As I was wandering around town earlier this week I was struck by how many Volunteers' Week tee shirts were being worn – Volunteer Centre Plymouth are having a massive week of celebrations and events right in the heart of the town centre here. It was really good to see their marquee was buzzing with conversations as a wide variety of organisations were speaking to local residents about volunteering. I am sure that just about everyone who visited that marquee in the middle of Plymouth today would not know that they were at an event delivered by our Volunteer Centre – it was branded as Volunteers Week, and the Volunteer Centre had given itself the least prominent stall in order to more actively promote their local members. I think Simon and his team deserve a big pat on the back for the work they have put into Volunteers Week in Plymouth.
Visiting that marquee today reminded me of the NAVCA and Volunteering England joint statement challenging the received wisdom that only 2% of people find their way into volunteering through their local Volunteer Centre (www.navca.org.uk/news/volunteeringtwopercent.htm) that I read yesterday. What NAVCA and Volunteering England are saying is so true. If I was asked whether any of my current volunteering activities had been brokered by a Volunteer Centre, I would have to say ‘no’. But that misses the point. Despite having volunteered since I was young, I had gradually fallen out of the habit and about 10 years ago I realised that I was no longer doing anything at all. So I’d like to say a very big thank you to Volunteer Centre Wandsworth for the help they gave me to find a local opportunity and the enormous enjoyment and satisfaction that I have received from all of my volunteering since then – they might not have brokered all of the opportunities (in fact they only did 2 of them), but it was because of their fantastic service that I got back into doing something I enjoy and started to use Volunteer Centre services in the organisations for which I worked.
I have been privileged to work with Volunteer Centres across the country. Reflecting back on 10 years of involvement I can see how far the network has come. By and large they are delivering what they have been asked to do, and have radically progressed their own development – all with limited resources. I think it is about time someone put their money where their mouth is and started putting the resources in to really deliver what the network is capable of and radically enhancing the volunteering experience – but I know that is what Jamie said earlier this week...
We often hear negatives about our Volunteer Centres. I know that some of these comments might be deserved by a few of them - but they are not representative of all (I know – I’ve read hundreds of quality accreditation portfolios). So let’s change the way we talk about the network. Let’s not promote the fallacy that one bad experience in one Volunteer Centre means that the hundreds that serve our country always act in that manner – it’s just not true. Let’s be constructive in any criticism we have – finding solutions and improving services might take a bit more thought, but it will improve things for all of us next time we need to use their services. Let’s praise them for all the good things they do – it is so easy to forget to say ‘thank you’ or ‘well done’ – and let’s start doing that now and keep on doing it – they deserve it.
Posted by Chris Penberthy, Managing Director of Red Foundation and former CEO of Volunteer Development England and a Director of Volunteering England
Sunday 7 June 2009
Saturday 6 June 2009
What Makes Volunteers' Week Happy?
Happy Volunteers Week!! And it should be a happy time, volunteering as an activity is increasing and I would hope that that is an indicator that people are happy doing it.
Over the past few years there has been an increase in the amount of money that has been invested in the development of volunteering. There has been project funding for the recruitment of specific groups of volunteers such as young people, disabled people and people from socially disadvantaged groups for example.
And the recent economic situation has lead to more investment in volunteering with programmes dedicated to enabling people who are out of work to retain their skills or develop new ones, there should be more people than ever before having a Happy Volunteers week this year.
So, my question is – is volunteering the happy experience we hope it will be? The 1997 National Survey of Volunteering in the UK found that the benefits that people reported from volunteering include enjoying the activity, the satisfaction of seeing results, meeting people and a sense of personal achievement. These were in addition to more tangible benefits such as the opportunity to learn new skills, get a qualification and gain a position within the community.
With changes in public policy such as CRB checks and health and safety, as well as changes in funding patterns many organisations have increased the range of responsibilities laid on volunteers.
However, in the 2008 study on the impact of public policy on volunteering in community based organisations some organisations have reported that the withdrawal, or non continuance of funding has led to a cut down in organisational activities, reduction in the range and scope of volunteering activities and fewer resources to support volunteers.
The variable project funding that organisations use to resource volunteering has a direct impact on the support and development offered to volunteers. While those organisations who received funding to employ a volunteer co-ordinator were able to demonstrate increases in the support and development of volunteers, some organisations found that funding cuts meant that staff had less time to for training or supervision of volunteers. Some organisations had also made cuts in the less formal aspects of thanking volunteers including social events which are often highly valued by volunteers.
