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Student Volunteering Week 2012 is underway

Monday, 20 February 2012

SVW fullcolour Student Volunteering Week 2012 takes place from 20 to 26 February and celebrates the contribution thousands of students across the UK make to their communities every day.

Delivered by Volunteering England and sponsored by Santander, Student Volunteering Week is currently in its 11^th year. The theme for 2012 is ‘Back to Basics: Community Roots’, turning the spotlight on informal volunteering and community action.

Students and the organisations they work with will be delivering a host of events during the week. Details of these events can be found on the Volunteering England website, along with useful resources and case studies of student volunteers.

Volunteering England will also be presenting the Matt Spencer Award for outstanding contribution to student volunteering. Matt epitomised student volunteering, and his commitment, enthusiasm and sense of fun inspired us all and will continue to do so.

Christianne Carrick, Senior CSR Manager at Santander, commented: “In these difficult economic times, volunteering plays an increasingly important role in helping to build and maintain strong communities. Working together with Volunteering England to support Student Volunteering Week provides opportunities for students to become active citizens, connect with their communities and understand local issues.

“Not only does this have a positive impact on the community and promote a deeper appreciation of organisations that rely on voluntary support, but this also allows students to gain valuable experience and develop skills preparing them for the world of work and boosting their employability.”

63 per cent of students take part in some form of formal voluntary activity during university, with 95 per cent driven to do so out of a desire to improve things or to help people. Volunteering also enhances employability, with half of recent graduates under the age of 30 in paid work saying that volunteering has helped them secure a job[1].

Nick Hurd, Minister for Civil Society, commented: “Young people should think seriously about volunteering. As well as offering them a great opportunity to develop new skills and give something back to their community, it’s also a way to get fantastic work experience for their CV. Student Volunteering Week 2012 is a great opportunity for young people to find out about how they can get involved.”

Stephen Greene, Chief Executive of RockCorps, an organisation that encourages students and young people to get involved in helping out in their communities, said: “RockCorps believes youth are one experience away from changing the world. We fully support Student Volunteering Week as a scheme that helps young people to make a difference.”

Notes for editors

For more information about the campaign and case studies please contact Penny Gee and Oli Gregory at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or call 07702 475 972.

A range of resources to support students and student volunteer managers can be found at www.volunteering.org/svw along with information about this year’s social media campaign and a map of events taking place across the UK.

[1] Bursting the Bubble: Students, Volunteering and the Community (2010), by Georgina Brewis, Jennifer Russell and Clare Holdsworth, published by the Institute for Volunteering Research and the National Co-ordinating Centre for Public Engagement.

Volunteering England and Forestry Commission sign joint commitment

Friday, 03 February 2012

Forestry-Commission-England Volunteering England and the Forestry Commission have demonstrated their commitment to working together by signing a memorandum of understanding.

Subscribe to our quarterly newsletter

Friday, 03 February 2012

news policy We're introducing a new quarterly newsletter for non-members. It will contain information about our work and the latest developments in the world of volunteering.

Members receive a newsletter every fortnight that contains priority information about exclusive events, access to resources, opportunities to be involved in the development of Volunteering England's work and more. If you're interested, find out more about becoming a member of Volunteering England and feel free to contact us.

Sector leaders oppose charging volunteers for portable criminal records checks

Friday, 23 December 2011

23^rd December 2011

We are calling on the Government to affirm its commitment to volunteering by making portable Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) checks free to volunteers.

Whilst the Government has confirmed that CRB checks themselves will remain free for volunteers, a decision has yet to be made about the cost of the online system that will ensure volunteers will not have to be checked every time they begin a new role.

Volunteering England update: October – December 2011

Thursday, 15 December 2011

VE quarterly update

This is the third edition of our quarterly update, providing you with information about our work and how you can get involved. It includes:

Highlights from the last quarter of 2011.
New developments.
Progress with projects and policy work.
Looking back on 2011.

As always, feel free to contact us via This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

- veupdate October – December 2011 Download file type: PDF, size: 1.5Mb (1.5Mb) (PDF)

New faces join Volunteering England board

Friday, 11 November 2011

Volunteering England welcomes five new trustees following its 2011 AGM. The votes have now been counted and we are pleased to announce our new member-trustees as:

Work Programme providers should pay voluntary organisations for their services

Tuesday, 08 November 2011

Minister for Employment, Chris Grayling MP, has confirmed that Work Programme providers should enter into contractual relationships with voluntary organisations if they wish to access their services.

Volunteering England responds to reports of plans to collaborate with other sector bodies

Thursday, 20 October 2011

Sukhvinder Kaur Stubbs

Statement by Sukhvinder Kaur Stubbs, Chair of Trustees for Volunteering England, in response to the story in Third Sector (20 October) on collaboration between volunteering bodies.

Challenge to support volunteers for NGOs and government

Tuesday, 06 September 2011

Non-governmental organisations “need to face up to the challenges of sustaining the strength of the voluntary spirit in our societies”, Justin Davis Smith, Chief Executive of Volunteering England, told a UN conference on Monday (5 September).

