Taking Care Of Our Volunteers Emma Thompson
Agenda
5. 05pm Introduction Survey Results
Volunteer Recruitment Louise Wratten - Volunteer Bristol
Volunteer Retention and Appreciation The impact of demographics on recruitment and retention.
Vulnerable Volunteers Alex Bowsher - St Werburgh’s City Farm
Elevator Pitches 5.55pm Networking Break
6.15pm Dominic Murphy – Cities of Service Corporate Volunteering Case Study Matt Collis – Avon Wildlife Trust Corporate Volunteering Key Points
Question Time 7pm Conclusion and Thanks
Speakers and Attendees Speakers
Emma Thompson – Head of Volunteering – Cities of Service
Louise Wratten – Volunteer Coordinator – Volunteer Bristol
Alex Bowsher – Volunteer Officer – St Werburgh’s City Farm
Dominic Murphy – Chief Service Officer – Cities of Service Bristol
Matt Collis – Project Officer - Avon Wildlife Trust
Tables
Esther Keller - Business in the Community
Louise Wratten – Volunteer Bristol
Steve Haines and Scott Ward – Neighbourly.com
Vicki Woolley – Bristol Green Capital Partnership
Sally Ridley - Ablaze
What did we find out? 113 organisations invited, 62 contributed survey results
They ranged in age from <6 months – 153 years old!
Ranging in size from <10 volunteers to >1200 a year
Most run their volunteer programmes on <£500 a year
Very few have paid staff managing volunteers
54% Unskilled Roles, 46% Skilled Roles
75% use or have used Pro Bono volunteers
61% offer or have offered placements
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5
10
15
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25
30
35
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45
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Effectiveness of Recruitment Methods
Effective Not Effective Not Used
Volunteer Recruitment A good reputation is vital to ongoing recruitment and
retention.
Having an organisation website and social media is valuable and will help people find you.
First response must be timely. Most first-time volunteers are lost at the first response. Have an out-of-office with a time expectation and get back to them within that time scale.
A quick phone call will encourage new volunteers and help you understand each other’s expectations.
Training helps.
Setting and Managing Expectations What do you want from your volunteers? What skills or knowledge do you need? How much time do you need from them? How often? Where and how will they volunteer with you? How will you help them grow?
Answer these questions before you start looking for volunteers.
Include the answers on your recruitment ads
Go over them again at induction (do an induction!)
Ask your volunteers what their expectations are.
To mollycoddle or not to mollycoddle?
What was your experience like? Were you on your own, a self-starter, working on your own initiative? Or were you welcomed, supported, appreciated?
For your volunteers, they appreciate being spoiled, they will work harder, longer and more passionately when they know that you need them and that you appreciate the time and skills they bring to your organisation.
Top Tips
Read up on laws, insurance and paying expenses.
Use these to create or update your Volunteer Agreement
Make sure your induction gives a good grounding in the organisation, covers Health and Safety and helps the volunteer feel at home.
Your volunteers are the best ambassadors you have for your cause, the more they know and feel a part of the organisation the more they’ll talk.
Methods of Appreciation
Volunteer using organisations in Bristol have more than 10 different ways that they show volunteers their appreciation!
The research suggests that the more appreciation you demonstrate, the better.
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43
14
Not very Difficult Challenging Very difficult
Ease of Volunteer Retention Against Appreciation
Number of different kinds of appreciation shown by each designation
Methods of Appreciation Giving T-shirts 1.6 % - although these organisations
commented on how much appreciated these seemed to be by their volunteers, especially if volunteers weren’t always working as part of a team in the field.
Providing references 2.3%
Providing reduced or free tickets to events 2.3%
Nominating Volunteers for Thank You Awards 3.1%
Giving Certificates 3.1%
Reimbursing Expenses 3.1%
Sending out Thank You cards or emails 6.3%
15%
17%
24%
13%
9%
22%
Methods of Appreciation
Free Food
Events
Verbal Thank You
Mention on Social
Training Provided
Those Mentioned Above
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2
4
6
8
10
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Not very difficult Challenging Very difficult
Ease of Volunteer Retention Against Different Methods of Appreciation
Food
Events
Verbal Thank You
Diversity Statistics
43 organisations told us about their diversity.