The 2008 research bulletin Management Matters: a national survey of volunteer management capacity found that volunteer management was a full-time occupation for only 6 per cent of respondents. Nonetheless, the numbers of volunteers supported by individuals ranged from one or two to several hundreds or even thousands. With increased paperwork as a result of policy and funding changes it is hardly surprising that most staff responsible for managing volunteers report increased pressure of work.
Volunteer involving organisations are increasingly turning to external sources of funding for the resources that they need to manage volunteers, and yet this type of project funding makes it difficult for organisations to effectively plan sustainable programmes of support and development for volunteers.
With seven out of ten volunteers reporting dissatisfaction with the way in which their voluntary work was organised in the 1997 survey, let us call on volunteer involving organisations to find core funds to develop and implement sustainable programmes of support and development of volunteers, and those who manage them so that every week can be a Happy Volunteers Week.
Posted by Debbie Usiskin, Associate Director (Volunteer Management) at Red Foundation and vice-chair of the Association of Volunteer Managers
Over the past few years there has been an increase in the amount of money that has been invested in the development of volunteering. There has been project funding for the recruitment of specific groups of volunteers such as young people, disabled people and people from socially disadvantaged groups for example.
And the recent economic situation has lead to more investment in volunteering with programmes dedicated to enabling people who are out of work to retain their skills or develop new ones, there should be more people than ever before having a Happy Volunteers week this year.
So, my question is – is volunteering the happy experience we hope it will be? The 1997 National Survey of Volunteering in the UK found that the benefits that people reported from volunteering include enjoying the activity, the satisfaction of seeing results, meeting people and a sense of personal achievement. These were in addition to more tangible benefits such as the opportunity to learn new skills, get a qualification and gain a position within the community.
With changes in public policy such as CRB checks and health and safety, as well as changes in funding patterns many organisations have increased the range of responsibilities laid on volunteers.
However, in the 2008 study on the impact of public policy on volunteering in community based organisations some organisations have reported that the withdrawal, or non continuance of funding has led to a cut down in organisational activities, reduction in the range and scope of volunteering activities and fewer resources to support volunteers.
The variable project funding that organisations use to resource volunteering has a direct impact on the support and development offered to volunteers. While those organisations who received funding to employ a volunteer co-ordinator were able to demonstrate increases in the support and development of volunteers, some organisations found that funding cuts meant that staff had less time to for training or supervision of volunteers. Some organisations had also made cuts in the less formal aspects of thanking volunteers including social events which are often highly valued by volunteers.
The 2008 research bulletin Management Matters: a national survey of volunteer management capacity found that volunteer management was a full-time occupation for only 6 per cent of respondents. Nonetheless, the numbers of volunteers supported by individuals ranged from one or two to several hundreds or even thousands. With increased paperwork as a result of policy and funding changes it is hardly surprising that most staff responsible for managing volunteers report increased pressure of work.
Volunteer involving organisations are increasingly turning to external sources of funding for the resources that they need to manage volunteers, and yet this type of project funding makes it difficult for organisations to effectively plan sustainable programmes of support and development for volunteers.
With seven out of ten volunteers reporting dissatisfaction with the way in which their voluntary work was organised in the 1997 survey, let us call on volunteer involving organisations to find core funds to develop and implement sustainable programmes of support and development of volunteers, and those who manage them so that every week can be a Happy Volunteers Week.
Posted by Debbie Usiskin, Associate Director (Volunteer Management) at Red Foundation and vice-chair of the Association of Volunteer Managers
Friday 5 June 2009
It's Time Young Volunteers Were Put in Charge
We’ll all be aware of how young people as volunteers can benefit communities, service development, delivery and provide an excellent opportunity for young people to develop their skills, understanding and gain experience for further education and employment.
But are organisations ready for young people to be involved as volunteers at a strategic level – more than just designing a poster or being consulted with, but in deciding on council spending on services, involvement in decision making on local, regional and national programming and being equal parties on statutory bodies such as the Children’s Trust Board?
Some of the issues faced by young people is an unwillingness of the system to devolve power to them as a cohort, or to be piece meal in their approach. For example, it is currently exam time for thousands of young people across the country – how many councils, national governing bodies (sports), national charities and central government have new initiatives, agenda’s or projects that are being consulted on during this time that affect young people?
