Volunteers – the glue that holds communities together

Volunteers – the life blood of communities

We all know how important volunteering is, but have you stopped to consider what our world would look like if all volunteering ceased? A recent report What if everyone stopped volunteering? by Works4U, which supports employee volunteering, is a sobering read.

The author suggests that, rather than declining, volunteering is changing, and compares it with how we consume television content these days – accessing it in a variety of ways at times that suit us, rather than being ruled by a pre-determined schedule. Having said that, the numbers of volunteers have reduced over the last 10 years or more, whilst the demand for VCSE and statutory services has risen.

Reaching more volunteers

These trends require organisations to review their volunteering practices, to learn, adapt and change. At the same time, we need to work together, as well as individually, to persuade new and potential volunteers to get involved in a way that fits with their life, and to reap the significant wellbeing benefits.

Voluntary Norfolk has a small but impactful team that focuses on this work by promoting volunteering and the Get Involved Norfolk platform through social media, webinars and at our own and other people’s events. In the last year the number of volunteers registered on the site rose by 82%, with almost 1200 people joining in the last three months.

We constantly look for ways to remove barriers and make volunteering more inclusive. Volunteering for Health is a new project developing our understanding of the barriers experienced by people with learning disabilities, autism or neurodivergence, and young people leaving the care system, which will be shared with all volunteer-involving organisations. It is also trialling how volunteers can improve patient experience at GP surgeries across Norfolk and Waveney.

Focusing on the volunteer experience

All organisations that engage with volunteers need to respond to the changing patterns and types of commitment and capacity of new volunteers.

A cross-sector group of VCSE organisations, local authorities and statutory bodies that has been meeting to steer the Norfolk & Waveney Vision for Volunteering has recently addressed this issue. They created a practical guide to assist smaller organisations that may have limited inhouse knowledge and resources. As a result, Supporting Volunteers – a guide for local groups  is now available on the new Get Involved Skills platform as an accessible pdf download, or printed versions are available free from the Health Information Leaflet Service.

If you would be interested in finding out more about the work of the Volunteer Centre, Volunteering for Health, or the Norfolk & Waveney Vision for Volunteering, or make suggestions for how we can support your organisation, contact Nicky Stainton, Head of VCSE Sector Support at Voluntary Norfolk.

Useful links:

Back to News