British Heart Foundation
Work wellbeing score is 77 out of 100
4.1 out of 5 stars.
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British Heart Foundation Employee Reviews

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4.0Work-life balance

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Great place to work

Featured review

British Heart Foundation selected this as a representative review
Great place to work the workforce are a great team and really pull together when needed. Good home work life balance. There is also a good support network that are always there if needed
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Official response from British Heart Foundation

31 March 2020
Thanks so much for the great review and highlighting our culture. We wish you continued success with us!Recruitment Team

Engaging People

Working at the smaller bhf in Hounslow was super fun ! The staff (most of them) were super lovely and super helpful even if you made mistakes and even the customers who came there - they always started little convos brightening up your day . However it is still Hounslow so there are bound to be some strange customers popping up but overall it was a great experience .
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Insights into British Heart Foundation

Based on 751 survey responses
What people like
  • Feeling of personal appreciation
  • Clear sense of purpose
  • Inclusive work environment
Areas for improvement
  • Fair pay for job

Wouldn't ever step foot in another BHF Shop

What is the best part of working at the company?Volunteered there, get you to do one thing (mainly things the paid staff don't want to do). Not very rewarding, staff constantly complaining about volunteers and stuff that gets donated.What is the most stressful part about working at the company?Trying to do a good job, I was basically told just to run the front of shop and book everyone in off the computer at the same time as servings customers What is the work environment and culture like at the company?They will recruit anyone and everyone if it means less work for them What is a typical day like for you at the company?Staff complaining that they have deliveries coming or going. They need to do that so everyone will just have to get on with what they have been shown / told to do
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Official response from British Heart Foundation

20 September 2023
I'm really sorry to read your comments about your experience. If you would like to contact me in confidence on vaadvice@bhf.org.uk so I can investigate further, or even just to give me the location of the store you volunteered at, I'd really appreciate it. We would never want our volunteers to feel the way you do.Many thanksClare - Volunteering Team

Fun and relaxed

Customers are generally friendly. Management is also easy to work with and caring. The branch is on the bigger side though, so there can be a big workload due to insufficient volunteers.
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Official response from British Heart Foundation

20 September 2023
Thanks for taking the time to leave us your feedback and for donating your spare time to us - THANK YOU. I'm so pleased you feel the shop has an easy & caring atmosphere. Could you possibly spread the word on how rewarding you find volunteering for the BHF and see if anyone can join the team!Clare - Volunteering Team

Brilliant

What is the best part of working at the company?I have made loads of friends over the years that i have worked there and a happy place to work l really enjoyed itWhat is the most stressful part about working at the company?Hardworking and being busy all of the tìme What is the work environment and culture like at the company?Friendly And happy place to work What is a typical day like for you at the company?Busy with donations every day is the same
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Only joy to meet your lovely volunteers otherwise Would not recommend

No comments Extremely hard work , fun with volunteers though with no respect from company . No appreciation whatsoever. Not recommended No more to say .

Pros

No comments

Cons

Long hours after closing to catch up with workload
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supportive and friendly

very friendly work place. meeting different people everyday. learning all the skill from retail. can be very busy time to time, so time pass very fast when you have shift.

Pros

friendly and lovely place to work

Cons

summer is too hot
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Official response from British Heart Foundation

20 September 2023
Thanks for your comments & it's so nice to read what a lovely, friendly place to work the BHF is for you as a volunteer. We are so grateful for the gift of time you donate to us - THANK YOU.Clare - Volunteering Team

A rewarding experience I can recommend.

What is the best part of working at the company?Relaxed atmosphere with the desire to raise money for the charity.What is the most stressful part about working at the company?Not stressful at all. No pressure to do anything not comfortable with as volunteer.What is the work environment and culture like at the company?Good management and direction.What is a typical day like for you at the company?Variety of activities. Could be sizing and tagging clothes, steaming, or sorting books.
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Official response from British Heart Foundation

8 September 2023
Thank you for taking the time to leave us your thoughts on what it is like to volunteer for the BHF. I'm so pleased you feel the shop has a relaxed atmosphere with good management and direction. Your gift of time really does make a difference to how much money we are able to raise for our life saving research - THANK YOU again.Clare - Volunteering Team

A wonderful place to work.

It's a wonderful place to work, it's filled with lovely staff members who are understanding, cool and fun to work with. BHF is a great place to work with respectful staff members.

Pros

Break time, Peace of mind, Free transport for volunteers esp, etc.

Cons

Nothing much .
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Official response from British Heart Foundation

8 September 2023
Thank you so much for your comment. It's lovely to read how respectful everyone is to each other & Kingston-Upon-Hull is a wonderful place to work. Your gift of time to volunteer for us is very much appreciated - Thank you again.Clare - Volunteering Team

good place

The hours are flexible, the co-workers are exceptionally nice, and it's a lot of fun to work together. Being able to help each other, I think it's a great place to work on your skills.
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Rewarding and fast-paced

Good support from higher management and amazing volunteers all in all a very rewarding job No day the same no task too big Good training and support when needed
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Amazing!

Great work environment, amazing to volunteers and very flexible hours, you can come in when you have time and they are very nice to work with, definitely recommend volunteering here if you get the chance
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Official response from British Heart Foundation

8 September 2023
Thanks so much for recommending volunteering for the BHF and your 5 star review. Your gift of time is very much appreciated and we simply could not run our shops or stores without you - THANK YOU.Clare - Volunteering Team

It was fun and I felt useful.

