Volunteering round-up: June 2019

Volunteers’ Week

Volunteers’ Week is over for another year, and what a fantastic week it was! Hundreds of events took place across the country celebrating volunteers and a record number (over 700!) of these were registered on the Volunteers’ Week website. #VolunteersWeek trended in the UK and amazing stories of volunteering were all over social media, newspapers, television and radio.

• To catch up on all the action head over to our Twitter, Instagram and Facebook and check out the great volunteering stories on the Volunteers’ Week website.
• You can read NCVO CEO Stuart Etherington’s blog where he tells us why he thinks Volunteers’ Week is so important and talks about some of the main highlights from the week.
• As part of Volunteers’ Week, we made our volunteers and the law guidance free to all – this offer has now been extended and you will be able to access this resource free until the end of June.
• Believe it or not, we’ve already started planning for Volunteers’ Week 2020! If you’d like to get involved in supporting or coordinating the campaign, or are interested in working with us to produce engaging content, get in touch.

Karl Wilding appointed chief executive of NCVO

NCVO has announced that its public policy and volunteering director Karl Wilding will be its next chief executive. Karl will take up the post in mid September, succeeding Sir Stuart Etherington, who is retiring after 25 years at NCVO,

Time Well Spent research: Release of the employer-supported volunteering focused report

During Volunteers’ Week, we published our new research report on employer-supported volunteering (ESV)/corporate volunteering, the first of our focused reports digging deeper into some key themes from our major research on the volunteer experience, Time Well Spent.

Working in partnership with the Corporate Volunteering Network (CVN), a peer network of charities and brokers involved in ESV, this report aims to provide an updated picture of ESV, from the different perspectives of those involved. In particular we wanted to shed more light on the experience of ESV volunteers, which has not had much focus in previous research. For more, check out our researcher Amy McGarvey’s blog reflecting on some of the key findings, and the full report.

Up next in our Time Well Spent series is volunteering and public services – if you’re interested in hearing about this research as it progresses, email Amy McGarvey.

The Charity Commission’s report on Oxfam: Lessons for trustees and what you can do

On 11 June, the Charity Commission published its statutory inquiry report into Oxfam, following a lengthy investigation prompted by last year’s Times revelations. In this report, the Commission has drawn out wider lessons for all trustees to consider going forward. Elizabeth Chamberlain, NCVO’s head of policy and public services, reflects further on these lessons in her latest blog post and talks us through the guidance and practical support available for trustees on safeguarding.

Nominations now open for the 2020 Queen’s Award for Voluntary Services

Nominations for the 2020 Queen’s Award for Voluntary Services are now open and will close on 13 September. This year a record number of 281 voluntary groups were awarded in the ceremony on 2 June. The award is the highest honour for volunteer groups in the UK and recognises the important work taking place in communities by these organisations.

Back to the future: what next for voluntary action and the welfare state?

The end-of-project conference of the ESRC-funded research project Discourses of Voluntary Action will be held on 2 July at Friends House in London. The research project has been exploring debates about the role of voluntary action in welfare in the UK in both the 1940s and 2010s. Find out more about the project and book your place at the conference.

Investing in Volunteers

Investing in Volunteers (IiV) is the UK quality standard for good practice in volunteer management. IiV provides the framework for high-quality volunteering from the perspective of both your volunteers and your organisation. The standard’s nine quality areas cover all aspects of volunteer involvement, ensuring an excellent volunteer experience from interview to exit.

The Investing in Volunteers journey provides an opportunity to review and develop your volunteer management programme in line with the UK standard. You will demonstrate and develop existing practice to ensure meaningful volunteering and enhance your reputation for future volunteer involvement and funding. Find out more about IiV.

In the latest IiV blog, Wendy, a volunteer at IiV achiever Museum of London, tells us about her brilliant experiences volunteering at the museum. We also hear from Vanessa Theed, HR Training and Volunteer Adviser, who tells us about the Museum’s IiV journey. The Museum of London successfully renewed their IiV award in January 2019 year, having held the standard since 2015.

Training and events

Keep up to date with latest volunteering policy, research and practice at our sector-leading training and events:

• Good practice in volunteer management – 28 June, 22 July, 13 September, 18 October, 6 December 2019 – NCVO Conference Suite, London (One-day course running on five different dates)
  This one-day course provides an introduction to the key principles of good practice in volunteer management and how to apply them to your organisation.
• Volunteering and the Law – 12 July, 15 November 2019 – NCVO Conference Suite, London (One-day course running on two different dates)
  This one-day course helps you to understand volunteering and the law in relation to issues such as safeguarding, data protection, health and safety, equality and diversity, insurance and benefits.
• NCVO Campaigning Conference 2019 – 6 September 2019 – NCVO Conference Suite, London
  The major event for campaigns, public affairs, and policy professionals working across the voluntary sector. Join us to learn practical skills, share knowledge and expand your network.
• Assessing the impact of your volunteers – 26 September, 28 November 2019 – NCVO Conference Suite, London (One-day course running on two different dates)
  This one-day workshop will give you step-by-step guidance on how to assess the impact your volunteers are having on your organisation, your beneficiaries and themselves, as well as on the wider community and other stakeholders.
• NCVO/BWB Trustee Conference – 4 November 2019 – The Brewery, London
  Join 400 colleagues from across the sector at the leading annual event for trustees, chairs, honorary treasurers, chief executives and anyone who works with a governing board.