The survey of 94 volunteering involving organisations took place between December 2009 and January 2010 and the results reveal the scale of the confusion surrounding the scheme:
Only 33% of respondents said that they ‘fully understood’ which of their volunteers would need to be registered with the authority.
37% of the organisations surveyed reported that they weren’t sure whether the scheme would mean that some of their activities would have to be stopped or cancelled.
56% of respondents thought the overall impact of the scheme would be ‘increased bureaucracy’, and 52% believed that the scheme would make it ‘harder to recruit volunteers.’
Some organisations expressed concern that volunteers will simply refuse to register with the Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA), with one organisation commenting:
“Many of our volunteers are older people and may see the Vetting and Barring scheme introduction as a watershed moment to retire from their volunteering. This would affect many of our day services which are heavily reliant on volunteers.”
One Volunteer Manager, who responded to the survey said:
“My concern is that I must understand exactly what is required by the ISA to be able to make prospective volunteers appreciate where and how information about them is going to be held, so they can decide if they are prepared to volunteer.
“It is going to be time consuming, when we have no extra time available. Based on discussions with volunteers, quite understandably, they want to know what they would be agreeing to re vetting and barring but the practicalities have yet to be made clear and I can see the potential for some volunteers not to agree.”
Mike Locke, Director of Public Affairs for Volunteering England believes:
“These survey results are alarming. Many organisations are confused about how the Vetting and Barring Scheme will affect them when it is introduced this summer.
“Their lack of understanding risks creating inaccurate perceptions of the scheme. A third of those surveyed said that they would ensure all of their volunteers were registered with the scheme, even though blanket registration will be unnecessary for most organisations.
“We still believe the Vetting and Barring Scheme can in some ways improve volunteering organisations’ work with children and vulnerable adults, but the ISA must not underestimate the scale of the challenge they face in ensuring volunteering organisations understand how the scheme will affect them.”
The survey did reveal positive some views about the Vetting and Barring Scheme. Despite the concerns about the impact on volunteer recruitment and increased paperwork, more than 52% said they believed that the scheme would improve safeguarding for children and vulnerable adults.
Volunteering England has been working in consultation with the ISA over the new Vetting and Barring Scheme and commissioned this latest survey after concerns were voiced by their members over the implementation the scheme.
This survey results coincide with a Panorama documentary about Vetting and Barring, which will be aired on BBC on the 8th February at 8.30pm.
Notes to editor
For media enquiries please contact Kimberley Rowley: either call 0207 520 8932 or email kimberley.rowley@volunteeringenlgand.org
Volunteering England is the national volunteering development agency for England, committed to supporting, enabling and celebrating volunteering in all its diversity
