Introduction
Getting the right people (and enough of them!) is one of the basic challenges of working with volunteers. This guide aims to help, by highlighting some recruitment techniques and outlining good management practice.
Recruiting volunteers is a chance to refresh and reinvigorate your organisation. A positive approach, combined with clear thinking and creativity, can make all the difference to your volunteer involvement.
And remember, most people who don't currently volunteer say that they would if they were asked!
Before you recruit
Though it is tempting to jump straight into a recruitment campaign, you should first ensure that you are well prepared. It is no good recruiting volunteers if you do not know what they will do, how you will support them, or what procedures you will have for selection.
A detailed outline of good management practice is provided in The Good Practice Guide, but the starting point is to decide why you want volunteers and what is appropriate work for them to do. If you have paid staff you should consult with them to ensure a good understanding of volunteering throughout your organisation. Make sure you involve people at board and senior management level in these discussions too; their understanding of and strategic support for volunteering is vital.
Once you have consulted about volunteer involvement it can be useful to draw up a Volunteering Policy for the organisation, including the basic principles behind your volunteer-involvement and your practice guidelines for working with volunteers (for example, the payment of expenses). For more information on what to consider when producing a volunteer policy read our free guide, Get it right from the start (available as a PDF document).
Support
All volunteers need support. What kind of support you provide will depend on the nature of their work and their needs.
Key elements of support can include:
- supervision - regular time to talk and plan
- voluntary work outlines like a job description for volunteers
- problem solving procedures
- training - everyone must be given sufficient training to do their work well
- recognition - identifying meaningful ways to recognise the contribution volunteers make
Selection
For some voluntary work selection can be very informal, and focus on an introductory chat about the work and the potential volunteer's interests. If the role has some degree of responsibility, however (for example, working with people, money or dangerous equipment), selection procedures should be more formal.
Key elements of selection can include:
- application forms
- references
- interviews
- criminal record checks (especially if volunteers are working with vulnerable people)
- health checks
- equal opportunities
Other issues
Other issues to consider before starting to recruit volunteers include the payment of expenses, insurance, health and safety and the status of volunteers receiving welfare benefits.
Information on all of these matters can be found in The Good Practice Guide.
Recruitment
Recruiting volunteers can be seen as a similar process to advertising (you are trying to sell the benefits of volunteering with your organisation), and as with any advertising it is critical that you have a clear message.
The nature of this message will depend on your organisation and the work you are wanting volunteers to do. However, in general it will include:
- what the voluntary work is
- what the organisation as a whole does
- how a new volunteer can make a difference
- how to find out more
Most methods of recruitment elaborate on these four elements of the basic message. They are about ensuring that recruits are informed, motivated and know how to get involved!
Motivation
It is useful to think about the possible motivations that people might have for becoming volunteers. This can help you to design volunteering opportunities and influence your recruitment message.
Motivations for volunteering might include:
- commitment to the organisation / cause, so it is important to emphasise how their contribution will make a difference
- meeting people - volunteering can be a very sociable activity!
- gaining skills - when recruiting stress the skills and experience that volunteers can gain
- utilising existing skills - some people want to put their skills to a good cause
- keeping active - more and more older people are volunteering
Making it easy
Putting oneself forward as a volunteer can be quite daunting. People might not be sure what they are getting into and might be worried that, for example, they won't be up to it or that the commitment will end up being greater than they want.
It is important, therefore, to be flexible when taking on new recruits. It can be useful to offer tasters of volunteering so that the volunteer and organisation can get to know one another better. You will also need to spend some time finding out what people are looking for and what they have to offer.
Recruitment ideas
So, all the thinking and consultation has been done, everyone knows why volunteers are being involved and the kind of work they will do. A Volunteering Policy has been written and so have Voluntary Work Outlines for each volunteering role. Preparation has also been made for dealing with enquiries. How do you go about actually getting new recruits?
Word of mouth
Most volunteers are recruited by existing staff, clients, supporters or volunteers. Make sure everyone you know knows that you are trying to recruit, and what the opportunities are. You might want to run a brainstorming session identifying people your organisation knows. It can also be useful to map possible sources of recruits in the local area. Details of how to run such exercises are provided by Susan Ellis in The Volunteer Recruitment Book.
Of course, if your existing staff and volunteers are happy and motivated they will be more effective in recruiting their friends!
Pros:
- word of mouth is still the most effective method of recruiting volunteers
- it is particularly useful in smaller communities
Cons:
- you are likely to recruit more of the same, as existing volunteers will tend to recruit people similar to themselves, so if you rely on word of mouth your volunteers might not be very diverse.
Print
Posters can spread your message to a wider audience. Leaflets or postcards are a handy and attractive way of providing information to potential recruits.
When designing printed information remember the principles of your recruitment message. Keep it simple, and reflect the nature of the volunteering opportunities in your design. You should also consider who your target audience is.
You might consider placing printed information in:
- schools and colleges
- libraries
- town halls and other public buildings
- GP and dental surgeries
- sports and leisure centres
- religious centres
- shop windows
- bars
- Job Centres
Pros:
- printed information can be targeted at particular audiences
- eye-catching designs can create a good image for your organisation
- printed materials are becoming increasingly cheap and easy to produce.
Cons:
- printed information tends to circulate for a long time, so enquiries may come long after the details have gone out of date
- posters and leaflets are unlikely to have much impact unless people already know about your organisation.
Volunteer Centres
There are around 500 Volunteer Centres or Bureaux throughout the UK, putting people in touch with organisations who need volunteers. Organisations need to register with their local centre, which might also be able to provide advice and support on working with volunteers. Go to our Volunteer Centre finder page to locate your nearest.
