Volunteers' Week is our chance to celebrate the amazing people who give their time and skills to make Save the Children's work possible. Meet Kaysey, one of our Parent Campaigners who uses her voice to make a change for children.
I’m a parent campaigner
We’re a group who are working towards making positive changes that impact families.
We primarily campaign about trying to bring about changes to things such as the benefit system, the cost of living, childcare issues and the housing crisis.
As parents we understand the struggles behind closed doors that currently plague many families, the taboo subjects and also the misunderstanding behind many people's opinions regarding benefits.
We work hard to try and get the government and the general public to support and understand the changes that need to be put into effect to help more people be able to get out of poverty, get back into work and also keep roofs over their heads.
I manage to fit campaigning into my life as it’s something I genuinely enjoy.
I’ve been a single parent all of my adult life, working full time and also attending college, running my own business and have at times faced real challenges and had to fight every step of the way to get the life I have now. So to be able to share this and tell people my story and why I am so passionate about creating change going forward felt like a big achievement.
As a parent campaigner there is no pressure as to how much or how little work you need to put into your role. We have regular meetings with the group, for example on Zoom discussing different subjects, giving opinions and your own stories or experiences. We can also get involved in lots of different ways such as online rallies gaining support, making awareness and spreading our message, taking part in interviews in newspapers, on the radio, tv, spreading our message on social media platforms and even presenting our case to parliament.
The impact of volunteering for me
Being part of the group has let me meet so many people, from different walks of life, and it’s really nice when we’re all able to get together and discuss different topics and give our opinions and experiences.
The support from the group is great as well, everyone is always there for an ear to listen to and a shoulder to cry on and everyone is always happy and excited whenever anyone is doing something positive and exciting.
Campaigning has also given me an extra purpose, to feel like I am making a difference not just to my own family but also helping other families, gives me a sense of achievement I haven't had before.
It has also made me interested and passionate about opportunities in the future for more campaigning and ideas I can bring forward.
I’ve had some really memorable moments volunteering
My first was travelling to Shrewsbury where I took part in a rally day. I was able to meet Michelle and Heather (Save the Children staff campaigners) who were meeting potential new campaigners and was explaining a little about the work we do, what we are campaigning for and why this is so important. We did little workshops where the group were able to interact and give their opinions and stories, and I was asked to be a guest speaker where I shared my own experience. From the rally day we had a parent sign up and also lots of positive feedback.
My second was being asked if I would like to help put together an online rally with one of the other parents in the group highlighting the cost-of-living crisis. Over a few weeks we planned an online rally, inviting councilors, other charities, MPs, food bank workers and other parents. We researched and put together PowerPoint presentations explaining the cause of the rally and what we wanted to achieve. The rally had a great turn out and on the day, we had guest speakers from other charitable organisations who explained how the cost of living is affecting families in their areas and the work they do, my 14 year old daughter even spoke up and told the people who attended as a child how the cost of living crisis affects her and how she is worried about the future and what affect this will have on her attending uni, being able to afford to buy a home or even just live her life.
The rally was a really positive experience and doing this kind of work has made me consider a future in doing further campaign work and maybe looking into it as a career option.
We want a better future for families
The biggest challenge for myself since being a campaigner is listening to some of the difficult experiences people have shared. To hear in 2023 there are families in Britain, some working families using things such as food banks and facing homelessness to me is heart-breaking, I find this difficult to hear but also makes me more determined to try and bring in change.
For change to happen I believe more people need to be standing up against what is currently happening in our country. Volunteering and dedicating even a small amount of your time to help in these campaigns or even just telling your story, does more help than I think a lot of people realise.
The group has had success in the past and recently a campaign we have been working on, improving the childcare system even passed in government, which was a great win and something that would not have been achievable without the team working behind it and pushing for a better future for our families.
If anyone is considering becoming a volunteer, I would definitely say go for it, even if it’s to meet like-minded people. There's never too little or too much you can do to help
Feeling inspired? You can find out more about volunteering with Save the Children, and our latest opportunities including at becoming a Parent Campaigner.
