Volunteers' Week, from June 1 to 7, is a nationwide celebration of the work of volunteers in the UK. Without volunteers most charity and voluntary organisations would not be able to operate.
Forum Response: Voice UK
Kathryn Stone, director at Voice UK, said: "Volunteers are very important to our work. All our trustees are volunteers and are very active in their support for us. We have volunteers helping out in the office and volunteers who stand behind stalls at events for us. This year we had two people who ran the marathon for us. This is one way of 'going the extra mile'.
"In return we give volunteers, who work in the office, a good grounding in admin skills and support them to go on to get paid employment if that's what they want to do.
"Without volunteers our charity could not function. Interestingly all Voice UK personnel are also volunteers for other things."
Forum Response: BUPA
A spokesman for BUPA said: "At BUPA we recognise the value of volunteering to the local community, the individual and the business and as a result facilitate and support a comprehensive employee volunteering programme. BUPA is a provident association, which means any profits made are reinvested in new facilities and equipment to benefit our members. Our facilities include 36 hospitals and 245 care homes, therefore often we are at the very heart of local communities.
"Employee volunteering in the local community is an essential part of our culture and reflects our values and ethos. It is promoted in BUPA as it is a fun and motivational way for our staff to contribute to their community and the wider society. Last year over 2,000 employees took part in our health and education focused volunteering programme in many of the 300 communities in which we work in the UK."
Forum Brief: Shaw Trust
Tracey Proudlock, public affairs manager of the Shaw Trust said:" This year the Shaw Trust will be working with 35,000 disabled and disadvantaged people supporting them with job searches and training. Nine thousand people will move into employment because of our work. Non of this would be possible without the 300 volunteers that give their time up and down the country in our project."
Forum Response: ChildLine
Colin Butler, head of volunteering at ChildLine, said: "ChildLine couldn’t function effectively without volunteers because the bulk of the work the service provides is actually done by them. Most obviously, we have counselling volunteers on the lines, and without them many of the calls from children would not get answered, because we simply can’t afford to pay people to take the tremendous number of calls we receive. We have outreach volunteers working in schools, and in admin and fundraising roles, and all volunteers bring a great freshness of perspective and huge experience to the charity.
"Our volunteers indicate that their biggest single motivating factor is the satisfaction they get from helping children when they are in trouble or distressed. But the volunteers who are not directly involved on the lines also get that satisfaction, because they know that without their help – whether in fundraising, admin or any other area – we couldn’t provide this service. I think that a lot of people find that their day jobs don’t give them satisfaction, but volunteering can add more meaning to their lives and can give them a real chance to make a difference to the community. The work they do for us makes a real and positive difference to the lives of others and there is nothing as motivating as that. "
