Volunteering - what you should consider?

Volunteers – a few things to consider

Volunteers' Week offers people a chance to be part of the UK's celebration of volunteering. It recognises the contribution of over 20 million people who volunteer in their communities across the UK. Everyone can volunteer and volunteering can have significant benefits for individuals. It is clear that people choose to volunteer for a number of reasons.

It’s an opportunity to give something back to the community and to make a difference to the people within the local community; it offers an opportunity to meet new people and to feel part of that community; as well as providing opportunities to develop new skills. There is lots of anecdotal evidence that volunteering has a positive impact on health. Whatever the drive and the motivation for volunteers, it can be both challenging and rewarding of the individuals.

Not for profit organisations benefit immensely from the gift of volunteers’ time, however there are some things organisations should consider when taking on volunteers.

Volunteers or staff?

Organisations should keep a clear distinction between volunteers and employees. There are concerns, particularly in the public and not for profit sector, that pressure to reduce costs and increase outputs will lead to volunteers being recruited for the ‘wrong’ reasons. It is important that concerns over job substitution are addressed. Apart from being aware of the potential legal risks, the majority of volunteers will not want to be treated as employees.

So when considering to recruiting volunteers to work alongside staff, there are a number of questions to reflect on:

• Why are you doing it?
• How will volunteers add value?
• How will you introduce the concept to staff?
• How will you reassure staff about job security?
• What roles are appropriate for volunteers to do and what roles are not?
• How will the Board support the involvement of volunteers?

Volunteering strategy

With the right support, strategic leadership and commitment from the top, volunteering can have a significant contribution to a charity or not for profit group. Developing a volunteering strategy which aligns with the organisation’s mission and strategic aims will demonstrate, internally and externally, that the organisation takes volunteering seriously and recognises the value of the contribution it makes. This is also central for attracting new volunteers and for retaining existing ones.

The volunteer strategy should also include resources for volunteer management and support, and it should be reviewed regularly, at least on an annual basis. This will help ensure that it stays current and is relevant to the strategic direction of the organisation. In addition, thanking volunteers should be as integral to volunteer management strategy as recruitment, training and retention.

Volunteer policies

A volunteering policy is a framework for a volunteer programme. It helps define the role of volunteers within the organisation, and how they can expect to be treated. The policy should reflect the size and nature of the organisation. However, here are some points to consider:

• Recruitment of volunteers, including equality and diversity
• Induction and training
• Health and safety
• Confidentiality and data protection
• Problem solving and complaint procedures for volunteers
• Expenses - volunteer expenses policy which should be shared with volunteers when they are recruited, and could be part of their induction.

The policy should also be reviewed regularly, at least annually, to ensure it remains fit for purpose and current.

Volunteer agreements

Volunteer agreements can be used to set out what an organisation hopes for from its volunteers and acts as a reminder to the organisation that it should meet the standards of good practice in engaging with volunteers. However, care should be taken not to inadvertently creating an employment contract. However, this risk can be minimised by following some general steps:

• avoid the creation of mutual obligations, which could be regarded in law as creating a contract.
• set out the terms of the relationship based on reasonable expectations rather than obligations.
• avoid the use of any language that sounds contractual.
• Reduce perks that could be seen as ‘consideration’ or payment. Even benefits necessary for the volunteer to carry out their work, such as training, can be problematic if they’re couched in such a way that suggests an obligation on the part of the volunteer.
• Ensure that expenses can’t be seen as income by ensuring you only reimburse volunteers for out-of-pocket expenses.

Insurance and volunteers

Organisations should consider the types of insurance cover needed to protect the volunteers as well as the organisation.

The above are only a few pointers to consider when engaging with volunteers. For more information please contact me or any of my colleagues via Bishop Fleming.