Pros:
- Volunteer Centres provide an excellent means of recruiting to individual posts
- people referred to you by a Volunteer Centre will have seen an outline of the work you want them to undertake
- many Volunteer Centres can provide a range of advice about recruitment and aspects of good practice.
Cons:
- Volunteer Centres are not likely to provide instant results, as they rely on people contacting them
- although the number of Volunteer Centres has grown in recent years, they do not cover all parts of the country.
Talks
Once you have identified a possible source of new recruits you need to take your message to them. Setting up a talk or presentation might take some time as you will need to persuade the host (be it a school, an employer or whatever) that your information will be of real interest. But it can produce good results.
Try to be as well-briefed as possible about the people you will be talking to and what is likely to appeal to them about volunteering. Remember the principles of your recruitment message!
Visual images such as photographs or a video can aid a presentation, but real live volunteers or clients are the most effective inspiration. Make sure you bring printed information to support your talk, giving people the chance to go away and think before committing themselves. Be clear about how people can get involved or find out more if they are interested.
Events
An event such as Volunteers Week is a great chance to recruit new volunteers. You might have an exhibition stand in a shopping centre or stage a PR stunt to attract publicity.
There are many places and events at which stalls can be set up, including:
- the local high street (you will probably need to get local council permission to do this)
- the local library
- fetes and carnivals
- career and recruitment fairs
- train stations
Pros:
- gets you seen
- provides the opportunity of face-to-face recruitment
Cons:
- can be a lot of work without a guaranteed return
- can be expensive and labour-intensive.
Local press and radio
Events such as Volunteers Week also provide an opportunity to get coverage in the local media.
Coverage in the local media might range from feature articles to brief news stories. Try to build a good relationship with local newspapers and radio stations, stressing the human interest of local people getting involved to help the community.
A steady stream of coverage about your organisation, its work and its volunteers can help to raise your profile and thereby aid recruitment. Press coverage can also be used as a form of public recognition for volunteers' work.
You can also advertise for volunteers in the local press. Do your research and find out what sort of people are likely to see the advert. Tailor your message accordingly, for example, stressing the skills and experience that can be gained.
Nationally, The Guardian newspaper runs a volunteers page every other Wednesday in its supplement. They currently charge a minimum of £30 for a short recruitment advert. The adverts tend to attract a large number of job-seeking graduates.
There is also a wide range of specialist media in which you might consider advertising or seeking coverage. These include:
- company newsletters
- professional and trade journals (particularly useful if you are seeking someone with specialised skills)
- the black press, such as The Voice
- the gay press, such as The Pink Paper
If you are considering placing an advert you should:
- ensure your advert reflects the diversity of the local community
- consult with other organisations who have placed adverts
- check the newspapers circulation areas and numbers
- ask if there is a special rate for volunteer vacancies
Local companies
When assessing your local area for possible sources of recruits you might well come across local companies whose employees are keen to get involved. You might be able to recruit individual employees or groups to perform one-off challenges.
It will help if you can get the support of someone senior in the company, for example, to allow you to address a staff meeting. Once employees are volunteering, the company might also be willing to offer other kinds of support.
Diversity in recruitment
Organisations sometimes find it difficult to get a diverse range of recruits, especially if they rely on word of mouth. Diversity can be important in allowing you to reflect the composition of your local community and/or client group, in meeting your organisation's mission and pursuing an equal opportunities policy. Diverse volunteering programmes are often also the most exciting and dynamic.
The following suggestions serve as brief introductions to some of the issues associated with recruiting from groups which are often under-represented as volunteers. Publications providing more details are available from Volunteering England.
Disabled people
People's disabilities need not be their greatest concern. Any difficulties they have may be due to a variety of reasons, just as for anyone else.
One of the best ways to deal with potential difficulties is to take a proactive approach. Publicise the fact that you are keen to welcome disabled volunteers and show that you are accessible in the broadest sense; for example, by offering to produce information in large print. It is also important to choose effective places to advertise (for example, day centres and drop-in centres). But remember, disabled people visit the same places as everyone else!
Young people
Recent research has produced a wish list for what young people want from volunteering, which can be summarised by the acronym FLEXIVOL:
Flexibility - the most important factor, in terms of time and commitment
Legitimacy - they need a favourable image of volunteering
Ease of access - many young people simply don't know how to volunteer or who to contact
Xperience - young people want relevant, useful experience and the chance to learn new skills
Incentives - stress the tangible outcomes of volunteering; whats in it for them
Variety - in terms of both the type of work and the level of commitment
Organisation - volunteering needs to be efficient but informal
Laughs - volunteering must be fun!
Older people
Volunteering by older people has increased in recent years. Some companies, including the Ford Motor Company, support their retired staff in volunteering.
A recent study of volunteering by older people suggests that organisations need to think laterally so that older volunteers are given sufficiently challenging work to do, making the most of their skills and experience.
People from minority ethnic communities
A recent study of the experiences of volunteering within the black community suggests that partnerships between mainstream voluntary organisations and black voluntary organisations are a good way to help bring black volunteering into the mainstream.
You might also want to target your recruitment at community organisations such as religious or cultural centres, but you should seek advice from them about the best way to proceed.
Unemployed people
People who are unemployed often have a huge amount to offer and can gain a great deal from volunteering. They need not put their benefits in jeopardy, although they should tell the Benefits Agency about their volunteering.
Unemployed people can gain skills and experience from volunteering, and it can help them to remain in touch with the world of work. They are likely to want voluntary work that provides them with a chance to gain skills and experience that will be helpful in getting paid work.
