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Vol4all: Inclusive Volunteering
Over the years, Volunteering Ireland has developed an extensive experience in promoting and supporting best practices and policies in inclusive volunteering, thus becoming the leading organisation at national level and a major resource internationally.
Our vision
At Volunteering Ireland we believe that volunteering must be made accessible to all and we aim to challenge stereotypes about who can volunteer. Not only does everyone have the right to volunteer; everyone has something to contribute as a volunteer.
Our aims
In order to encourage inclusion and diversity in volunteering and to further active citizenship, we aim to drive the change to nurture a diverse and inclusive community where people can volunteer freely and easily, regardless of background or ability, and achieve full participation and inclusion through their voluntary work.
Areas of action
In order to promote and support inclusive volunteering we carry out a wide range of activities in the following areas of action:
- Advocacy
- Research
- Organisational Development
- Infrastructure Development
All our activities serve and empower public and local authorities, statutory agencies, voluntary organisations, community groups, and any other individual or group, who want to pursue diversity, inclusion and active citizenship. These activities are planned and developed in partnership with these stakeholders, and aim to build their capacity to drive and sustain inclusion and active participation.
Our partners
Volunteering and Social Inclusion
A definition of ‘inclusive volunteering’
Benefits of inclusive volunteering
Groups who might benefit from inclusive volunteering
Inclusive Volunteering resources
Volunteering and Social Inclusion
The ‘National Action Plan against Poverty and Social Exclusion 2003-2005’ recognised the positive impact that volunteering has on socially disadvantaged individuals, groups and areas.
The plan recognised that individuals from certain sectors of society are more likely to be excluded from voluntary work and from the benefits involved. As a result of this, one of the tasks, which the Plan outlines, is to strengthen the supports to volunteering.
The new ‘National Action Plan for Social Inclusion 2007-2016’ adds that steps will ‘be taken to facilitate and encourage a greater degree of engagement by citizens in all aspects of life and the growth and development of voluntary organisations as part of a strong civic culture’ and that ‘central to this approach is the constructive role of voluntary activity in improving the quality of life in local communities ’.
A definition of ‘inclusive volunteering’
Inclusive volunteering can be defined as ‘the process of assisting any volunteers in obtaining and maintaining genuine and meaningful volunteering placements through the provision of relevant and appropriate supports ’, provided that:
- All volunteers may need support in order to realise their full potential.
- Some volunteers may require additional support in order to realise their volunteering project.
- We aim to acknowledge support needs and to develop our services in an inclusive way.
Groups who might benefit from inclusive volunteering
Among those who might be interested in volunteering as a way of actively participating in the community, and thus overcoming isolation, exclusion and discrimination:
- Homeless people
- Long-term unemployed people
- Members of the traveller community
- New immigrants, refugees and asylum seekers
- Offenders and ex-offenders
- Older or retired people
- People recovering from addictions
- People with caring responsibilities
- People with disabilities
- People with mental health illness
- People who identify with the Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) community
- Youth
- People who are excluded for any other reason
If you have any comments or wish to enquire about our Inclusive Volunteering project or to avail yourself of our services, please contact Sarah Williams, Project Manager, by email: sarah@volunteeringireland.ie or by phone: (+353 1) 636 9446.
Inclusive Volunteering resources
Inclusive Volunteering fact sheet **
Opportunity Knocks ** (1.4mb)
Hard copies of Opportunity Knocks are available for directly from Volunteering Ireland. Opportunity Knocks was the first publication of its kind in Ireland to make it easier for volunteer-involving organisations to recruit volunteers with additional support needs. This in-depth and user-friendly handbook: presents positive examples of supported volunteering placements in action, shows how your organisation can benefit from involving volunteers with additional support needs and how the volunteers themselves benefit.
** You need to register once to download these resources
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