There is also the concern that young people can’t be controlled. What if they come up with an idea that is challenging to the organisation? Or ask to be involved in other decisions? The 10 year strategy for Positive Activities produced by the Treasury last year expects local authorities to devolve an increasing proportion of their funding for positive activities to young people’s influence – up to 5% of their budget for youth services in 2010 and 2011, with an aspiration of 25% by 2018. Can local authorities cope with this power shift?!
Time is always a big factor / excuse* (delete accordingly!). Over the last 12 years of working within youth volunteering or youth participation, I have had countless requests to involve young people in service planning and development with a one week turn around. Where possible I endeavour to return the request with an options paper outlining the level of involvement one week’s notice will bring, and the difference that an extra three weeks might be (from an email / phone conversation with 5 young people through to a full day event for 50 young people).
The big challenge for managers, large organisations and local authorities is in recognising that involvement of young volunteers can take longer to ensure it is not tokenistic, and use up more resources (in providing briefing sessions ahead of meetings so that where knowledge is power, young people have had the chance to prepare ahead with workers).
This recognition, along with being clear about roles, expectations, having excellent support and the chance for young people to influence, challenge and work collaboratively with workers at every level in organisations is what makes strategic involvement of young volunteers a success and can lead to fantastic outcomes both individually and organisationally.
Posted by Emma Sparrow, Associate Director (Youth Engagement) at Red Foundation
But are organisations ready for young people to be involved as volunteers at a strategic level – more than just designing a poster or being consulted with, but in deciding on council spending on services, involvement in decision making on local, regional and national programming and being equal parties on statutory bodies such as the Children’s Trust Board?
Some of the issues faced by young people is an unwillingness of the system to devolve power to them as a cohort, or to be piece meal in their approach. For example, it is currently exam time for thousands of young people across the country – how many councils, national governing bodies (sports), national charities and central government have new initiatives, agenda’s or projects that are being consulted on during this time that affect young people?
There is also the concern that young people can’t be controlled. What if they come up with an idea that is challenging to the organisation? Or ask to be involved in other decisions? The 10 year strategy for Positive Activities produced by the Treasury last year expects local authorities to devolve an increasing proportion of their funding for positive activities to young people’s influence – up to 5% of their budget for youth services in 2010 and 2011, with an aspiration of 25% by 2018. Can local authorities cope with this power shift?!
Time is always a big factor / excuse* (delete accordingly!). Over the last 12 years of working within youth volunteering or youth participation, I have had countless requests to involve young people in service planning and development with a one week turn around. Where possible I endeavour to return the request with an options paper outlining the level of involvement one week’s notice will bring, and the difference that an extra three weeks might be (from an email / phone conversation with 5 young people through to a full day event for 50 young people).
The big challenge for managers, large organisations and local authorities is in recognising that involvement of young volunteers can take longer to ensure it is not tokenistic, and use up more resources (in providing briefing sessions ahead of meetings so that where knowledge is power, young people have had the chance to prepare ahead with workers).
This recognition, along with being clear about roles, expectations, having excellent support and the chance for young people to influence, challenge and work collaboratively with workers at every level in organisations is what makes strategic involvement of young volunteers a success and can lead to fantastic outcomes both individually and organisationally.
Posted by Emma Sparrow, Associate Director (Youth Engagement) at Red Foundation
Thursday 4 June 2009
We Need to Challenge The Challenge
So - unskilled volunteers are the least valuable way in which a company can support charities and yet charities feel that they’re the most likely form of support they’ll be offered…….so says a recent report from CAF. Hardly unexpected, but why is this STILL the case?
Many years ago I worked for a job training programme. In my first week we had a team of volunteers from one of the large banks come in to paint the walls of our classrooms. For this we had to close the offices meaning our clients missed out on a day of training, employment and counselling services. At the end of the day a group of volunteers overheard one of our staff complaining that the young men and women from deprived neighbourhoods in the city were losing out ‘just so a group of overpaid bankers could get a free team building day’. Not exactly what we were hoping for!
Don’t get me wrong, there are plenty of community centres, schools, country paths and other places that really benefit from these ‘challenge events’ and they can be an invaluable way of achieving dramatic change in a very short period of time. But for each successful event, there is at least one that was not necessary and left everyone frustrated. So why do they still form the mainstay of almost all Employer Supported Volunteering Programmes?
The vast majority of companies, and certainly of their staff who are volunteering, have good intentions and would like their time to be as valuable as possible. But just as we have fundraising targets to achieve and grants to deliver on, so they have middle managers who don’t want to lose their staff on a regular basis, and senior managers who are demanding ever higher numbers of volunteers. The appeal of challenge events to them is obvious.