What is the best part of working at the company?Working with other people.Having regular work days.What is the most stressful part about working at the company?Nothing. It wasn't stressful but it could be hard work carrying heavy furniture up and down the stairs.What is the work environment and culture like at the company?Friendly.There is a staff room.What is a typical day like for you at the company?Move furniture where I'm told to.Sometimes I take brick a brac to the other BHS shop.
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Busy and never dull.

Everyday is different and it brings new challenges and lots of donations every day. We have a variety of people working with us from different backgrounds so it is never a dull moment working with such a great team. I have learned quite a bit about how to deal with customers and any complaints they might have . The management is a great bunch of people to work with , sometimes having to deal with rude customers , you just have to remain calm and professional. The most enjoyable part of the job is getting to train new volunteers and showing them the jobs we do and what we do down in the sort room and also on the shop floor and how they can assist the customers with their donations and explaining to the customer if they want to become a Gift Aider with us or not.

Pros

take a break anytime

Cons

not enough hours
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Official response from British Heart Foundation

8 September 2023
Thank you so much for gifting the BHF your spare time so you can volunteer for us in Folkestone. It's lovely to read how varied each day is and how much you enjoy helping new volunteers learn the ropes! You really do have such an impact on the funds the shop raises for our life saving research - THANK YOU again.Clare - Volunteering Team

Learnt new skills and friendly workplace

I’ve never had a proper part time job so the experience here helped me learn a lot of retail skills and teach me what’s expected to happen from a day to day basis. All the other staff and volunteers are also really nice and welcoming. I think the hardest part about the job is interacting with customers and also working with them over the phone, at least for me since I’m not fully friendly to strangers. I like the work a lot here because it gives me fulfilment in what I’m doing, which I feel lack in a lot of other jobs. If money and time wasn’t an issue, I’d volunteer here all the time.
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Official response from British Heart Foundation

8 September 2023
Thank you so much for your lovely comments. It's wonderful to read that volunteering for the BHF makes you feel fulfilled in a way that other jobs don't. I'm so pleased that you are learning lots of retail skills and please do keep an eye out for any paid roles that come up at the store & speak to your Manager about your interest in joining the paid team.Clare - Volunteering Team

meh

just sort of boring but a good place to gain some unpaid experience before paid work, managers were ok but constantly understaffed and you were always left to do everyone else’s jobs
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Nice people

The people are nice here but the job overall is very tedious and especially on days wheres there’s not many people it can seem like hours when it’s only been minutes
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Great organisation and staff working together for for the future.

What is the best part of working at the company?Great working for a charity that has so much invested in resources into heart conditions. I was poorly before joining the team, I was made to feel welcome and everyone got on with each other most of the time, the manager was always supportive and great to work with I worked on set days so I didn't know everyone, but those I did were fun, supportive, and very good company. I have only stopped working there as I've moved away. But I'm still in touch with those I worked with, it's a good wat to meet and make new friends. It helped me to deal with my issues. I will be forever thankful for the opportunity to work for such a good charity. This charity means a great deal to me and my family. What is the most stressful part about working at the company?For me it was having to climb the stairs, I have motability issues. And I am a stickler for clean toilets and it wasn't always kept to my standard. What is the work environment and culture like at the company?Very good place to work everyone pulled together plus there was always fun times to have. What is a typical day like for you at the company?For me I use to work 2 afternoon's a week, just 2 hour's each it was mostly busy sorting clothing, brick a brack, and toys. Plus lots of chatter and laughs.
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Official response from British Heart Foundation

8 September 2023
Thank you so much for giving us such lovely, honest feedback on your BHF volunteer experience. I would love to share your comments with the team if you wouldn't mind letting me know which of our Suffolk shops or stores you volunteered with? I can be reached on vaadvice@bhf.org.ukThank you so much for your gift of time & I am so pleased you have kept in touch with those you worked with since moving.Clare - Volunteering Team

Great place to work

Great place and environment to work. Great management and an easy to grow organisation. Customers are usually great and the environment is friendly too
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Stressful workplace

I didn’t learn much when being on the job as it was all very stressful and alot of things annoy you when being on the job and the hardest thing about.

Pros

No free lunches

Cons

Short hours
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Official response from British Heart Foundation

8 September 2023
I'm really sorry to read your comments about your experience. If you would like to contact me in confidence on vaadvice@bhf.org.uk so I can investigate further, I'd appreciate it as we would never want our volunteers to feel stressed by their experience helping out.Clare - Volunteering Team

Fun workplace. Dragging sometimes.

The shop at the above bar street is fun to work at. The manager is very good. Assistance manager is supportive. You feel valued when working there. Sometimes when its slow it feels boring. You do get very nice customers. unfortunately, you also do find awful people trying to nick stuff. but overall, a nice place to work.
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Overall rating

Based on 4,703 reviews

Ratings by category

4.0 out of 5 stars for Work/Life Balance
3.0 out of 5 stars for Salary/Benefits
3.5 out of 5 stars for Job security/advancement
3.9 out of 5 stars for Management
4.0 out of 5 stars for Culture

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