Share Sounds presented by Sarah Pennells (1) related to Charities/Community Action

Sarah investigates why the financial sector has few women in top positions and looks into the companies that have signed up for the women in Financial Services Charter. To go through this issue, Sarah is joined by Jane Platt from NS&I, Melanie Seymour from Women in Banking and Finance and employment lawyer, Gillian Howard.

A survey by the government found that 45% of people over 45 knew nothing about a lasting power of attorney and, when they were told about what it was, over 60% said they weren't interested in setting one up. An ongoing power of attorney lets you manage someone else's money when they're unable to do so. What can you do if your elderly relative is struggling to manage their own money? What are the rules if you want to open an account for your child or grandchild? Sarah Pennells is joined by David Steele, Policy Manager of Financial Services at Age UK and George McNamara, Head of Policy at the Alzheimer's Society, to discuss these issues.

Now it's something that over 21 million people in the UK do at least once a year and they don't get paid a penny. What is it? Volunteering. This week is Volunteers' Week where you can find out more about what's involved in volunteering. Volunteering can be anything from getting involved in projects and charities in your neighbourhood to travelling abroad. So, how can you get involved? What are the benefits and how do you work out what type of project to get involved in? Sarah Pennells and our Young Money Champion, Rachael Healey, are joined by Alison Harvie who's the head of communications at Volunteering Matters and by Stefan Watham who's the chief executive of Year Out Group.

These days, you can borrow or rent just about anything. Homes, cars, handbags, even pets! But how does it work, and what's important to think about when it comes to the fast growing sharing economy? Sarah Pennells is joined by Alex Stephany, a sharing economy expert, author of The Business of Sharing and Chief Executive of Just Park, Sam Stephens, the founder of Streetbank, and Tim Godwin, the Financial Director of Swishing Online, to help understand more about the sharing economy and to help answer some of your burning questions.

If you're disabled, or suffer from a long term illness, who do you turn to for financial support and what kind of help is available? Sarah Pennells explores how charities and organisations can help families with their energy bills and additional financial support. She's joined by Emma Cross from Macmillan Cancer Support, Clare Kassa from Family Fund and Adam Lake from Turn2Us, to share tips on how and where to get help.

As part of National Pet Month Sarah Pennells speaks to Paul Manktelow, from the People’s Dispensary for Sick Animals; Sonia Scowcroft, from Cats Protection; and Ross Allan a partner of Pets'n'Vets Family Practice in Glasgow and The British Small Animal Veterinary Association. During the show they discuss about pet insurance and how to make sure customers are covered for most of their pet’s care. The guests also share advice about micro chipping pets, and why you should do your research before deciding to adopt a furry friend.

Sarah Pennells looks at how to save money on your food bill. Dawn Quest, joint founder of mealsourkidslove.com, joins Sarah with fellow guests Helen White, from Love Food Hate Waste and Annie O’Leary from Netmums. Together they discuss how supermarket offers can make customers spend up to 20% more than they plan to, despite food costs going down. The guests share tips on how to reduce food waste and how to cook food in a creative and healthy way, they also say that encouraging children to take part in buying and preparing food will help promote healthy eating.

Sarah Pennells is joined in the studio by Anita Monteith from the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales, and over the phone by George Bull, a Senior Tax Partner at Baker Tilly, and Rachel Smith, co-founder of GlobalGiving UK, to discuss giving to charity in a tax-efficient way. Find out how to give as you earn, how to leave part of your estate, and what the tax benefits can be.

Sarah Pennells is joined in the studio by our Young Money Champion Kate Palmer, and also experts Karen Kennard from The Scholarship Hub and on the phone with David Jobbins from The Complete University Guide to talk about student grants for university.

Sarah Pennells is joined in the studio by our Young Money Champion Kate Palmer, from The Telegraph, to discuss alternative options to university with guests Vicky York from The Princes Trust, Steve Morris from LearnDirect and Sharon Walpole from Notgoingtouni.co.uk.