The Volunteering Academy is committed to promoting good practice in volunteering. We require all organisations wishing to promote their volunteering opportunities to agree with the following minimum standards.
Your organisation's commitment
We commit to the following principles of good practice:
- Volunteering is open to everyone
Volunteers from all backgrounds are welcomed. - Out of pocket expenses are paid*
*If you are a group with no paid staff and no budget to pay expenses, then you can use TeamKinetic to promote your role but not use the full volunteer management system. - Recruitment of volunteers is fair and prompt
Volunteers are contacted promptly and requirements are appropriate for each role. Responsibility for recruiting and selecting volunteers remains with your organisation, not with the Volunteer Centre. - Induction and training
Training needs for each role are identified and volunteers receive the necessary induction and training to do their role. - Support and supervision
A named person ensures ongoing support appropriate to the role. - Insurance, health and safety, safeguarding and other legal requirements are met
The physical and emotional risks of volunteering are identified, minimised and covered by Health and Safety checks, risk assessments and adequate insurance. This includes as a minimum:
• Public liability insurance
• Employers liability insurance if relevant
• Safeguarding policy (if working with children or vulnerable adults)
• DBS checks (if required) in line with current guidelines - Keep your advertised roles up-to-date
It is your responsibility to ensure that the roles advertised are current and up-to-date with accurate contact details.
Volunteering Academy Commitment
We will advertise and promote your volunteering roles in the following ways:
- Through TeamKinetic, our online volunteering system
- Through one to one appointments with our volunteering staff
- Through the Volunteer Academy ebulletin
We will review your volunteering role advertisement and offer advice to make it clear, attractive and appropriate for volunteers.
All new volunteering roles will be quality checked by the Volunteering Academy team before they are made available to the public. If a volunteer role appears not to be in line with good practice, we will contact you to see how it can be re-shaped.
We cannot guarantee that you’ll get a response to your advertisement. Volunteers will choose the roles that are most appealing to them.
We can also provide information and support to help you develop volunteering in your organisation.