About 5 years ago I was chairing a meeting of the wonderful and now inexplicably defunct Employees in the Community Network run by Volunteering England when, after some minutes of this sort of talk one of the corporate delegates burst out with “but if you don’t want us to run challenge events, why the hell don’t you just tell us?”. It was a good question then and it remains a good question now. Is it because we think it’s a foot in the door – we might get more support, even financial, in the future. Is it because we think we could convert the individuals to regular volunteering opportunities. Or is it simply because we’ve been approached, it sounds like a good idea and we don’t want to turn down any help from a company? We complain that Challenge Events are all we are being offered – but why are we waiting for companies to come and offer things to us? Why aren’t we the proactive ones, showing them how they could best help us and themselves?
We can talk about developing the business case for skilled volunteering, creating new models for evaluation or even a massive marketing campaign but until we, the voluntary sector, take responsibility the situation is unlikely to change. What do we actually want from volunteers? If we need specific skills let’s go out and try and find them. If we’re approached about a team of 20 accountants who want to paint our wall, again, we need to have the guts, and the integrity, to say ‘thanks, but no thanks’. The current financial situation means far more companies are setting up Employee Volunteering Programmes – let’s make sure they’re really valuable to all of us.
And that job training programme? We went back to the company, told them what our real needs were, they explained why they contacted us in the first place, and we created a completely new system of volunteering with mock interviews, mentoring and champions to lobby their HR departments – oh, and one challenge event a year at a community project suggested by our clients!
Posted by Fabia Bates, Director of Corporate Community Involvement at Red Foundation and former Employee Volunteering Development Director at Business in the Community
Many years ago I worked for a job training programme. In my first week we had a team of volunteers from one of the large banks come in to paint the walls of our classrooms. For this we had to close the offices meaning our clients missed out on a day of training, employment and counselling services. At the end of the day a group of volunteers overheard one of our staff complaining that the young men and women from deprived neighbourhoods in the city were losing out ‘just so a group of overpaid bankers could get a free team building day’. Not exactly what we were hoping for!
Don’t get me wrong, there are plenty of community centres, schools, country paths and other places that really benefit from these ‘challenge events’ and they can be an invaluable way of achieving dramatic change in a very short period of time. But for each successful event, there is at least one that was not necessary and left everyone frustrated. So why do they still form the mainstay of almost all Employer Supported Volunteering Programmes?
The vast majority of companies, and certainly of their staff who are volunteering, have good intentions and would like their time to be as valuable as possible. But just as we have fundraising targets to achieve and grants to deliver on, so they have middle managers who don’t want to lose their staff on a regular basis, and senior managers who are demanding ever higher numbers of volunteers. The appeal of challenge events to them is obvious.
About 5 years ago I was chairing a meeting of the wonderful and now inexplicably defunct Employees in the Community Network run by Volunteering England when, after some minutes of this sort of talk one of the corporate delegates burst out with “but if you don’t want us to run challenge events, why the hell don’t you just tell us?”. It was a good question then and it remains a good question now. Is it because we think it’s a foot in the door – we might get more support, even financial, in the future. Is it because we think we could convert the individuals to regular volunteering opportunities. Or is it simply because we’ve been approached, it sounds like a good idea and we don’t want to turn down any help from a company? We complain that Challenge Events are all we are being offered – but why are we waiting for companies to come and offer things to us? Why aren’t we the proactive ones, showing them how they could best help us and themselves?
We can talk about developing the business case for skilled volunteering, creating new models for evaluation or even a massive marketing campaign but until we, the voluntary sector, take responsibility the situation is unlikely to change. What do we actually want from volunteers? If we need specific skills let’s go out and try and find them. If we’re approached about a team of 20 accountants who want to paint our wall, again, we need to have the guts, and the integrity, to say ‘thanks, but no thanks’. The current financial situation means far more companies are setting up Employee Volunteering Programmes – let’s make sure they’re really valuable to all of us.
And that job training programme? We went back to the company, told them what our real needs were, they explained why they contacted us in the first place, and we created a completely new system of volunteering with mock interviews, mentoring and champions to lobby their HR departments – oh, and one challenge event a year at a community project suggested by our clients!
