Press release: Researchers must resist government encroachment or risk losing independence
6 December 2007
For immediate release
Researchers must resist the desire to publish studies whose only purpose is to legitimise the volunteering sector, said Justin Davis Smith, Director of the Institute for Volunteering Research (IVR), at its 10th anniversary party yesterday. Launching a new book of essays, Volunteering and the Test of Time, Professor Davis Smith said it was important to challenge the preconception that volunteering in all forms was necessarily a good thing and not be afraid to criticise misguided government policy even when in receipt of government grants or contracts.
“IVR has existed at a time when volunteering has never had such a high profile in the public policy agenda, said Professor Davis Smith, who is also Acting Chief Executive of Volunteering England. “We’ve helped set and influence that agenda in a very real way –our research on youth volunteering helped inform the Russell report, which in turn became the charity V. And our research into barriers and access issues through the Volunteering for All project inspired the Government initiative of the same name. I am incredibly proud of all the work we have done over the last 10 years and am lucky to have a team that is so passionate about getting under the skin of volunteering.
“As a sector we need to be braver at examining assumptions about the nature of volunteering and looking at new research methods to get the story behind the statistics. We must be honest about what we’re measuring and why, and confront the possibility that including everything possible under the banner of ‘volunteering’ is not always the most helpful thing for the sector. For it is vital for the future health of our research community that we stick hard and fast to our principles and refuse to bow to the sometimes enticing embrace of government.”
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Notes to editors
