Volunteering

Checklist for volunteers

It’s important that you choose a volunteer role that matches your values, aspirations & meets your requirements.

Here are a few questions you should consider when applying for a volunteer role:

• What are your motivations for volunteering?
• Is there a cause that is close to your heart?
• How much time can you commit?
• … read more

Source
Volunteering Queensland

Rights and Responsibilities

You & the organisation you volunteer with are responsible for making sure you’re safe & happy in your role

Volunteers have the right to:

• be interviewed and engaged as a volunteer in accordance with equal opportunity and anti-discrimination legislation
• receive information about the organisation
• a clearly written role description
• … read more

Volunteers have a responsibility to:

• be reliable
• respect confidentiality
• carry out the tasks defined in the role description
• … read more

Source
Volunteering Queensland

Background checks

Not-for-profits have a range of legal obligations to protect the health and safety of their service users, visitors, volunteers and members of the public.

Source
Volunteering Queensland

Volunteering and Its Surprising Benefits

Volunteer Stewardship Tools

Managing volunteers to achieve high quality trail stewardship work for land managers is not easy. Explore the tools and resources available to you that will help you start, expand or enhance your outdoor stewardship volunteer program, achieving your goals, and providing exceptional service to land managers.

Key Takeaways:

• Have a plan and goals in place for your volunteer program before you recruit volunteers. Use these goals as a guide in your volunteer stewardship.
• Make sure your volunteers feel valued. Show recognition, communicate accomplishments, and give them reasons to come back.
• Record keeping is key. Track volunteers, hours, projects, etc. so you can measure the success of your volunteer program. Communicate that success back to the volunteers and to your stakeholders.
• Take advantage of resources like the ones listed in the above article to make sure you are adhering to best practices when it comes to your volunteers.

Source
American Trails (US)

Recruiting Volunteers: Justice Connect E-Learning Module

Welcome to Justice Connect’s e-learning module on volunteer recruitment. This 30 minute module will help you feel confident to fairly and safely recruit the volunteers you need to support your organisation. The module is broken into roughly three 10 minute sections that answer the three main questions to consider when recruiting volunteers. Read More

Working with volunteers – the legal issues

This app is designed for use by any incorporated not-for-profit organisation that engages volunteers, or plans to engage volunteers. It provides an overview of the key legal obligations that not-for-profit organisations have towards volunteers. It is a useful tool for committee members (or directors), volunteer managers as well as those who work with not-for-profit organisations that engage volunteers (such as peak bodies).

By “volunteering” we mean time willingly given for the common good and without financial gain.  Read More

Volunteering benefits our community and society

Data by the Australian Bureau of Statistics showed that 31 per cent of Australians volunteered with a not-for-profit organisation in 2014, down from 36 per cent in 2010. That is the first time voluntary work has fallen since recordkeeping began.

Invisible Volunteering

As volunteering faces a decline across Australia, the contribution of millennials may sometimes be overlooked, as a quiet online revolution happens among young people in regional communities.

Researchers from Curtin University in Western Australia have found that young people often participate in ad-hoc or “invisible” volunteering — meaning the community can not necessarily see them as they fly under the radar.

Volunteer Reward and Recognition

Volunteers are generally not motivated to start or continue volunteering because of financial incentives.

Their “payment” comes in other forms such as:

• Feeling their time is being used valuably to make a difference
• Being treated with respect and feeling their input is valued
• Feeling appreciated for their efforts
• Having opportunities to develop personal or professional skills and work towards goals

Source
Volunteering Queensland

Volunteering – and the law

The laws surrounding volunteering can be complex, yet volunteers are an important resource to many, if not most, community organisations.

Volunteer involving organisations can ensure their relationship with volunteers is meaningful, and managed respectfully and safely, by understanding the legal issues relating to the engagement and management of volunteers

Source
Not for Profit Law

FREE online training for volunteers

The Queensland Government recognises the important role Volunteers play in local sport and recreation clubs and is pleased to partner with QFSR Skills Alliance to offer a number of online training opportunities through the Department’s Building Active Communities Workshops program.

All courses are self-paced and take between 2-3 hours to complete.

Go Volunteer
Search Australia’s largest database of volunteering opportunities!

GoVolunteer connects you to thousands of volunteer involving organisations all over the country, and is the ideal tool to help you find the perfect volunteer match. Simply create a profile and let GoVolunteer find roles for you. You can search, express interest, and shortlist opportunities.

Opportunities in your hand!

iTunes
Google Play

See other Apps for Outdoors

Are you a not for profit that depends on volunteers to get the work done?
Does your organisation use volunteers to deliver your programmes?

There is a range of resources, advice and information available on the Internet to help you manage your volunteers more efficiently so that they are are happy and fulfilled, your clients are satisfied and you get the work completed in the best way possible

Volunteer Management on the Volunteering Queensland website offers a great collection of downloadable fact sheets, forms and checklists on a wide range of subjects – governance, leadership, building relationships with volunteers, events, fund
raising, speech making, technology and training

The Sport, Fitness & Recreation Volunteer Portal, is a resource to assist recreation organisations source volunteers, promote their events and advertise their volunteering opportunities.

For those who are managing volunteers there might be some useful hints from the Australian Association of Volunteer Managers, a professional association for individuals across all sections of the community who are involved with managing volunteer programs in Australasia.

WH&S and Volunteers. The information on the website outlines ways volunteers can meet their work health and safety duties and explains what volunteers can expect from the organisations they volunteer for. It also provides information for organisations that employ workers and engage volunteers and how the new Work Health and Safety (WHS) laws apply to them.

Volunteering Queensland

As the peak body for volunteering in Queensland, we are working towards a world where everyone can make a difference.

Go to LINKKI (Volunteering Queensland) to find out how and where you can volunteer.

Resource Central  offers a great collection of downloadable fact sheets, forms and checklists on a wide range of subjects – governance, leadership, building relationships with volunteers, events, fundraising, speech making, technology and training.

Subscribe to the Volunteering Queensland Newsletter

Volunteering Australia

Volunteering Australia is the national peak body working to advance volunteering in the Australian community.

WH&S and Volunteers

Everyone has a right to be safe at work, including volunteers. Volunteers play a vital role in communities across Australia and make significant contributions by carrying out unpaid work for a variety of organisations every day.

The information on the website outlines ways volunteers can meet their work health and safety duties and explains what volunteers can expect from the organisations they volunteer for. It also provides information for organisations that employ workers and engage volunteers and how the new Work Health and Safety (WHS) laws apply to them.

Queensland Government Volunteering Resources

Information and links for new volunteers, existing volunteers, volunteer managers and profiles of inspiring volunteers.

Training for Volunteers and Volunteer Management

Volunteering Queensland
The state peak body solely dedicated to advancing volunteering for the economic, social, cultural & environmental well-being of Queensland. Includes links to qualifications

Nationally recognised qualifications

• Certificate I in Active Volunteering (CHC14015)
• Certificate II in Active Volunteering (CHC24015)
• Certificate III in Active Volunteering (CHC34015)
• Certificate IV in Coordination of Volunteer Programs (CHC44015)

Online Training

A Guide to Training Volunteers (PartA)

A Guide to Training Volunteers (PartB)