Posted by Fabia Bates, Director of Corporate Community Involvement at Red Foundation and former Employee Volunteering Development Director at Business in the Community
Wednesday 3 June 2009
Going By The Board
When I was first asked to be a trustee, I had no idea what it meant. I gathered that, rightly or wrongly, someone was going to trust me with something but that was about as far as my understanding went. While I accepted and duly became a trustee I have to admit that it was several months before the fog cleared and I fully grasped the legal, ethical and financial responsibility I had taken on.
While this experience was many years ago now, I remain unconvinced that things have changed. How much does the person on the street really understand about trusteeship? Mention trusteeship to anyone not involved in the voluntary and community sector and you are likely to receive a blank look.
There are approximately 190,000 charities registered with the Charity Commission each of which has a board with, on average, around five trustees. A rough calculation suggests that there are around a million filled trustee positions at this time. Many other trustee positions are vacant. Additionally there are many thousands of voluntary and community organisations which are not registered as charities but which are still run by a board or management committee.
These volunteers are generally not paid for their work, they rarely take the limelight and yet they are responsible, in registered charities alone, of ensuring that £49bn of income and £78bn of investments are used appropriately, ethically and according to the letter of the law. This is a heavy burden on anyone’s shoulders.
It is not unusual for trustees not to receive formal training in relation to governance and charity law. It is not unusual for campaigns to promote and support volunteering to forget the million-strong band of volunteer trustees. It is not unusual for an organisation to invest nothing in its board as front-line work has to take priority. It is not unusual for trustees to be wholly dependent on their staff to supply legal briefings and project updates. It is not unusual for trustees to be a rubber stamp sanctioning the activities of the organisation with no real understanding or ability to effect change.
The voluntary and community sector is vast. In difficult times, it is currently struggling to support a society in financial strife. Ultimately, the responsibility for the sector is in the hands of volunteer trustees who are largely under-trained, under-supported and under-appreciated. And what do we need? More of them. We also need to broaden the range of people sitting on boards to reflect the diversity of the communities in which they work and we need them to bring a wider range of skills, experiences and understanding to support their boards and, ultimately, their charities.
I would argue that these changes are fundamental to the success of organisations and the sector as a whole. Greater understanding of trusteeship is needed so that the general public can appreciate the role and why it might be of interest to them. Existing trustees need access to support, information and advice which is free both in terms of finance and in terms of time. Crucially, this means presenting complex legal and financial information in a form which is accessible and clear to people who may not be used to reading about such things. It also means using community languages.
There is also an argument for improving our flexibility in terms of trusteeship. Gradually, there are some moves away from the (dare I say dull?) bi-monthly around-the-table trustee meetings of standard agenda, typewritten papers and dry reports. Being able to sit through a long meeting does not have to be a prerequisite for being a trustee. And yet all too often it feels like it is.
So this Volunteers’ Week, don’t forget the trustees!
Posted by Gudrun Limbrick, Associate Director of Research at Red Foundation and author of ‘One in A Million – a user-friendly guide to trusteeship’ (WordWorks ISBN 1903210194)
While this experience was many years ago now, I remain unconvinced that things have changed. How much does the person on the street really understand about trusteeship? Mention trusteeship to anyone not involved in the voluntary and community sector and you are likely to receive a blank look.
There are approximately 190,000 charities registered with the Charity Commission each of which has a board with, on average, around five trustees. A rough calculation suggests that there are around a million filled trustee positions at this time. Many other trustee positions are vacant. Additionally there are many thousands of voluntary and community organisations which are not registered as charities but which are still run by a board or management committee.
These volunteers are generally not paid for their work, they rarely take the limelight and yet they are responsible, in registered charities alone, of ensuring that £49bn of income and £78bn of investments are used appropriately, ethically and according to the letter of the law. This is a heavy burden on anyone’s shoulders.
It is not unusual for trustees not to receive formal training in relation to governance and charity law. It is not unusual for campaigns to promote and support volunteering to forget the million-strong band of volunteer trustees. It is not unusual for an organisation to invest nothing in its board as front-line work has to take priority. It is not unusual for trustees to be wholly dependent on their staff to supply legal briefings and project updates. It is not unusual for trustees to be a rubber stamp sanctioning the activities of the organisation with no real understanding or ability to effect change.
The voluntary and community sector is vast. In difficult times, it is currently struggling to support a society in financial strife. Ultimately, the responsibility for the sector is in the hands of volunteer trustees who are largely under-trained, under-supported and under-appreciated. And what do we need? More of them. We also need to broaden the range of people sitting on boards to reflect the diversity of the communities in which they work and we need them to bring a wider range of skills, experiences and understanding to support their boards and, ultimately, their charities.
