Starting point for recruiting

How organisations recruit volunteers will inevitably differ based on size, budget available for advertising, how formal they want to be about the process, which activities they are seeking help with and so on. Volunteers are not part of any workplace legislation or the Equality Act so there are no legal requirements relating to recruitment as with paid work: there is no requirement to interview volunteers, for example, although it is good practice to do so even if it is described as an informal meeting rather than an interview. It is also good practice to address issues of diversity.

Some organisations have formal procedures for recruiting volunteers and have written job specifications and advertise for these roles. Smaller, informal self-help groups may not necessarily recruit to specific roles and will match volunteers to the work that needs doing.

However, before organisations go ahead with recruitment, they need to bear in mind that traditional volunteering routes are changing and there is increasing competition amongst organisations for the pool of available people. People donating their time want to know that it is time well spent, that activities are well organised and that their contribution will be valued (Knowhow Nonprofit, 2016).