A successful first step: pioneering micro-internship volunteer programme

This summer saw the hugely successful launch of Charterpath’s micro-internship volunteer programme, delivered in partnership with Alliance Manchester Business School (AMBS). The pilot brought together postgraduate students in International Accounting with two brilliant Manchester-based charities - the Manchester Deaf Centre, supporting deaf and hard-of-hearing people to live independently and confidently, and Manchester Central Foodbank, tackling food insecurity and poverty across the city.

At Charterpath, our mission is to chart a path between the charity sector and people with financial skills. We know charities often face a backlog of important but resource-stretched financial tasks, while students are eager for opportunities to put theory into practice, meet new people, and build valuable experience for their CVs. This programme set out to connect the two and has proved that you can make a real difference at any stage of your career.

The programme.

Over a four to six week period, students worked in pairs, contributing six hours per week to finance-related projects. Tasks ranged from supporting budget work (reconciling receipts to bank statements and analysing trends) and preparing for Gift Aid claims, to creating management reporting tools and automating finance processes. Each placement was tightly scoped to ensure clear expectations and achievable outcomes.

The impact.

The impact was immediate and tangible. At Manchester Central Foodbank, staff shared: “The students had a huge impact on our organisation - they scanned and filed a whole year of outgoings, ready for our annual accounts, and sifted through the last four years of donations to prepare for a Gift Aid claim. Neither of these tasks would have happened without them. The two interns were polite, friendly, well presented and confident. They were fantastic to work with and were professional and adaptable.”

At the Manchester Deaf Centre, the interns left behind a new reporting tool: “They have left a legacy of a working document that visually showcases our financial situation and progress throughout the year - something we’ve never had before. This will save valuable time when preparing reports and provide a quick and easy insight into how we are tracking against budgets and targets, and highlight any areas of risk.”

Feedback from both charities was universally positive, with each confirming they would be keen to participate again. As one summed it up, the programme was “a super positive experience from beginning to end.”

The students themselves also reflected on how valuable the experience was. One explained: “As an accountant, I now see how our core skills such as budgeting and variance analysis can directly help charities spot inefficiencies early and keep programmes on track. This experience also strengthened my sense of employability as I developed a clear communication of financial insights to non-finance stakeholders.”

When asked what they found most rewarding, students highlighted:

1. Making a direct social impact through their work

2. Applying accounting knowledge in a real-world charity context

3. Building professional networks and connections

4. Gaining deeper insight into how charities operate financially

This pilot has shown what’s possible when we chart a path between the charity sector and skilled volunteers - even those at the very start of their careers. For charities, it unlocked tasks that previously lacked the time or expertise to be addressed, freeing up staff and trustees to focus on their mission. For students, it meant stepping into a professional environment, applying their academic theory to real-world challenges, gaining confidence, and enhancing their CVs.

It’s a clear win–win:

Charities gain access to much-needed financial support, while students gain invaluable experience. And if we can inspire the next generation of accountants and finance professionals to see the value of volunteering early in their careers, the benefits will ripple outwards - creating value for charities and their beneficiaries again and again and again.

If you’d like to hear more about this pioneering programme, please get in touch with us at info@charterpath.org.uk.

Charities interested in registering tasks for the 2026 Micro-Internship Volunteer Programme can do so here: register your interest

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About Charterpath

Charterpath CIO is a UK registered charity (1207509) charting a path between non-profits and volunteers with financial skills. Charterpath was co-founded by Alice Clementi and Alex Marsh, both chartered accountants with extensive volunteering and fundraising experience alongside their professional careers. They were inspired to start Charterpath in 2020, after seeing first-hand the unprecedented financial challenges facing the non-profit sector from the pandemic.

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