Baroness Julia Neuberger, Chair of the Commission on the Future of Volunteering, is demanding a fundamental shake-up to make volunteering part of the DNA of our society and improve volunteering for millions of Britons over the next ten years. Red tape, unnecessary CRB checks and failure of the voluntary sector to genuinely respond to society’s diverse needs are discouraging willing volunteers according to a new report, Manifesto for Change, published on the 28th January 2008.

The Commission’s report, which follows the most in-depth consultation ever conducted into volunteering in England, highlights the need to remove barriers and develop better opportunities to help develop the £48 billion volunteering sector.

Baroness Neuberger said: “Our vision is a society where volunteering is part of our DNA so that – by giving time – we enrich our own lives and those of others. But, at the moment too many people are being put off volunteering. Many people come forward to offer their time and skills, but red tape and unnecessary bureaucracy get in the way. For a start, it is time to rethink the obsession with any risks that might be involved and to remove financial obstacles which many people experience when they try to volunteer. We also need to avoid time-consuming criminal record checks, unless volunteers are working with children or vulnerable adults.”

The Commission criticises some parts of the voluntary sector for failing to address the needs of the UK’s diverse population. Many groups encounter problems when enlisting for volunteer opportunities, including disabled people, people with mental health problems, as well as asylum seekers, refugees and homeless people. The Commission heard evidence from some witnesses that disabled volunteers were being turned away from training opportunities.

The voluntary sector must ensure that it responds properly to the needs of everyone in our society and that it welcomes all volunteers.  To add to that, many organisations in the voluntary sector are doing little or nothing to support their own staff in engaging in volunteering opportunities.

Baroness Neuberger continued: “On the whole it is large UK businesses that are embracing the benefits of staff volunteering schemes. I am really disappointed at how little leadership has been shown by both the public and voluntary sectors in opening up volunteering opportunities for their members of staff. They should be leading by example and developing their own employer-supported volunteering schemes.”

The Commission found that in many organisations existing volunteers are underutilised and not provided with opportunities which recognise or respond to their skills. It recommends that all volunteer-involving organisations need urgently to review their ways of working to ensure that new, creative and flexible opportunities are available to support all groups of society.

The Commission makes a number of detailed recommendations including:

• Government should establish a working group to work out ways of removing the barriers to volunteering
• A Volunteering Matched Fund of £5m per year for three years should be provided for partnerships between local infrastructure organisations and local authorities to modernise the infrastructure and support strategic development
• An Access to Volunteering Fund should be piloted, with initial funding of £1 million, to enable disabled and under-represented groups to get involved in volunteering and a further £1.75 million is required to improve training
• Basic training for all volunteers and volunteer managers is required. In addition, public sector staff need to be trained in their understanding of the role of volunteering
• Proper support and recognition schemes must be developed for volunteers
• Volunteering champions should be developed regionally, building on the successful model that encourages young people to volunteer.

The Commission maintains that the government can best support volunteering by adopting a position of ‘non-interference’ and by resisting the temptation to develop new initiatives. Instead, the government should do all it can to remove the barriers to volunteering and should provide additional financial support to widen participation in volunteering and address the training needs of volunteers and those who manage them.

Baroness Neuberger concludes: “Government has significantly increased funding for volunteering and has developed a number of new initiatives. But now we must stop creating new initiatives. The government needs to support the voluntary sector in investing properly in providing volunteers with opportunities for progression and training. We recommend a basic level of training for volunteers - which should be recognised across all sectors and industries. This will not only improve the effectiveness of volunteers, but also offer them future opportunities.”

In compiling its report, Manifesto for Change, the Commission heard evidence from 1,190 people and organisations, and examined the opportunities and challenges for volunteering over the next ten years.

The Manifesto for change can be downloaded from the Commission's website www.volcomm.org.uk