The Royal Voluntary Service (RVS) has announced today that it will launch a digital platform that aims to “supercharge” falling volunteer numbers around the UK by widening access and removing barriers.
Funded with £5m from the People’s Postcode Lottery, the platform will be free for the public and charities of all sizes to use and launch later this year.
The platform will offer users to thousands of flexible, diverse volunteering opportunities from short, one-off tasks to more regular activities, in-person and remote.
According to RVS, the platform will “meet the need for volunteering to fit around people’s lives and commitments”.
Research from the organisation suggests that 164 million more volunteering hours per month could be unlocked if there was a way of accessing more flexible opportunities digitally.
The announcement of the new digital platform comes at a time when the UK is facing a volunteer shortage, with many charities reporting that they are struggling to recruit the support they need and volunteer numbers still failing to meet pre-pandemic levels.
‘Keen desire to volunteer but we need to remove barriers’
Developed inhouse by the RVS, the platform is intended to help charities to reduce costs and admin associated with recruitment and provide a steady pipeline of volunteers.
It will feature a simple “on-board once” process for volunteers, and include tracking and measurement to enable charities to use data to demonstrate the impact of the platform on their cause.
The platform will also form part of RVS’ new offering, the Volunteering Marketplace, a range of consultancy services designed to support businesses to optimise their employee volunteering and social impact activities.
RVS chief executive Catherine Johnstone said: “Volunteer recruitment and retention is becoming increasingly difficult for many charities.
“There’s a keen desire to volunteer, we just need to remove barriers and widen access with opportunities to fit into modern life.
“Flexibility is at the heart of our new platform design and there will be roles to suit all commitments and interest areas.
“Crucial to success is having a diverse range and high volume of roles available for the public.
“We’re now inviting all charities and non-profits to register their interest and start uploading their roles in the summer, ready for public launch later this year.”
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