I would argue that these changes are fundamental to the success of organisations and the sector as a whole. Greater understanding of trusteeship is needed so that the general public can appreciate the role and why it might be of interest to them. Existing trustees need access to support, information and advice which is free both in terms of finance and in terms of time. Crucially, this means presenting complex legal and financial information in a form which is accessible and clear to people who may not be used to reading about such things. It also means using community languages.
There is also an argument for improving our flexibility in terms of trusteeship. Gradually, there are some moves away from the (dare I say dull?) bi-monthly around-the-table trustee meetings of standard agenda, typewritten papers and dry reports. Being able to sit through a long meeting does not have to be a prerequisite for being a trustee. And yet all too often it feels like it is.
So this Volunteers’ Week, don’t forget the trustees!
Posted by Gudrun Limbrick, Associate Director of Research at Red Foundation and author of ‘One in A Million – a user-friendly guide to trusteeship’ (WordWorks ISBN 1903210194)
Tuesday 2 June 2009
Battle of the Brands - RockCorps vs v
Looks like the heat is most definitely on in the world of youth volunteering. Following the huge success of their inaugural outing in the UK last year, new kids on the block RockCorps have recently announced two gigs for this year, the first to be held in July with Lady Gaga as the first of their headline acts. Gaga is the pop act of the moment and will no doubt provide a massive incentive for many teenagers and young adults to come forward and volunteer for the first time. RockCorps have also managed to repeat their media partnership with Channel 4 who will be broadcasting content about volunteering and the gigs on their prime time youth slot T4. With the other concert planned for September, RockCorps has already raised the stakes this year and I for one can’t wait. With this sort of exposure youth volunteering is really going mainstream - I know that there a large number of young people that are already buzzing about it – and this is exactly what we had in mind at the Russell Commission.
Things are also warming up at youth volunteering charity v. They’ve recently announced grime star Bashy as an ambassador for the forthcoming national vinspired awards. Bashy may not have the chart and public profile of Lady Gaga but he does have a strong fan base and is much more underground and likely to appeal to young people who shun the mainstream. v have also announced the appointment of Shine Communications to execute a digital and traditional PR campaign. I don’t know Shine but their brand portfolio seems impressive – youth brands include computer games giant EA – and frankly anything that helps them to move on from ‘Favours’ gets my vote, although I wonder if the £100k budget v has made available is really enough to have a big national impact. In addition v have signed up creative agency Cake, who I know are very cool and who will no doubt come up with some pretty exciting design for them.
So this year it looks as though we’ll see a bit of a bun fight out there, with both organisations competing for the time and attention of 16-25 year olds throughout the country. My money is on RockCorps. Given their success last year I can only see their national campaign getting bigger and bigger. But v seem to be heading in the right direction and having controversial acts like Bashy supporting their awards event later this year should go some way to generating some main stream media coverage.
But will it be enough? It seems increasingly likely that we will have a change of government next year. Nick Hurd, the shadow minister for charities and volunteering, has publicly criticized v on a number of occasions, calling it a top down ‘vanity project’ for the current government with questionable impact at a local level, which suggests that he may well seek to dissolve it should he have the opportunity. I think that v really needs to up its game in the public arena to combat this perception, ensuring that the programme has such a high profile that closing it down becomes an unpopular decision that any new government would wish to avoid.
And do we need two different brands competing for the same market? Personally I don’t think we do, and perhaps v should just get together with RockCorps - combine the Corps’ ability to secure corporate sponsorship and high level media exposure with v’s infrastructure and investment capacity and I reckon you’d have a real force for good that no future government would dare to tamper with.
Posted by Jamie Thomas, CEO Red Foundation
Things are also warming up at youth volunteering charity v. They’ve recently announced grime star Bashy as an ambassador for the forthcoming national vinspired awards. Bashy may not have the chart and public profile of Lady Gaga but he does have a strong fan base and is much more underground and likely to appeal to young people who shun the mainstream. v have also announced the appointment of Shine Communications to execute a digital and traditional PR campaign. I don’t know Shine but their brand portfolio seems impressive – youth brands include computer games giant EA – and frankly anything that helps them to move on from ‘Favours’ gets my vote, although I wonder if the £100k budget v has made available is really enough to have a big national impact. In addition v have signed up creative agency Cake, who I know are very cool and who will no doubt come up with some pretty exciting design for them.
