The difference we make in mobilising volunteers

Volunteers are the lifeblood of the voluntary and community sector. From small acts of kindness like walking someone’s dog when they’re not well, to regular, long-term commitments such as being a trustee, volunteers make a difference to people’s lives every day. Without their dedication, knowledge and skills, much of the work charities and community groups do would simply not be possible.

That’s why we have explored the significant social and economic impact volunteers make to communities in our new report, Power in Purpose.

An estimated 10 million volunteers stepped up for their communities during the pandemic, helping to bring the incredible impact of volunteering under the spotlight.

In the past five years The National Lottery Community Fund has awarded 4,200 grants to support volunteering, amounting to almost £700 million in National Lottery, government and third-party funding.

1,500 of these grants supported the volunteering response to COVID-19. This not only provided charities and community groups with vital volunteers to grapple with the impacts of the pandemic, but gave individuals an opportunity to give back to their communities and learn new skills.

Our survey of nearly 14,000 volunteers in England during COVID-19 found that one in eight (12%) were volunteering for the first time. And a third (36%) hadn’t volunteered at the organisation before, suggesting that the pandemic mobilised a new group of people to give up their time.

The amount of volunteering grants we awarded between 2013 and 2019 increased by almost two thirds (64%), supporting more and more organisations to recruit volunteers, provide training, and remove barriers to get involved, creating a better volunteering experience accessible for all.

Almost two million volunteers, from charities supported through our grants in the past three years, have contributed an astonishing £4 billion to the UK’s economy, and with 94% of our grantholders involving volunteers last year, this really highlights their importance in the voluntary and community sector.

Our report includes examples of inspiring individuals who are making a difference in their communities across the UK.

Josie is just one of almost 20,000 volunteers who have given 630,000 hours of their time to help reduce loneliness amongst people aged over 50, through our Ageing Better programme.

Age Better in Sheffield matched Josie with Margaret, after Margaret lost her husband and she was in a ‘bit of a black hole’. Josie took her on shopping trips, as well as places she had never visited before. Recognising the benefits for herself as well, Josie said: “I live alone and could have been in Margaret’s place. It wasn’t what we did, it was the meeting, talking and sharing stories.”

They remain good friends and continue to meet up, showing that volunteering goes beyond the people or organisations it supports. Volunteers themselves benefit from helping others, whether it’s making new connections or developing a greater sense of purpose and belonging.

Volunteering can also reduce loneliness for the people who give their time, as well as the people they help. Birmingham Changing Futures Together trained and supported 131 people experiencing multiple and complex disadvantage to volunteer as ‘experts by experience’, to support their peers and help other services to understand what they are going through.

“I’ve volunteered elsewhere but [this] is different,” explains Eddie, one of the Experts by Experience. “I’m part of a community. I feel connected, with the people who run it as well as with my colleagues.”

It’s also important to invest in strategic initiatives to increase understanding and raise awareness about how volunteering can be more inclusive. Between 2007 and 2021, Time to Change trained over 7,500 volunteers with lived experience of mental health problems to raise awareness and tackle stigma, as a way of helping to shift public attitudes to mental health.

Showing the value of volunteering is important too. Since 2017, we’ve supported the work of Helpforce who are working with over 100 NHS trusts across England to improve volunteering opportunities in the health and care sector.

Their evidence from over 900 surveys shows that volunteers can improve patient experience, reduce patient anxiety and staff stress, and give staff more time to care.

For example, West Suffolk NHS Trust worked with Helpforce to compile data about bleep volunteers who run errands across the hospital. From September 2018 to September 2019, tracking the amount of times the volunteers collected and delivered medicine, they estimated that volunteers saved hospital staff more than 700 hours.

Find out more

You can learn more by reading Power in Purpose.

You can also contact us at knowledge@tnlcommunityfund.org.uk