Involving Young People as Volunteers

Involving Young PeopleAs Volunteers

@LondonYouth@VCTowerHamlets

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Introductions


✓Name

✓Organisa+on you are from

✓ Briefly what you already do with young people as volunteers

On a sticky:

What you would

like to get from

today’s session?

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Myths Quiz


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Previous Experiences


✓On your tables discuss good and bad previous experiences of involving young people in your organisa+on

✓ You have ten minutes before we feed back

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Motivations


Why do young people volunteer?Source: Do-‐it Volunteer Sa+sfac+on Survey 2011, Youthnet

Primary mo+va+ons for volunteering for the 16-‐25 age group were:• To gain work experience (83%)• To gain or improve skills (78%)• To help other people (75%)• To learn new things (71%)• Do something posi+ve with spare +me (64%)

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Motivations


Student volunteering motivationsSource: Burs+ng the Bubble -‐ Students Volunteering and the Community (Brewis, Russell and Holdsworth, 2010)

✓ 95% -‐ desire to improve things or help people

✓ 88% – to develop skills

✓ 83% – to gain work experience

✓ 49% -‐ looking to enhance learning from their university course through volunteering

✓ Women, younger students and students from less advantaged backgrounds are more mo+vated to volunteer to enhance their employability

✓ BME (Black and Minority Ethnic) students, students from post-‐1992 HEIs, students with dependents and those who did not move away to university are more mo+vated to volunteer by reasons connected to their personal values

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FLEXIVOL


An useful acronym of what young people have said would encourage them to volunteer

✓ FLEXIBILITY – in both +me and commitment

✓ LEGITIMACY – they need to know it’s worthwhile

✓ EASE OF ACCESS – there are barriers, many young people simply don’t know how to start

volunteering or who to contact

✓ EXPERIENCE – young people want relevant, useful experience and the chance to learn new skills

✓ INCENTIVES – what’s in it for them? Skills, add to CV

✓ VARIETY – both the type of work and the level of commitment

✓ORGANISATION – volunteering needs to be both efficient and informal

✓ LAUGHS – volunteering must be fun

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Motivations


Barriers to volunteering✓They don’t know how to become involved✓Lack of +me ✓Feel they can’t make a commitment✓Lack of interest ✓No one asked them✓Don’t know what they’ll gain✓Don’t feel needed ✓Lack of transporta+on/support✓Don’t think its cool

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Motivations


But remember...

Young people are not a homogenous group!

Ages, cultures, backgrounds, interests, mo+va+ons, physical abili+es,

Support needs, levels of confidence, personality types

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Creating Rewarding Roles


✓What the commitment is✓What they will be required to do

✓How the volunteer will personally benefit

✓How their contribu+ons will help your organisa+on and the community

✓How long the commitment is for

✓ Support they will receive

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Attracting Young People


✓Clear and accessible informa+on

✓Explain the bigger picture and breadth of roles

✓Be as specific as you can

✓Highlight what will they get out of it

✓Adverts should be fresh & appealing

✓Language and tone

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Language and Tone

Ac+ve, fun and exci+ngSign up, get involved, join in, be special, come forward, help out, speak up, stand up, step forward, a chance, an opportunity, a place, a posi+on, par+cipate, make a difference,

campaign, assist, support, engage, devote, offer, pitch in, try, a challenge, share, lead, link up, get

ac+ve, give +me.

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✓Outreach: freshers fairs, community centres

✓Through Volunteer Centre Tower Hamlets

✓Find out how they like to keep in touch

✓Use your current young volunteers (in person, film, photos and quotes)

✓Respond immediately to inquiries

✓Be family friendly

✓Value what they have already done

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Retaining Young Volunteers


✓ Remember why they young person chose to volunteer with you

✓ Ensure regular catch-‐ups✓ Peer support✓Dedicated contact✓Genng volunteers feedback

✓Accredita+on

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Legalities


Mohammed is 18 and has been volunteering with a small charity, Play Today, for two years. While at school he

volunteered for 3 hours on Friday mornings when he had a free period. He recently leo school and is now volunteering 3 days a week. He is claiming job seekers allowance. Play Today give him

£5 per day for lunch and bus fare.

What are the issues?

What are the solutions?

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Legalities


Carol is 15 and has been volunteering with Play Today for three months. She seems very mature and capable, and has been running a drama group every

Tuesday and Thursday evening for groups of seven-‐ten year olds. The session is three hours long. As it finishes late in the evening, a member of staff gives Carol a

lio home.

For the first two sessions, a member of staff ran the drama group with her. However, another aoer school club has started on a Tuesday evening, and the

staff member divides her +me between the two sessions.

Carol has not had a criminal record check (DBS check).

What are the issues?

What are the solutions?

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Celebrating Success


Formal✓ Volunteer events (for example, a ‘thank you

event’ as part of Volunteers’ Week)✓ Cer+ficates (could be an annual ‘thank you’,

or aoer a fixed term, such as comple+on of a specific number of volunteering hours)

✓ Accredita+on, such as NVQs etc✓ Invite volunteers to mee+ngs that affect

them, such as staff mee+ngs if appropriate✓ Invite volunteers on to working groups etc.

(Again, if there are internal issues affec+ng volunteers, they should be involved in the process.)

Informal✓ Saying ‘thank you’✓Making sure they have enough tasks to do

every day.✓ Including them in social events✓ Going out for lunch, to the pub etc.✓ Consul+ng on informal masers, such as

where the new no+ce board should go

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Evaluation & Next Steps...


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Involving Young PeopleAs Volunteers


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Involving Young People as Volunteers

Education

Transcript of Involving Young People as Volunteers