Volunteering England welcomes the publication of the Department for Education and Skills Youth Matters Green Paper on young people.
We are particularly heartened by the role that volunteerism plays in the proposals contained in the Youth Matters Green Paper and that the Department for Education and Skills is committed to identifying opportunities for Local Authorities to enable such activity to flourish. Volunteering England believes that there should be greater recognition of the value of volunteering in young peoples lives and the unique contribution that volunteers can make to the delivery of services.
Volunteering and citizenship are central to the proposals contained within the green paper and there are a number of specific proposals on which Volunteering England would like to make comment.
Volunteering, positive activities and constructive activities
Volunteering, “…positive activities…”, “…constructive activities…” and engagement in communities are used interchangeably throughout the document. As there is no blueprint for the types of volunteering activity undertaken in delivering the overall vision contained in the green paper it is important for there to be clarity about what constitutes volunteering and about how these activities might be delivered. Whilst the green paper acknowledges volunteering it paints a fairly narrow picture of what volunteering means, where and how it happens.
There needs to be further guidance for Local Authorities from the Department for Education and Skills about what constitutes volunteering; how these activities might be delivered and how this would complement existing volunteering infrastructure and the work of ChangeUp. Reference to the newly published revised Compact Code of Good Practice on Volunteering would facilitate this process.
We would assert that volunteering is not just a tool for delivering public services, developing citizenship and delivering educational outcomes. This is a fact illustrated by the fact that less than a third of volunteers see the development of new skills as one of the major benefits of their volunteering (National Survey of Volunteering 1997).
Volunteering can also be about mutual support, campaigning, advocacy work and social change. In this context it is important not to lose sight of the value of volunteering, of giving people the opportunity to participate simply because society needs that involvement per se as much as it needs the delivery of services or the personal development of the volunteer. There should be no compulsion to volunteer; volunteering must be a choice freely made by each individual. Freedom to volunteer therefore also implies freedom not to become involved.
While involvement of volunteers brings many advantages, considerable thought needs to be given to developing appropriate roles for volunteers in delivery of public services. This is pertinent where there are statutory, legal or moral responsibilities to deliver those services.
The involvement of volunteers in public service delivery needs to be clearly defined. It should be understood that the role of volunteers is to add value to services. The integrity of volunteering could be undermined by a public perception that volunteers are being used to displace paid workers or to deliver cheapened public services.
Many volunteer-involving organisations feel they should involve volunteers but this is not always appropriate. There are many good reasons to involve volunteers but there are also bad reasons – not least where volunteers feel they are a substitute for paid staff. When volunteers are involved in inappropriate opportunities they can feel exploited, paid staff feel they are an extra burden and service users can feel short changed.
It also needs to be recognised that there are very few volunteering opportunities available for under-16s. Organisations are reluctant to take on under-16s; their insurance is unlikely to cover them, which means increased premiums, there is an enhanced duty of care towards young people and there are issues around child protection and supervision. Any attempt to encourage young people to volunteer must come with additional funding and support for volunteer-involving organisations.
Within the Green Paper there is a risk that volunteering could be viewed as a government-controlled or curriculum-led initiative rather than as a mutual activity. Whilst we do not believe this to be the government agenda, there is a real possibility that this could be the perception of the public, and of young people in particular. This could act as a deterrent to young people volunteering.
Incentivising volunteering
Volunteering England is not opposed to incentivising volunteering per se, for instance training, skills development and an MV for your CV would all be incentives that would receive our support. However we would be concerned if there are monetary incentives, particularly if volunteering achievements were linked to educational credits for course fees and loans, or additional pay increases for employed volunteers.
Volunteers make significant contributions to society. Volunteering England hopes that the DFES will adopt policies that ensure that volunteer time is recognised as a significant contribution and of value but that this contribution is recognised as having more than monetary equivalence.
The Compact Code of Good Practice on Volunteering sets out principles and undertakings for both the Government and the voluntary and community sector in England on good practice for volunteering. The principle of non-payment of volunteers is central to the Compact Volunteering code and to the wider sector and society’s understanding of volunteering.