85.1% of green volunteers are Caucasian.
14.9% were from BMAE backgrounds.
Bristol City Council states that 16% of the population of Bristol are from BME backgrounds.
Diversity Statistics
Of the couple of organisations who mentioned gender between 60-70% of their volunteers were female.
Of those who mentioned age there seemed to be many more volunteers under 50 than over, with many aged between 17 and 35.
Grow your diversity
Borderlands – charity that helps recent arrivals and asylum seekers volunteer in the community.
Bristol Multi Faith Forum
African Voices Forum
Advertise on Ujima and BCfm
Bristol BME Voice
Bristol Aging Better
Bristol Youth Council
The impact of Millennials
The National Trust’s research:
Current Traditional 75+
New Old 50+
Young Experience Seeker 18-35
Families
Consider your organisation, does the above sound right? What are your expectations of these groups? Can you diversify your programmes more ask your volunteers to contribute more complex skills/knowledge?
Who are Vulnerable Volunteers?
Volunteers who might:
Be recovering from alcohol or drug addictions
Live with mental or physical disabilities
Be long-term unemployed
Struggle with illness, such as depression.
Some Bristol Green Experts
Windmill Hill City Farm have a Health and Social Care Department
Fare Share South West have Occupational Therapy Staff and take on regular OT placements to support vulnerable volunteers.
St Werburgh’s City Farm recently got a Lottery Grant to create a volunteer programme called ‘Include’.
Elevator Pitches
Esther Keller - Business in the Community
Steve Haines and Scott Ward – Neighbourly.com
Vicki Woolley – Bristol Green Capital Partnership
Sally Ridley - Ablaze
Networking Help yourself to food, have a chat with the people on our
tables and the other attendees.
Remember we have people from both business and community here.
My Wild Street - Case Study Nearly 100 people from Burges Salmon worked with Avon Wildlife Trust for 2 weeks during summer 2015 to transform a street in Easton into a wildlife haven.
Preparation
Collaboration
Business Benefit
Consolidation for Improvement
Leading from the Start
Problems with the Traditional Model The business expects their volunteering day to be free The business wants to complete a task so that they
have something to talk about in publications, but there isn’t always a clear single task needing to be done.
The volunteers often have little or no experience in the tasks that need doing.
The volunteers often are taking part in a compulsory day out of the office, with little information about why they are there or what they will accomplish.
The volunteers are ill prepared for the day, arriving in suits and high heels to a farm, for example.
The community organisation is often overwhelmed and feels that they haven’t accomplished much by the end of the day, apart from losing one of their own working days.
What Makes a Positive Experience? They are planned 6 months or more in advance The volunteers are engaged and interested in the event and
the motivation for it The volunteers are gaining skills and knowledge as they go The business and community organisation maintain
communication along the way and each put time into ensuring the support and preparation is done to make the event successful.
The event is spread over several days or a couple of weeks, rather than the whole team going out on one day.
The business recognises that, as a charity, the community organisation doesn’t have the capacity to provide staff support for free and so contributes time and money to the event; that might be paying for tools, plants or paying for the staff member’s time.
Key Messages Generally we’re doing great!
When we take time out to increase our knowledge and confidence about Volunteer Best Practices our volunteers have a better experience.
Build to satisfy the millennials and then encourage everyone else to try it. Promote supportive practices.
Be nice! Say Thank You! Give good biscuits!
Corporate Volunteers want to help, but they need you to tell them exactly how. Ask for what you need and explain why you need it, be explicit.
Thank You
Website: http://volunteerteam.bristol.gov.uk
Dominic: [email protected]
Me after March: [email protected]