Research and analysis

Volunteering in the youth sector (executive summary)

Published 5 November 2024

Applies to England

Introduction

Volunteers play an important role in the youth sector. The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) commissioned this study to develop understanding about the ways in which volunteers support the youth sector, the roles they perform, and the impact they have. The research focuses on open access youth provision that any young person can attend.

The study ran between September 2023 and March 2024 and was led by SQW, a public policy and economic research consultancy. We delivered the study in partnership with UK Youth, a national youth charity.

The study builds on the Youth Evidence Base research conducted by SQW and its partners, UK Youth, and the universities of Warwick and Essex, on behalf of DCMS in 2022 and 2023. ^{[footnote 1]}

Our approach to data collection and analysis

After a scoping phase in which we spoke with DCMS and sector experts about suitable parameters for the research, we conducted a series of 20 case studies of youth organisations.

The case studies reflect a range of youth organisations across England, ranging in delivery type, location, size and other characteristics. The case studies reflect a range of provision but should not be considered representative of the youth sector as a whole.

Each case study involved interviews with organisational leaders and volunteers, a volunteer survey, and an organisational audit completed by the leader.

We used the qualitative software MaxQDA to conduct a thematic analysis of the interview transcripts and used Microsoft Excel to conduct question-by-question analyses of the organisational audit and volunteer survey.

In addition to the case studies, we also analysed an early cut of the National Youth Sector Census shared with us by the National Youth Agency (NYA).

Who volunteers and why?

Volunteer characteristics vary considerably, and often reflect the case study organisations’ aims, location, activities and the volunteering role.

Many volunteers have a specific, personal connection to the organisation for which they volunteer.  For example, they may have been participants themselves when they were younger, or may be parents/guardians of young people currently participating.

The reasons why people volunteer are closely tied to their personal circumstances and life experiences.  Their motivations can be grouped under four ‘Ps’ (which are not mutually exclusive):

• Principle: to ‘give back’

• Professional: to develop skills and experience

• Personal: because of a personal connection to a youth club and/or to enhance personal wellbeing

• Passion: because of a passion for the activities being delivered.

What do volunteers do?

Volunteers deliver lots of activities directly with young people. Volunteers also undertake a range of wider support tasks relating to people management, estates management, finance and funding, governance, marketing and communications, and administration.

The extent of interaction between volunteers and paid staff varied across the case study organisations:

• Some adopt a ‘mucking in’ model where everybody does everything

• Others have a more structured set of roles – e.g., paid staff deliver the activity with volunteers providing support; in the case of some national youth organisations, volunteers deliver the activity whilst paid staff run ‘back office’ infrastructure.

In some uniformed organisations, volunteer ‘leaders’ and ‘coordinators’ undertake duties performed by paid staff in other organisations.

Volunteers bring a range of interpersonal, technical and specialist skills. They also bring new and diverse perspectives and relatability (from shared characteristics or experiences with the young people).

The majority of respondents to the volunteer survey said they volunteer once a week or more frequently. Volunteers said in interviews that they are most likely to volunteer on weekday evenings.

Across the case study organisations that completed our audit, volunteers in governance roles (e.g., trustees or ‘back office’ functions such as supporting organisational finances) committed the most time (of all role types) to volunteering in the last calendar year.

What are the rewards and impacts of volunteering?

Volunteers reported a range of positive impacts on young people including increasing their confidence and wellbeing, contributing to education and employment outcomes, and providing trusted relationships for young people outside of their families and school.

Volunteers increase case study organisations’ capacity (e.g., for delivery and supporting functions) and credibility (as volunteers often come from the same communities as the young people or have shared experiences).

Volunteers also increase safety by helping to meet the number of adults required to provide appropriate levels of supervision (where such volunteers have been suitably trained and appropriate safeguarding checks carried out).

Furthermore, volunteers build organisations’ financial sustainability because, while there are costs associated with volunteer recruitment and support, they do not incur the overheads associated with salaried staff.

