More younger people are volunteering now than a decade ago, while the rate for the older generation has decreased in that time, according to a new report.
In response to research by nfpResearch, which has collected data from members of the public since 2010, 32% of 16 to 24-year-olds said they had volunteered in the past three months in March last year, up from 21% in March 2012.
For people between 55 and 64 years old, 26% said they volunteered in the last three months in March 2012, while in March 2024, 12% said they had done so.
Meanwhile, for people who are 65 years old and above, the figures were 28% in 2012 and 17% in 2024.
The rise in youth volunteering may be due to the increased emphasis on volunteering in schools and universities, where credits are given for volunteering, the report says.
It suggests the decline in volunteering among older age groups may be due to pension provision “getting worse”, Covid causing longer-term health problems and the cost-of-living crisis limiting the amount of money and free time people have.
‘Worrying’ decline in older volunteers
nfpResearch collected its data in the UK monthly via online surveys with a sample size of 1,000 people representative by age, gender and social class.
Tim Harrison-Byrne, co-managing director of nfpResearch, told Civil Society: “It’s good news that younger people are volunteering more.
“But it’s worrying that older people are volunteering less and particularly because older volunteers tend to be more loyal. They tend to stay longer with an organisation.
“If we want to have a healthy volunteering culture in the UK, we do need some kind of strategy.
“We do need to make sure that what we’re doing will make things better in a year, five years or 10 years than they are now.
“We can’t just hope this is all going to happen by accident, and we can’t just rely on the government doing all of those things.”
Charities urged to invest in volunteering
The report recommends the creation of a national volunteering infrastructure body in England as well as a national “volunteering czar” role to advocate for the development of volunteering.
It also urges charities to employ a director of volunteering and to provide support to their volunteer managers.
Harrison-Byrne said: “Most charities who want a fundraising income put a lot of money into fundraising. They know they need to pay for it.
“There’s a paradox that people think volunteering ought to be something you can do for free because people are giving their time for free. So, even a paid volunteer manager seems like something that could be a contradiction.
“Most organisations don’t invest as much in volunteering, even if it’s very important for them, as they invest in fundraising.
“Part of the challenge is that most charities don’t invest as much in volunteering, either in money terms or in people terms.”
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