Volunteering England is challenging the Government to invest in volunteering to contribute to national and personal economic renewal.
The call to action is included in Volunteering England’s nine-point “Recession Challenge”, which the organisation will present to the Office of the Third Sector at its Strategic Partners meeting on the recession on 15 December.
The Recession Challenge sets out nine key challenges to central and local government, volunteer-involving organisations and the private sector, in order to make the most of volunteering’s potential to contribute to economic recovery.
Dr Justin Davis Smith, Chief Executive of Volunteering England, said:
“Now, more than ever, volunteering can play a vital role in contributing to the nation’s economic and social development.
“Volunteering can provide a route to employment for many people, helping unemployed people gain the skills, experience and confidence they need to get back into work or change career paths.
“In challenging and uncertain times, volunteering can also play an important role in contributing to social wellbeing, helping people build connections and a sense of belonging within their communities.
“The Recession Challenge is a call to government, businesses and volunteer-involving organisations to ensure that volunteering can play its part in economic revival – now is not the time to cut back on volunteering to save money.
“Equally, it is a call to everyone involved in the sector to turn current constraints into new opportunities, building on volunteering’s capacity to develop and support individuals and communities.
“The economic conditions set up new possibilities for working with volunteers. Now is the time to build new partnerships so we can further strengthen volunteering and make the most of volunteering’s capacity to contribute to economic recovery.”
Notes to editors:
- Below is a copy of Volunteering England’s Recession Challenge
- The Office of the Third Sector Strategic Partners meeting on 15 December is a follow-up to the ‘recession summit’, which was co-chaired by the Minister for the Third Sector, Kevin Brennan, with key third sector representative bodies on 24 November. At that meeting, Kevin Brennan announced that the Government would work with the sector to produce a Government Action Plan for publication early in the new year.
The Recession Challenge: The Voice of Volunteering
To government – central and local
1. Volunteering is a route to new employment for many people; volunteering can develop skills for employability and for new career pathways.
2. Now is the time to make a powerful national investment so as to involve greater numbers of people in volunteering projects focussed on building the human capital and individual capabilities for national and personal economic renewal.
3. Volunteering has to be resourced. Recruiting and organising volunteers costs money; you need to support the organisations which recruit and involve volunteers, especially the local infrastructure bodies.
4. Locally, JobCentrePlus and, nationally, the Department for Work and Pensions should be valuing volunteering for the ways it supports people in getting into paid work. Current DWP regulations allow time for volunteering; they need to be applied fairly by local centres.
To volunteer-involving organisations
5. Volunteering is our life-blood. Don’t cut back on volunteer management to save money – it would be a false economy. We have to invest in managing volunteers to sustain our most valuable resource.
6. Be careful not to displace paid staff with volunteers. It might look like it can save money in the short-term but it undercuts the harmonious working relationships which volunteering depends on.
To the private sector
7. Social responsibility comes as standard – it’s not an optional extra to cut in hard times. Volunteer involving organisations have greater calls on their resources in hard times. Now more than ever, they need the time and money you can give.
To private, public and voluntary organisations
8. Employer supported volunteering can help see your staff through the economic crisis and develop new transferable skills for your organisation; encourage your organisation and your employees in volunteering.
9. Volunteering is one way of making our futures. The economic conditions set up new possibilities for working with volunteers. We need to build new partnerships together so we can turn current constraints into new opportunities.
Volunteering England is the leading national development agency for volunteering in England and a membership organisation. It aims to improve the quality, quantity, impact and accessibility of volunteering throughout England. More details about Volunteering England and its work can be found at www.volunteering.org.uk.
