Volunteering Victoria – Research Digest 3

18 -24 March 2013

1. Australian state and territory peak organisations: news

Organisation / Item / Contents
NSW Volunteering / 20 March 2013 release of the Recognition of the Rights of Volunteers Report

Volunteer_rights; NSW / The report is based on the views of 3,000 volunteers consulted during October and November 2012 as part of the NSW Government commitment to consult widely on improving the rights of volunteers. It contains six key principles:
  • a demonstrated commitment to best practice in volunteer management
  • volunteers being involved in the life of their organisation and included in decisions that affect them
  • clarity on volunteer roles, responsibilities, expectations and organisational policies
  • appropriate and timely access to training and professional development to support volunteers to successfully undertake and grow in their roles
  • promoting inclusive organisational environments of respect and dignity
  • recognising and celebrating the skills, abilities and contributions of volunteers.

NSW Volunteering / Release of Risk Management for Not-for-Profit Organisations.

Risk management; not-for-profits /
  • The new resource produced by the NSW Office of Communities is designed to assist organisations develop a risk management framework and policy
  • Includes a step-by-step approach to working through individual issues and developing appropriate responses to risks.
  • Links to a risk management tool and contains examples and templates that can be adapted to suit the specific needs of individual organisations.

2. Research, reports, articles, blogs, presentations

Organisation / Item, source, keywords / Summary
Volunteer Canada / Volunteering: A catalyst for citizen engagement, social inclusion, and resilient communities.
Philanthropy, 25(1), pp.37–44.
Sladowski, P.S., Hientz, M. & Mackenzie, R., 2013

Useful papers/sites referred to in the paper’s reference list:
Bridging the gap: Enriching the volunteer experience for a better future for our communities.
Carleton Centre for Voluntary Sector Research and Development. (2010).

[December, 2012].
The Bridging the gap project website contains a number of papers and presentations from the 2010 Canadian research.

Skills-based volunteering: A discussion paper.
Maranta, Anna, & Speevak Sladowski, Paula. (2010).
Detailed paper designed to provide the context for a move to skills-based volunteering. Paper objectives
  • to provide a framework for discussion about the policy and practical implications of skills-based volunteer engagement
  • to serve as a springboard for the development of programs, tools, resources, and policies that support organisations in skills-based volunteer engagement
volunteering_discussion_paper_and_case_studies.pdf
The Canadian code for volunteer involvement: Values, guiding principles and standards of practice. March 2012

Deliberate relationships between governments and the non-profit/voluntary sector: An unfolding story
Carter, Susan, & Speevak Sladowski, Paula. (2008).
Toronto, ON: Wellesley Institute.

The paper examines:
  • The nature of existing relationships between governments and the non/profit/voluntary sector across a number of countries – at national, sub-regional and local levels
  • Deliberate forml relationships between the whole of government and the whole of the sector
  • Driving forces behind the creation of these deliberate relationships and some of the preconditions for such processes
  • What constitutes success
  • challenges
citizen engagement; research; Canada / Excellent paper by leadership team, Volunteer Canada.
They argue that the concept of volunteering needs to be redefined to encompass a more inclusive and reciprocal form of engagement.
Despite a renewed interest involunteering among Canadian governments, businesses, and the educational system, and an enormous increase in mandatory community service, community service learning, and employer-supported volunteering, there is a clear need for bolder, innovative, and more collaborative volunteer engagement strategies.
New landscape for volunteer engagement:
  • Increasingly shaped by retiring baby boomers and their needs and interests
  • Opportunities to engage growing numbers of newcomers, Aboriginal and First Nations communities
Importance of social inclusion policies and strategies which include volunteering; focus on what people have to offer as opposed to what they may need; empowering to see one-self both as a contributor as well as a consumer of community services.
More volunteers and more diverse and engaged citizens - a vehicle to and a sign of a strong, healthy, and resilient community.
Regardless of age, studies volunteers today lead more structured lives; are more mobile, tech-savvy, results-oriented, autonomous; and have multiples roles and interests.
Thus organizations needto be more structured and more flexible at the same time, and to be well prepared for volunteers and provide the space for volunteers to bring what they have to offer.
CSI / Blog, 11 Mar13: A Sector Made to Measure

social impact measurement; NFP sector / Chris Lee (on the standby register of RedR Australia for deployment to humanitarian emergencies)on measuring social impact in the NFP sector
OECD Statistics Working Papers / What Makes for a Better Life?: The Determinants of Subjective Well-Being in OECD Countries – Evidence from the Gallup World Poll.
OECD Statistics Working Papers, 2012/03

well-being; life satisfaction; volunteering; civic engagement / OECD Better Life Index data, showed that our social connections are the single most important determinant of people’s level of life satisfaction, measured by whether we have someone to count on in a time of need. Even the way we interact with people we don’t know personally can have an impact on well-being, at both the individual and community level. Communities where people are more socially engaged and trusting of others (including strangers), tend to be happier and healthier overall. At the national level, measures of trust and civic engagement (such as volunteering rates) are even linked to higher levels of economic growth and government performance.
Kids in Philanthropy (KIP) (Australia) / Website supporting KIP’s mission:
Developing a social conscience and a practice of giving in kids, for kids

young people; philanthropy / KIP is for children aged 5-18 years of age across Australia. First established in Sydney; now in Melbourne
Uses ‘Place- based Philanthropy’ for its Technology and Learning project, Fairfield NSW

Voluntas: International Journal of Voluntary and Non-profit Organizations / Undeclared Work in Non-Profit Sports Clubs: A Mixed Method Approach for Assessing the Size and Motives.
VOLUNTAS: International Journal of Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations
December2012, Volume 23, Issue 4, pp 846-869
Sporting clubs; undeclared work / This Belgian study focusses on the size and motives of reimbursements beyond the scope of regulations and labour law which can also be regarded as undeclared work.
The results show that at least 10% of volunteers can be considered as undeclared workers. The tax and social security contribution burdens are considered as the main causes for this undeclared work. It is argued that a new employment status for paid volunteers in sports is necessary to guarantee the provision of qualitative sports services.
Co-production and Third Sector Social Services in Europe: Some Concepts and Evidence
Victor Pestoff
VOLUNTAS: International Journal of Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations
December 2012, Volume 23, Issue 4, pp 1102-1118 / This article explores some crucial conceptual issues related to the co-production of public services and the role of the third sector. It also provides some brief empirical evidence of the potential of the third sector, not merely as a service provider, but also as a facilitator of the re-democratization of the European welfare state.