9. Can we offer a paid job to one of our existing volunteers?

There is nothing to legally stop an organisation from doing this. However, it may be poor equal opportunities practice to recruit from within, especially if your existing volunteers are not representative of your local community. Volunteers may come to expect they will be guaranteed paid work, as it becomes available. This can affect volunteers' motives for volunteering and lead to people volunteering just to obtain paid work, like an unpaid apprentice. This again runs against equal opportunities, as not everyone is able to volunteer.

It is important to have a clear policy on this issue. If there is inconsistency volunteers may have false hopes or expectations, or carry resentment that one volunteer was selected out of several.

Some organisations simply advertise all posts externally, encouraging volunteers to apply. Others have internal recruitment procedures, similarly encouraging volunteers to apply alongside paid staff. If no suitable candidate is found the post is then advertised externally.

There are advantages and disadvantages to both approaches. External recruitment is purer in terms of equal opportunities, while internal recruitment allows staff and volunteers to develop within an organisation.