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Ursuline Links: Summer of Service 2026 | Organisation Good News
Ursuline Links is celebrating the recent work of students over the Summer. Over two weeks in July, young volunteers with Ursuline Links took part in a Summer of Service. Working with schools, parishes and community organisations, the volunteers served others with generosity, enthusiasm and compassion.
Although these placements only lasted 14 days, they were the culmination of a year's worth of learning, discussion and personal growth. Throughout the year, Ursuline students explored what it means to be of service to others, in the spirit of St Angela, reflected on issues of social justice and developed the confidence to become active members of their communities. This summer gave them the opportunity to put those values into action.
During the first week, students volunteered at the annual Ursuline Links Day Camp, which was organised in collaboration with Newham Deanery and hosted at Brentwood Diocese’s own St Angela’s Ursuline School. Together, they helped create four memorable days for 24 local children, filled with arts and crafts, sports, games and a fantastic trip to Lambourne End where the children got to take part in team building, animal feeding and archery. One of the most rewarding parts of the week was seeing the younger children look up to the students and the genuine connections that developed between them.
While one group was running, singing, crafting and playing games at Day Camp, the other group of volunteers spent the second week supporting a diverse range of community organisations. Ursuline volunteers helped out at S.M.I.L.E Romford, SVP’s Southend Centre and more! Over the week, the young people organised food stores, supported service users, helped with practical tasks and contributed wherever they could. Some worked directly with people accessing services, while others worked behind the scenes to ensure those services could continue operating effectively. For those volunteers, the placements were a crucial moments of encountering the reality that many people face, seeing challenges that they had never experienced. They saw communities supporting one another in practical ways and discovered that even small acts of service can have a significant impact.
Three students also spent their placement at the Jesuit Refugee Service UK, where they learned more about the experiences of refugees and asylum seekers while supporting the organisation's work. Published in the JRS Autumn 2026 issue of Together magazine, they reflected on the week they had with JRS UK:
"Working at JRS UK helped me to gain knowledge and understanding of how people come to the UK and manage to live here with little to nothing and still have the motivation to be strong."
"This experience has changed my perspective on my life. It helps me to realise how grateful I am for the life I can live."
"Volunteering at JRS UK was an extremely fulfilling and enriching experience. I learnt new things about the state of the world and the experiences of refugees and how we can help them."
"JRS UK is an amazing institution that I think all young people should experience. You're able to make a direct, immediate impact to our community and witness the fruits of our labour in real time."
These reflections capture perfectly what Ursuline Links is about. Service is not simply something we do for others. It is an opportunity to learn, to grow and to see the world through a different lens.
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