The 2001 Home Office Citizenship survey showed that 1 in 10 people would be more interested in volunteering if they knew that they would get their expenses reimbursed. The 1997 National Survey of Volunteering found that 7 per cent of people cited being out of pocket as one of the reasons they stopped volunteering. Research for the Russell Commission emphasised that young people expected the payment of out-of-pocket expenses.
Opportunity Cards
In relation to volunteering activity, opportunity cards may pose a number of problems both for the volunteer and for those organisations offering volunteering opportunities and administering the cards.
Consideration needs to be given to the full range of organisations offering volunteering opportunities. This should extend beyond large registered charities and include organisations active at a local or community level. These are usually small and modestly funded and therefore who may not have the necessary infrastructure to support the administration of opportunity cards.
Furthermore for volunteers and volunteer-involving organisations there is a danger that attempts to incentivise volunteering with loyalty rewards may be perceived as having a cash value. This may impact on the legal status of volunteers, with further implications for tax status with Inland Revenue and employment status under the National Minimum Wage legislation.
In our view the costs and practicalities incurred to administer opportunity cards at a local level would probably far outweigh the benefits.
Opportunity funds
Volunteering England would welcome the introduction of opportunity funds which could encourage Local Authorities to increase the quantity and quality of young peoples volunteering.
Local Authorities will be able to encourage and empower young people to manage funding to develop opportunities in the context of a risk:responsibility relationship – acknowledging that we will take the risk of funding young people and allow them to take responsibility for decision making and developing their own experience.
The opportunity funds would allow for a more customer focussed bespoke service for young people where they design, own and lead opportunities. Research shows that young people value the opportunity to lead projects and that successful projects are usually young person led, but with skilled adult facilitation.
The Generation V Young People Speak out on Volunteering research for the Russell Commission showed the need for team/group activities, flexible opportunities that reflect young peoples’ interests, short-term projects and young people-led opportunities.
A revised statutory duty
Where the DFES proposes to legislate to clarify Local Authorities’ duty to secure positive activities for young people, there should be recognition of the existing contribution of volunteers, volunteer-involving organisations and the volunteering infrastructure. Volunteering England hopes that the DFES will encourage Local Authorities to consult and work in partnership with the existing volunteering infrastructure provision as well as with volunteer-involving organisations in providing positive activities for young people.
Any proposed legislation should take account of and make reference to Local Area Agreements and the Local Strategic Partnerships that underpin these agreements. The voluntary and community sector – and specifically the volunteering infrastructure – is often not engaged or play no significant role in the Local Area Agreement and Local Strategic Partnerships.
An evaluation of the DfES Active Citizenship in Schools pilot project shows that schools can be very successful in introducing young people to volunteering. However, schools can have difficulty in making suitable links with local community organisations (where there is a role for existing networks). Volunteering opportunities can best be delivered at a local level, through working with the local volunteering infrastructure
Within the context of a revised statutory duty Volunteering England would like to see reference made to meeting the needs of young people who face specific barriers to accessing activities. Volunteering for all? a report of research into social exclusion and volunteering by the Institute for Volunteering Research highlighted a number of issues about disability and volunteering which can be considered for young disabled people.
One is the obvious issue of physical access, and Local Authorities could require organisations offering volunteering opportunities to make buildings accessible.
Disabled volunteers also face a degree of unconscious prejudice – volunteers and non-volunteers in the study reported feeling that un-skilled jobs were given to them because their disability was seen as meaning they could not do other tasks. Many disabled people argued for greater disability awareness training for organisations (although others argued that this was not enough). It is crucial that Local Authorities ensure that young people with disabilities are offered opportunities that match their motivation to volunteer – rather than their disability.
About Volunteering England
Volunteering England is the integrated national volunteer development organisation for England. We work across the voluntary, public and private sectors to raise the profile of volunteering as a powerful force for change.
Membership is open to organisations and individuals operating in England with an interest in volunteering. Volunteering England was formed in April 2004 following a merger between The Consortium on Opportunities for Volunteering, The National Centre for Volunteering and Volunteer Development England.
Volunteering England is the accountable body for the activity of the Volunteering Hub. The Volunteering Hub will work to achieve the ChangeUp high level objective that by 2014 there will be a leaner, effectively marketed and high quality volunteering infrastructure reaching, recruiting and placing a greater number and diversity of individuals coupled with improved volunteer management.