Interviewees said that being able to help young people is the main reward of volunteering, although the precise nature of this varies by activity. They said volunteering also supports personal wellbeing, can improve volunteers’ self-confidence and self-esteem and is a good way to make friends and feel part of a community.

What factors impede and support volunteer retention?

Volunteer retention was cited as a challenge by a quarter of organisations responding to the NYA’s Census. 10 of 15 organisations responding to the audit disagreed or strongly disagreed with the statement, “We have enough volunteers who can give the time our organisation needs”.

The most common reason cited during interviews for volunteers leaving was a change in their life circumstances (e.g., moving area, starting work or changing job). Other factors include feeling undervalued, feeling like they are not making a difference or that young people are not engaging.

Volunteering has a financial opportunity cost: some people stop volunteering or do not take up volunteering roles to pursue paid work instead.

Factors that support volunteer retention include: having a friendly and inclusive volunteering environment; recognising the contribution volunteers make; providing training and support; and affording volunteers flexibility – where possible on dates, times, format and degree of involvement.

Interviewees also suggested that retention can be improved through:

• Clear messaging about the impact volunteering can have for young people and volunteers

• Supporting parity of esteem with paid staff

• Involving volunteers in the development of organisational strategy.

How are volunteers recruited?

Volunteer recruitment was cited as a challenge by 35% of organisations responding to the NYA’s Census.

Two thirds of our case studies said they did not have enough volunteers, and indeed, four case study organisations said that they had scaled back activity in the last 12 months due to a lack of volunteers. Some interviewees also said that they have had to limit their provision to a smaller number of young people due to a lack of volunteers.

Having the right number of volunteers versus having the right volunteer profiles and skills are two related but distinct challenges.

While a greater number of volunteers enables case study organisations to scale up their delivery, the number of volunteers that can be taken onboard is itself limited by the resource available to recruit and support them.

Case study organisations use a range of different approaches to inform people about volunteering opportunities:

• National uniformed case studies typically used a direct approach from another volunteer whilst they attend their child’s provision

• VCS operating at national scale used more ‘formal’ recruitment approaches including holding recruitment events in different settings, advertising online.

Across all case study organisations, word of mouth is a powerful tool for recruitment.

Volunteers are normally required to formally apply for roles - applications vary from centralised online forms to emailing/phoning the organisation.

Vetting normally involves a DBS check, an informal or formal interview, and in some instances, a trial shift.

How are volunteers trained and supported?

Survey respondents and interviewees generally agreed that they receive the training and support they need to deliver their roles effectively. This is in line with the picture across the voluntary sector as a whole, with NCVO research finding nearly three-quarters (73%) of volunteers agreed their training had helped them to ‘carry out their volunteering role to the best of their abilities’. ^{[footnote 2]}

The different types of training offered to volunteers include informal training for casual helpers, through to accredited qualifications and structured development programmes for longer-term volunteers.

Most volunteers receive ‘core’ training covering essential content (including safeguarding) as part of their induction. In national organisations, core training is often provided through a centralised online portal; smaller VCS organisations may signpost to external training or use external training providers.

The majority of survey respondents received some form of support, most commonly from a paid staff member or volunteer manager.

Examples of good practice with regards to volunteer support included:

• Having a named volunteer coordinator – a point of contact when volunteers have questions or encounter challenges

• Regular, informal check-ins between volunteers with organisation leaders and fellow volunteers performing similar roles

Several organisations have social media groups serving as “communities of practice”, through which volunteers can communicate and share ideas and experiences.

Leaders of case study organisations emphasised that volunteer management requires specific skills and is resource intensive. For some case study organisations, a lack of resource to recruit, train and manage volunteers means they had fewer volunteers.

1. This research can be viewed here: Youth Provision and Life Outcomes ↩

2. NCVO, 2019, Time Well Spend: A National Survey on the Volunteer Experience ↩