So this year it looks as though we’ll see a bit of a bun fight out there, with both organisations competing for the time and attention of 16-25 year olds throughout the country. My money is on RockCorps. Given their success last year I can only see their national campaign getting bigger and bigger. But v seem to be heading in the right direction and having controversial acts like Bashy supporting their awards event later this year should go some way to generating some main stream media coverage.
But will it be enough? It seems increasingly likely that we will have a change of government next year. Nick Hurd, the shadow minister for charities and volunteering, has publicly criticized v on a number of occasions, calling it a top down ‘vanity project’ for the current government with questionable impact at a local level, which suggests that he may well seek to dissolve it should he have the opportunity. I think that v really needs to up its game in the public arena to combat this perception, ensuring that the programme has such a high profile that closing it down becomes an unpopular decision that any new government would wish to avoid.
And do we need two different brands competing for the same market? Personally I don’t think we do, and perhaps v should just get together with RockCorps - combine the Corps’ ability to secure corporate sponsorship and high level media exposure with v’s infrastructure and investment capacity and I reckon you’d have a real force for good that no future government would dare to tamper with.
Posted by Jamie Thomas, CEO Red Foundation
Monday 1 June 2009
Volunteer Centres - Our Unsung Heroes
After hearing recently that my local Volunteer Centre is being closed down following the redundancy of its manager, I was glad to finally hear some good news. The Big Lottery Fund has committed £500k to build the capacity of London’s Volunteer Centre network to involve and support more volunteer involving organisations. And about blinking time! I’m frankly fed up with this government’s persistent refusal to spend any money on developing a sustainable local volunteering infrastructure for the general public. And if I see one more person look down their nose when I mention a Volunteer Centre... Ok, so at some time you or someone you know might have had a less than perfect experience with your local Centre - get over it!
Volunteer Centres (VCs) are, in my humble opinion, the unsung heroes of the volunteering sector. As a network they are more often than not under-funded, over looked and constantly criticized for what some might see as questionable levels of service, yet in the majority of cases they are forever pulling proverbial rabbits out of hats to ensure they stay open and continue to provide a lifeline to local third sector organisations and volunteers. VCs have proven time and time again that they are extremely effective at engaging the hard to reach, especially the unemployed and those with special needs, and have kept many a volunteering project open for business through their invaluable support.
So why do they get seem to get such a bum wrap? When I joined the Active Community Unit in 2003, the view there of VCs was not a positive one. Yet when I tried to pin down why all I could seem to fathom was that a handful of civil servants and the odd Minister had had unfavourable experiences of a VC in the past. I’m the first to admit that not all VCs are perfect but I’ve always felt that this is because they are constantly having to justify their existence in an ever decreasing funding environment – if they are only funded for one part time worker then it’s hardly surprising that they are not going to be open five days a week, let alone evenings and weekends. And constantly being criticized can create a negative ‘bunker’ mentality that some VC managers find hard to shake off. Yet despite this they will more often than not help you find the volunteering opportunity you’re looking for and will go the extra mile to do what they can. And where they are well funded they can do amazing things. I know this because I used to run one where the local council saw volunteering infrastructure as a sensible investment. Because of this it meant that we spent less time running after funds to pay the heating bill and more time supporting organisations, engaging volunteers and innovating new developments. And we were by no means alone, almost without exception a consistently well funded VC delivers exceptional value for money and is able to demonstrate significant community impact – common sense really, you get more out than you put in, like volunteering itself.
Given how much money this government has invested in various national initiatives, I’m amazed at how little of this has been directly spent on Volunteer Centres, especially as many of these national schemes have been dependent on their goodwill and support to succeed. The official government line has been that it is not their job to fund local infrastructure; but this does not stop them from funding local infrastructure for nationally driven schemes such as the Experience Corps, MV, v, and Mentor Points. And given that they have funded VCs for the odd emergency or to respond to the huge surge of interest during the Year of the Volunteer, this line is pretty flawed.
I’m not alone in my feelings here. The Commission on the Future of Volunteering recommended that the country needed to have a well funded and robust local volunteering infrastructure, and Volunteering England have consistently lobbied government to address this issue. VCs themselves have worked hard to get their house in order, adopting a common brand identity and adhering to a national quality framework that would make much of the corporate sector break into a sweat. So what else must they do? And why is this government not taking any notice? Ironically it was the previous government that last took this issue seriously. Their Make a Difference programme match funded the creation of local VCs where none had previously existed – a modest programme by today’s standards but one that has nevertheless left a lasting legacy, with many of those newly created VCs still thriving today.
