Frequently Asked Questions
General Membership queries
- Who can apply for membership?
- Do we have to pay for membership?
- What is annual turnover?
- Can my department apply for membership?
- What if we are a not for profit organisation or charity?
- Is membership free for individuals?
- What if we do not have an income or annual turnover?
- What if we are an FEHE institution or Students’ Union?
- Can organisations based outside England apply for membership?
- Will membership provide access to volunteering opportunities?
Applying for membership
- How can I apply for membership?
- How can I pay for membership?
- Can more than one person within my organisation receive the members’ enewsletter?
- Can we have more than one email for accessing the members’ area?
- Which email should we use as the default contact and for our members’ log-in?
Existing members
- How do we renew our membership?
- We have not been receiving the members’ enewsletter?
- How do we unsubscribe from the members’ enewsletter?
- How do I find out about events for members?
- I can’t find our membership number?
- We have forgotten or misplaced our log-in details?
- What do we do if our details have changed?
Who can apply for membership?
Membership with Volunteering England is available to any organisation or individual based in England. We welcome members from all three sectors (private, public and third).
Do we have to pay for membership?
This depends on whether you are applying as an individual or on behalf of an organisation. Membership categories 1-5 are for volunteering involving organisations with the fee based on annual turnover.
Category 6 is exclusively for Volunteer Centres who are either VCQA accredited or seeking, whereas categories 7 and 8 are for individuals who are either unable to apply as part of an organisation or who are based outside of the UK respectively.
More information on our membership fees can be found on our Join Us page.
What is annual turnover?
This is the total income for your organisation within the last completed financial year, or in other words the total amount of money that comes into your business account in a year for the entire organisation.
This amount can usually be found in your annual report. If you are a new organisation then you can choose a category based on your expected turnover for the current financial year.
Can my department apply for membership?
We can only accept applications from departments if they are part of an NHS or Educational institution.
This is also on the understanding that the membership and its associated benefits are accessed exclusively by employees or volunteers based within the department and not the wider institution.
What if we are a not for profit organisation or charity?
A membership fee will still apply assuming your annual turnover is above £30,000. Annual turnover is in no way related to profit, and this figure will determine the membership category that your organisation falls into.
Is membership free for individuals?
No - the free membership category is exclusively for smaller volunteer-involving organisations with an annual turnover of less than £30,000.
Membership categories 7 and 8 (non UK) are exclusively for individuals that are not specifically connected to or who are unable to join as part of an organisation.
What if we don’t have an income or annual turnover?
If this is the case then we would suggest that you use your total annual budget or funding for the year as a guideline for selecting a membership category.
What if we are a Further or Higher Education Institution or Students’ Union?
There are specific benefits for the Further and Higher Education sector members, including the Student Volunteering enewsletter and discounts on events and publications. For more information visit http://www.volunteering.org.uk/WhatWeDo/sv
As with other organisations, the membership category is based on annual turnover. However, membership can be solely for the Volunteering Unit and therefore based on just the annual turnover of this department.
Can organisations based outside of England apply for membership?
No - membership is only available to organisations based in England. However, membership category 8 allows non UK individuals to subscribe to the online Volunteering Magazine.
If you are based in the UK, but outside of England, you can get in touch with your respective volunteering development agency from the list below:
Northern Ireland – Volunteer Now
Scotland – Volunteer Centre Network Scotland
Wales – Volunteering Wales
Will membership provide access to volunteering opportunities?
Not directly - we work with organisations across all three sectors to increase the quality, quantity, impact and accessibility of volunteering and support our members with specialist advice, information and good practice.
If you are an individual looking for volunteering opportunities contact your local Volunteer Centre by using our VC Finder, or visit www.do-it.org.uk which is the UK database of volunteering opportunities. Or if you are interested in volunteering for London 2012 please click here.
How can I apply for membership?
If you qualify for a FREE membership or can make a card payment, you can apply online.
Otherwise, you can download and complete an application form and send it to us by either Freepost or by emailing it to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
The form can be downloaded in either a Word or PDF format on the Join Us page of our website.
How can I pay for membership?
We accept the following payment methods: cheque, BACS transfer and credit/debit card payment (with the exception of American Express).
You can save £8 on the annual membership fee by setting up a Direct Debit.
New members can also apply and pay (by card only) online.
Further details of how to pay can be found on the membership application form.
Can more than one person in my organisation receive the members’ enewsletter?
Yes – but only if you are a category 5 member. Going forward these members will be able to have up to five additional email contacts that receive the bi-monthly enewsletter.
Can we have more than one email for accessing the members’ area?
Each membership can only make use of one email address for accessing the members’ area of the website.
Which email should we use as the default contact and for our members’ log-in?
We would recommend that you make use of a generic or shared email (such info@....) to help avoid losing your log-in details. This will also help to ensure that you continue to receive important updates from the Membership team.
How do we renew our membership?
We will send a number of renewal reminders leading-up to your renewal date. In addition to this we will post a renewal form which can be completed and returned to the office. If you have set up a Direct Debit payment with us you will not have to do anything and we will inform you of any upcoming transactions.
If you are unsure when your membership is due for renewal please get in touch with the Membership team by emailing This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
We have not been receiving the members’ enewsletter?
We would suggest that you first check that the enewsletter is not ending up in the Spam or Junk folder of your in-box. If this is not the case, then please get in touch with the Membership team to check that your contact details are up to date.
How do we unsubscribe from the members’ enewsletter?
To unsubscribe simply click on the ‘unsubscribe’ link at the bottom of the enewsletter and your email will be automatically removed from the mailing list. This will not affect your membership record or log-in details in any way.
How do I find out about events for members?
We plan and organise four members’ events to be held each year. Details of these as well as other Volunteering England events can be found on our website. You can visit the events’ section of our website by clicking here.
I can’t find my membership number?
Your membership number is provided to you as part of your confirmation email and welcome pack when you first join Volunteering England. It is also included in any subsequent renewal reminders that you receive.
If you have misplaced it, please feel free to get in touch with the team at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
We have forgotten or misplaced our log-in details?
If you can’t remember your password you are able to reset this by clicking on the relevant link on the members’ area log-in page.
If you are unsure of your username please get in touch with the membership team at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
What do we do if our details have changed?
If your address or contact details have changed, please get in touch with us so that we can update your membership record accordingly.
