and BG Group, Ed now runs his own fund, investing in financial markets as well as start-up ventures where he has a particular interest and relevant experience to offer. Ed holds the bilingual MBA from IESE Business School in Barcelona and an undergraduate degree from the University of Manchester and Sciences-Po, Paris, in Philosophy and Political Science. He leads the board and has a particular focus on business planning and strategy.

Marion Baker

As a trustee of the Four Acre Trust Marion got to know ReachOut from 2011, visiting the charity and learning what we do first hand. A former Director of Ohal Marketing Consultancy (a WPP company providing statistical modelling and consultancy to major companies in the UK, Europe and USA), her responsibilities included project delivery, recruitment, training and people development as well as sales and marketing. Now retired she is a volunteer fundraiser for the NSPCC and a member of their senior volunteer committees as well as retaining her role as a trustee at the Four Acre Trust. Marion brings extensive operational experience of SME life and detailed understanding of ReachOut’s space in the charity sector to the board.

David Fass

A trustee since 2017, David's financial services career spans over 30 years with expertise founded in capital markets and advisory. Now Head of Macquarie Infrastructure & Real Assets at Macquarie Group, David has an MBA from the Stern School of Business at New York University and a BA in Economics from the University of Michigan. David is an accomplished endurance athlete, a keen ocean racer and active in several philanthropic endeavours that focus on education and opportunities for disadvantaged youth, and has a role on the Advisory Board for the Prince's Trust International. He brings business strategy and leadership expertise to our board.

Nimesh Patel

Nimesh is Chief Financial Officer and Executive Director of Spirax-Scaro, a FTSE 100 engineering company. Before joining them in 2020, Nimesh held various senior roles in the finance sector including Chief Financial Officer of the De Beers Group and Head of Corporate Finance at Anglo American. He spent 14 years in investment banking at both JP Morgan, and as a Managing Director at UBS. Nimesh holds a BSc in Mathematics, Operations Research, Statistics and Economics from the University of Warwick. He joined the board in 2019, and specialises in business planning and finance, leading ReachOut’s Finance and Impact Sub-committee.

James Browne

Currently Director, Specialist Businesses at BT, James has held a variety of senior commercial and marketing roles globally across FTSE 100 companies covering consumer goods, durables and finance sectors, including at Hiscox, and Phillips, where he held various general manager and senior marketing roles over ten years. An advocate of building businesses by committing to the success and well-being of people, he holds a 1st class degree from University of Bristol and the bilingual MBA from IESE Business School. James specialises in business growth, commercial development and marketing on our board.

Zeynab Yusuf

Zeynab joined ReachOut as a mentor in 2015, progressing to a Project Leader and leading an exceptional mentoring project through her 2nd & 3rd years of university. She carried our her undergraduate research project on the factors that influence young people’s educational and occupational aspirations and after graduating became a secondary school Mathematics teacher. She became a trustee in 2019 and helps the board with understanding and experience of our young people, their lives and also the challenges for teachers and parents.

OUR STAFF TEAM

SENIOR MANAGEMENT TEAM

Our experienced Senior Management leads the organisation and works closely with the Board of Trustees to ensure ReachOut is always delivering outstanding front line services, innovating creatively, and building for the future.

Bejal Shah

Chief Executive Officer

Joy Upchurch

Head of Delivery

James Williams

Director of Marketing and Partnerships

PROJECT TEAM

Our project team manages all of our projects – liaising with schools, supporting mentors and maximising the impact on students.

Alice Cleary

Delivery Lead

Mehmet Aygun

Programme Development Manager

Nicole Burgess

Project Manager, London

Ella Downs

Project Manager, London

Ruth Butler

Project Manager, North West

Jess Morgan

Project Manager, North West

Leonie Saunderson

Project Officer, North West

Rory Hemsted

Project Officer, North West

Kiran Khela

Project Officer, North West

Lizzie Reay

Project Officer, London

Alondra Vera

Project Officer, London

Phoebe Gittins

Project Officer, London

Samii Miller

Project Officer, London

VOLUNTEER TEAM

Our volunteer team leads in recruiting over 1000 mentors in our locations of London, Greater Manchester and Liverpool. They design and deliver our extensive mentor training programme and ensure volunteers have a fantastic experience at ReachOut.

Rebecca Waite

Volunteer Manager

Sia Kampouri

Volunteer Officer, North West

Alice McGILL

Volunteer Officer, London

FUNDRAISing Team

Our fundraising team develops partnerships with companies, trusts and foundations and individuals.

Felicity Lewis

Business Development Manager

Hannah Seers

Senior Fundraising Officer

Ruby Richards

Fundraising Officer

SUPPORT TEAM

Our support team work closely with all teams to ensure ReachOut runs smoothly.  Our Operations Manager, Marketing Manager and People Manager liaise with senior management to support the strategic development of the organisation.

Chady Sabeti

People Manager

Kevin McCarthy

Operations Manager

Tom Jeffery

Marketing Manager

Nav Jayawardena

Project Assistant

JOIN US

JOIN THE TEAM!

By joining ReachOut you’ll become part of a fun, tight-knit, supportive team where you’ll constantly be progressing and learning, whilst making a difference to the young people we work with.

Current opportunities:

We're recruiting for A new Parnerships Coordinator

Application deadline: Wednesday 17 August 10:00 am.

We are looking for a highly organised and committed individual who can take responsibility for our programme of Work Experience Visits (WEVs), which give young people exciting, horizon-expanding experiences with our company and other partners.

The Partnerships Coordinator will be part of a supportive Fundraising & Partnerships Team, reporting to the Senior Partnerships Officer but working very closely with colleagues from teams across both our London and Manchester offices.

As well as the coordination and management of our Workplace Experience Visit programme (WEVs), the Partnerships Coordinator will hold responsibility for prospecting and applying to a portfolio of smaller Trust & Foundation funders, as well as supporting the team with a variety of tasks associated with Community and Corporate fundraising. 

Find out more about the role and how to apply.

We're recruiting for new project leaders!

We’re recruiting for new Project Leaders! Paid for 5 hours a week, our Project Leaders are part of the ReachOut team, they plan and deliver ReachOut sessions and lead a group of 10-16 young people and volunteer mentors.  The hourly rate is £11.05 in London and £9.90 in Greater Manchester, Liverpool, Oldham & Leeds.

As a Project Leader, you’ll be part of our Leadership Development Programme where you can receive a wide range of interesting and useful training, exciting career mentoring as well as networking and social opportunities!

Find all the information you need on becoming a project leader here

SENIOR MANAGEMENT TEAM

Our experienced Senior Management leads the organisation and works closely with the Board of Trustees to ensure ReachOut is always delivering outstanding front line services, innovating creatively, and building for the future.

SENIOR MANAGEMENT TEAM

Our experienced Senior Management leads the organisation and works closely with the Board of Trustees to ensure ReachOut is always delivering outstanding front line services, innovating creatively, and building for the future.