If we really want to make it easy for people to volunteer then we need to put our money where our mouth is and fund a service that is at least as accessible and visible as the local Job Centre. The DWP brokerage scheme, although not perfect, is a step in the right direction but it is not enough and it looks as though for the time being we must continue to rely on the hard work and ingenuity of the likes of Greater London Volunteering to persuade the powers that be to invest in this much needed network.
I just hope that given the huge increase in volunteering enquiries the recession has brought we don’t lose more Volunteer Centres to funding cuts, otherwise volunteers coming forward will be turned away and that is not good for them or the communities that need their help.
Posted by Jamie Thomas, CEO of Red Foundation and former executive director of the Kensington & Chelsea Volunteer Centre
Volunteer Centres (VCs) are, in my humble opinion, the unsung heroes of the volunteering sector. As a network they are more often than not under-funded, over looked and constantly criticized for what some might see as questionable levels of service, yet in the majority of cases they are forever pulling proverbial rabbits out of hats to ensure they stay open and continue to provide a lifeline to local third sector organisations and volunteers. VCs have proven time and time again that they are extremely effective at engaging the hard to reach, especially the unemployed and those with special needs, and have kept many a volunteering project open for business through their invaluable support.
So why do they get seem to get such a bum wrap? When I joined the Active Community Unit in 2003, the view there of VCs was not a positive one. Yet when I tried to pin down why all I could seem to fathom was that a handful of civil servants and the odd Minister had had unfavourable experiences of a VC in the past. I’m the first to admit that not all VCs are perfect but I’ve always felt that this is because they are constantly having to justify their existence in an ever decreasing funding environment – if they are only funded for one part time worker then it’s hardly surprising that they are not going to be open five days a week, let alone evenings and weekends. And constantly being criticized can create a negative ‘bunker’ mentality that some VC managers find hard to shake off. Yet despite this they will more often than not help you find the volunteering opportunity you’re looking for and will go the extra mile to do what they can. And where they are well funded they can do amazing things. I know this because I used to run one where the local council saw volunteering infrastructure as a sensible investment. Because of this it meant that we spent less time running after funds to pay the heating bill and more time supporting organisations, engaging volunteers and innovating new developments. And we were by no means alone, almost without exception a consistently well funded VC delivers exceptional value for money and is able to demonstrate significant community impact – common sense really, you get more out than you put in, like volunteering itself.
Given how much money this government has invested in various national initiatives, I’m amazed at how little of this has been directly spent on Volunteer Centres, especially as many of these national schemes have been dependent on their goodwill and support to succeed. The official government line has been that it is not their job to fund local infrastructure; but this does not stop them from funding local infrastructure for nationally driven schemes such as the Experience Corps, MV, v, and Mentor Points. And given that they have funded VCs for the odd emergency or to respond to the huge surge of interest during the Year of the Volunteer, this line is pretty flawed.
I’m not alone in my feelings here. The Commission on the Future of Volunteering recommended that the country needed to have a well funded and robust local volunteering infrastructure, and Volunteering England have consistently lobbied government to address this issue. VCs themselves have worked hard to get their house in order, adopting a common brand identity and adhering to a national quality framework that would make much of the corporate sector break into a sweat. So what else must they do? And why is this government not taking any notice? Ironically it was the previous government that last took this issue seriously. Their Make a Difference programme match funded the creation of local VCs where none had previously existed – a modest programme by today’s standards but one that has nevertheless left a lasting legacy, with many of those newly created VCs still thriving today.
If we really want to make it easy for people to volunteer then we need to put our money where our mouth is and fund a service that is at least as accessible and visible as the local Job Centre. The DWP brokerage scheme, although not perfect, is a step in the right direction but it is not enough and it looks as though for the time being we must continue to rely on the hard work and ingenuity of the likes of Greater London Volunteering to persuade the powers that be to invest in this much needed network.
I just hope that given the huge increase in volunteering enquiries the recession has brought we don’t lose more Volunteer Centres to funding cuts, otherwise volunteers coming forward will be turned away and that is not good for them or the communities that need their help.
Posted by Jamie Thomas, CEO of Red Foundation and former executive director of the Kensington & Chelsea Volunteer Centre
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