23 November 2009
Volunteering England is to hold an Inquiry to examine the issues and potential solutions around the subject of volunteer rights.
The Volunteer Rights Inquiry will meet three times in central London between November and April 2010 and a report will be launched in spring 2010.
Volunteering England is taking the strategic lead to create the Volunteer Rights Inquiry, which will provide a neutral space for the discussion and deliberation of the issues and concerns, following a series of high profile cases and campaigns.
Concerns have been raised that volunteers have no rights dealing with volunteer involving organisations when problems occur, be they rights in law or in procedures for redress The Inquiry will examine a broad range of issues including, but not limited to, the legal rights of volunteers and will consider potential options for redress when things go wrong.
The first Volunteer Rights Inquiry meeting will be held on the 25th November 2009 to explore the background to the Inquiry and allow for an initial exploration of possible solutions.
Following this, there will be three evidence gathering sessions in early 2010 which will allow Inquiry members to hear from interested parties and explore the issues they have faced in more detail.
People will be able to attend the evidence gathering sessions in London, the Midlands and Manchester. There will also be a range of ways for people to give evidence without attending an evidence gathering session, such as via Twitter, YouTube and the Volunteering England website.
Full details of how to submit evidence will be released in December 2009.
The Inquiry Panel will comprise of:
Sukhvinder Kaur-Stubbs
Chair, Volunteering England
Judith Brodie
Director of VSO UK
Sean Cobley
Chair, Association of Volunteer Managers
Robyn Harrison
Manager, Volunteer Centre Ripon
Lewis Smith
Chair, Volunteer Rights Group
Caroline Aldiss
Lead Campaigner for Volunteer Welfare
Julia Dennis
Volunteering Development Manager, Citizen’s Advice
Victoria Cook
Solicitor, Bates Wells and Braithwaite
Jodi Berg
Independent Complaints Reviewer for the Charity Commission
Notes to editor
For media enquiries please contact Kimberley Rowley on 0207 520 8932 or email Kimberley.rowley@volunteeringengland.org
- To find out more information about the Volunteer Rights Inquiry or giving evidence please visit our Volunteer Rights Inquiry Q&A page
Volunteering England is the national volunteering, development agency, giving voice to volunteering.
