1.3  Values-based organisations

Some of the best-known voluntary organisations in the UK today have a long history and many were founded by philanthropists, religious organisations or other groups of concerned people as a response to the social problems of the day. They had usually identified a vulnerable group in society needing help, or a particular cause or issue that was not being addressed by government. Some organisations still exist to challenge and confront government and to campaign. This has traditionally given voluntary organisations a strong identity as being ‘values-based’, as well as the perception that all the staff and volunteers share particular values. However, the idea of values-based organisations is not exclusive to the voluntary sector, and in recent years the potential benefits of organisations developing and communicating their core values has been recognised across all sectors.

The concept of values is quite abstract and can be complex so you will look first at how values are defined, what individual values are and then move on to how they can be applied to organisations.