Presentation delivered by Sam Sparrow, Head of the Volunteer Unit at Catch22 and Linda Roberts, Senior Researcher at OPM on volunteering with hard to reach groups. Focusses on research models, best practice with hard to reach groups and case studies from Catch22. Delivered at Westminster Briefing Conference, Volunteering and the Big Society 07/12/2010

1. Improving volunteer
opportunities for ‘hard
to reach’ groups
Linda Roberts OPM
Sam Sparrow Catch22
www.opm.co.uk

2. Overview of approach
• Framing familiar subject in current policy context of Big
Society
• Research questions
– Why is it important to target „hard to reach‟?
– Who is „hard to reach‟?
– What are the barriers?
– What are the motivations?
– How can volunteer opportunities be improved?
– What works?
• Mix between theory and practice

3. Why target ‘hard to reach’ in Big Society context?
• Volunteering is key to Big Society
– „We want every adult in the country to be a member of an active
neighbourhood group‟
– Community organisers, National Citizens Service
– „Handing over‟ power, delivering local services, „give communities
the help they need to take control and tackle their problems‟
– Social mixing and integration to tackle extremism and fractured
communities
• Shift from volunteering as a truly ‘voluntary’ activity to
being civic responsibility of everyone – assumes that
everyone has capacity to volunteer
• Risk is that those with resources will consolidate them
– those without will be left behind

4. Who is ‘hard to reach’?
One way to define ‘hard to reach’ is those groups with
the least access to voluntary opportunities
‘Although many commentators argue that voluntary activity is a possible
route out of exclusion the problem for policy makers is that the lack of
access to volunteering can be both a cause and manifestation of social
exclusion (IVR 2004)’
We also know that the stakes are higher for those who
are social excluded
‘For more ‘privileged’ young people, voluntary experience was another
‘string to their bow’ while for disadvantaged youngsters the voluntary
experience could ‘be a lifeline’’ (Vinspired and IVR 2009)

5. Identifying the target group
• Targeting specific group i.e. young people,
older people, people with disabilities, BME
communities, ex offenders…
• Targeting the entire community for Big Society
initiatives
– Ensure community organisers reflect the diversity of the
community and/or be involved in decision making
– Ensure volunteer opportunities are shaped by and are
accessible to all members of the community
– Ensure that all volunteers are „sharp elbowed‟ to
compete for scarce resources

6. Consulting the target group
• Consulting the target group is crucial to understand
more about barriers to access and motivations to
volunteer
• Map out existing networks, providers of services that
already work with the group, build up contacts…
• Tailor methods
– Surveys – paper based or online
– Focus groups or workshops
– Face to face conversations

7. Understanding the barriers to access
Consultation with target group is crucial, to understand the actual
and perceived barriers to volunteering opportunities
• Structural – CRBs, geographical access, transport, fear of losing
benefits
• Social/cultural - Lack of role models, no positive peer influence,
language barriers
• Individual - Lack of resources – time and money, lack of confidence,
self esteem, concern „I have nothing to offer‟, not interested
• Perceptions of volunteering - Volunteering inflexible or too much of a
commitment or volunteering as a moral exercise – to „give back,‟ not to
learn and take away
• Volunteering opportunity in itself

8. Identifying who your target group is and what
specific barriers they have to accessing
volunteering opportunities is vital.
Do this before embarking on any new programme,
or developing an opportunity for a new group of
volunteers.
Bespoke approach: resource intensive, but better
results from these groups..

9. Important to reinvent the definition of “volunteering” or use a
different descriptor
“Volunteer” – Some negative stereotyoes with the young
people we work with.
When our clients surveyed about “helping out” response very
positive
185 respondents - 66% already “helping out” in their local
community

10. Prepare volunteers before filling out, and be aware of any
potential issues before it comes back.
Take a common sense approach to a volunteer if a
conviction is returned - not always a no.
Think realistically about what roles a volunteer can do if they
have a conviction
Portable CRB‟s – Quicker and encourages volunteers

11. When working with hard to reach groups, make sure your
opportunities are rooted in the community – easier to access.
Where this is not possible, make sure you can signpost to
other opportunities and be part of the network.
When combating awareness issues, word of mouth is key
with these groups.
55% of young people from our Helping Out Survey got
involved because they heard from a friend or were asked.

12. Service users moving on to volunteer – provides role models
and encourages others to volunteer
Opportunities should be flexible, realistic and meets the
individual needs of the volunteer (such as meeting costs etc)
- helps to attract and retain those in hard to reach groups
Create relevant opportunities which identify ways in which
the volunteer can develop personally and professionally –
not just about giving back

13. Our services by their nature and purpose offer opportunities
for young people to meet long term social and economic
outcomes, and the volunteering opportunities we create flow
from this.
Some examples include:
• Offering accreditation and training - BTEC, OCN
• Routes to employment – Community Youth Volunteers
• Learn new skills – I Have a Choice
• Mixing with new people – Community Space Challenge,
National Citizens Service

14. • Started as a service user on the Sutton Positive Futures
project aged 15, based around dance.
• Became a volunteer assisting a dance class and acting as
a peer leader.
• Gained employment through the project as a sports coach
got qualified
• Now works as the National Administrator for Positive
Futures

15. “Volunteering gave me an idea of what I
wanted to do, a career path in life and then
the service helped me turn the idea into
reality after realising my potential”

16. SUMMARY
• Challenge of Big Society is to identify and target
those that most need support to volunteer and
engage in community decision making
• Identify who is „hard to reach‟
• Understand what are their barriers and motivations
• Tailor volunteer opportunities to overcome barriers and
meet longer term goals
• Create a support network to sustain engagement
• Know your capacity and capabilities – network,
access existing resources and map out other
volunteering opportunities on offer