Beyond Goodwill: The real value of volunteering

Dear Members, Friends and Partners,

As we approach National Volunteers’ Week (2 to 8 June), I want to pause. Properly pause. And offer a heartfelt thank you to the extraordinary people who make everything at WIBF possible, day in, day out, with sleeves rolled up, vision clear, and hearts firmly in the right place.

This week is about shining a light on the power of volunteering not just its economic worth, but its deeper, often unseen value. The glue it creates between people. The pathways it opens. The belief it sustains that things can, and should, be better.

Few organisations understand that better than we do.
At Women in Banking & Finance, we are powered by a quiet revolution.

Last year our 130 volunteers gave their time, energy, and expertise to make WIBF’s mission real. Measured modestly against average financial services salaries, their contribution is worth over £800,000. Enough to run a small business, mount a national campaign, or fund an entire department in many charities.

Since I became President in January 2021, I estimate our volunteer community has delivered more than 152,000 hours valued at over £3.5 million! That number is staggering in itself. But when you realise it has been built not through vast infrastructure, but through purpose-led individuals freely giving their time, it becomes something else entirely. It shows what’s possible when enough people care and come together.

And we are still growing. But this isn’t just about numbers. It’s about social capital in action.

Every hour donated reflects belief in a fairer, more inclusive industry. Every event delivered, mentoring match made, or insight shared creates ripple effects that stretch far beyond any single programme. Our volunteers host, coach, analyse, design, challenge and champion. Their fingerprints are on every part of our mission  from grassroots to boardroom.

Even so, this only begins to capture the value that volunteering brings.

I’ve long been a huge admirer of Pro Bono Economics and the work of its co-founders Andy Haldane and Martin Brookes. Their research has done more than anyone to put numbers around something many of us instinctively know,  that volunteering matters. They estimate it generates £4.6 billion a year in productivity gains across the UK. But it’s their 2023 findings that have really stayed with me: when you factor in wellbeing and wider social impact, the total value of volunteering could be as high as £324 billion. That’s nearly 15% of UK GDP. Bigger than construction. Bigger than finance. That’s not just impressive, it’s game changing.

At WIBF, we’ve built a social enterprise that doesn’t just respond to inequality, it reimagines what’s possible. Powered by volunteers, it shows that with purpose and partnership, you can scale trust, build influence and do so sustainably.

So to every volunteer past and present reading this: thank you. Thank you for your time, your brilliance, and your belief in what we can build together.

And if you’re thinking about getting involved, I’d encourage you to take that step. In a world that can feel divided and uncertain, volunteering is a quiet reminder of what becomes possible when we come together. It builds confidence, community and connection — three things our industry, and our society, need more than ever.

Volunteering isn’t a side project. It’s a quiet superpower. And at WIBF, it’s not just supporting our work it’s shaping the future of financial services. Quietly. Collaboratively. And with a momentum that’s hard to ignore.

With deep appreciation and admiration,
Anna Lane