Motor insurers promise not to charge volunteer drivers a premium

Tuesday, 23 August 2011

After months of negotiation between Volunteering England, the Community Transport Association and the Association of British Insurers, over 50 car insurance providers have confirmed that they do not charge extra for volunteer driving.

Letter to the Prime Minister offering help in the wake of the recent riots

Friday, 12 August 2011

"Volunteering England welcomes the broad proposals to revise the safeguarding systems announced as part of the Freedom Bill. The portability of criminal records checks will be widely seen as helpful by volunteers and volunteering organisations. The lower level of involvement for people and roles will also reduce a significant barrier to volunteering."

£1.9 million boost for volunteering in recession-hit communities

Wednesday, 10 August 2011

Volunteering England, in partnership with 15 local Volunteer Centres, has today been awarded a £1.9m Big Lottery Fund grant over three years to help communities most affected by the recession through stimulating volunteering.

The community response to the riots deserves to be celebrated

Tuesday, 09 August 2011

This morning thousands of people across the UK have come together to clean up their cities following three days of civil unrest.

Volunteering England welcomes new local infrastructure fund

Friday, 15 July 2011

The Transforming Local Infrastructure programme implements the Government’s proposal in the Giving White Paper and is administered by Big Fund. The programme is making £30 million available for an 18 month period to provide better support for frontline civil society organisations by rationalising and transforming local infrastructure services.

Award of CBE in Queen's Birthday Honours for Dr Justin Davis Smith, Chief Executive of Volunteering England

Monday, 13 June 2011

The Board of Volunteering England is delighted with the news. Chair of Volunteering England, Sukhvinder Kaur-Stubbs, stated:

“On behalf of the Board of Volunteering England, I extend my congratulations to Justin for this honour. It is well deserved and a powerful endorsement of the respect he commands, the efforts of his team and the value of volunteering. The honour reflects the significant role that Volunteering England has played in promoting voluntary action and recognises Justin's influence in shaping the new agenda.”

Volunteering England responds to Mr Christopher Chope’s Private Member’s Bill

Friday, 10 June 2011

The Volunteer Rights Inquiry, set up in November 2009, today launches its Call to Action, the ‘3R Promise,’ asking organisations to commit to ‘getting it right’, ‘achieving reconciliation’ and ‘accepting responsibility’ in resolving matters of conflict with volunteers.

Volunteering England welcomes White Paper on Giving

Monday, 23 May 2011

The Transforming Local Infrastructure programme implements the Government’s proposal in the Giving White Paper and is administered by Big Fund. The programme is making £30 million available for an 18 month period to provide better support for frontline civil society organisations by rationalising and transforming local infrastructure services.

Welcome for Lord Hodgson’s Task Force report on cutting red tape

Wednesday, 18 May 2011

Volunteering England has welcomed the report of Lord Hodgson’s Independent Task Force established to propose how to cut red tape for small charities, voluntary organisations and social enterprise.

Response to report of retired police officers in West Midlands being asked to return to the service as volunteer special constables

Thursday, 05 May 2011

A book launch and celebration event at the London School of Economics (LSE) will today mark the official deposit of the Volunteering England Collection. This new archive documents the modern history of volunteering in England.

Bank of America Merrill Lynch sponsors Volunteers’ Week 2011

Thursday, 21 April 2011

Volunteering England is delighted to announce Bank of America Merrill Lynch as official sponsor of Volunteers’ Week 2011.

New Volunteering England archive documents the history of volunteering in England

Monday, 18 April 2011

A book launch and celebration event at the London School of Economics (LSE) will today mark the official deposit of the Volunteering England Collection. This new archive documents the modern history of volunteering in England.

Budget result for volunteer drivers

Wednesday, 23 March 2011

Budget 2011 included an increase in the approved mileage rate and the extension of the passenger allowance to volunteers.

Announcement of Office for Civil Society Strategic Partners

Tuesday, 22 March 2011

On 22 March, the Office for Civil Society named Volunteering England as one of nine strategic partners and set out its funding as £500,000 for 2011012, three-quarters of that (£375,000) for 2012-13 and half of that (£250,000) for 2013-14.

Volunteer Rights Inquiry calls on organisations to raise standards of volunteer management

Wednesday, 02 March 2011

The Volunteer Rights Inquiry, set up in November 2009, today launches its Call to Action, the ‘3R Promise,’ asking organisations to commit to ‘getting it right’, ‘achieving reconciliation’ and ‘accepting responsibility’ in resolving matters of conflict with volunteers.

Employee volunteering and the Civil Service

Monday, 21 February 2011

Justin Davis Smith, Chief Executive of Volunteering England, welcomed the announcement from the Cabinet Office that the Civil Service has committed to giving 30,000 volunteering days a year, with each civil servant encouraged to do at least one day to volunteering.

Freedom Bill announcement on safeguarding

Friday, 11 February 2011