Our Mission and Values: Promoting Volunteering in Edinburgh
Volunteer Edinburgh’s mission is to encourage more people to volunteer and take an active role in their communities. We believe volunteering makes a lasting difference, helping to create stronger, healthier and more cohesive communities across Edinburgh.
Volunteering offers benefits to individuals and society. It improves personal wellbeing, builds social connections and community cohesion and resilience, develops new skills and experience, and can enhance employment prospects. By giving their time, knowledge and skills, volunteers make a valuable contribution to the lives of others and the city as a whole.
Our Values: Making Volunteering Fair, Safe and Positive
We believe volunteering should always be a positive, inclusive and rewarding experience. For volunteering to thrive, certain fundamental principles must be respected.
Our core values are based on three essential principles:
Freedom of choice: Volunteering must always be a matter of personal choice, freely undertaken without coercion or pressure.
No exploitation: Volunteers must never be exploited or expected to undertake inappropriate responsibilities.
No replacement of paid staff: Volunteers must not directly replace the work of paid employees.
These principles, alongside our other core values , help ensure that volunteering is safe, meaningful and mutually beneficial. All organisations advertising volunteering opportunities through Volunteer Edinburgh are expected to uphold and sign up to these values.
The Importance of Volunteers in Edinburgh
Volunteers are one of Edinburgh’s greatest assets. Tens of thousands of people across the city give their time, energy, skills and experience to support local communities, charities and voluntary organisations.
Their contribution helps improve quality of life, tackle social challenges and create opportunities for people to connect, participate and make a difference.
Without volunteers, Edinburgh’s third sector would not exist, and public services and community initiatives would be significantly diminished. That is why volunteers must be valued, supported, championed and involved in meaningful ways. At Volunteer Edinburgh, we believe in promoting ethical, inclusive and rewarding volunteering opportunities that benefit volunteers, organisations and the wider community. We also recognise that volunteering is not limited to one type of activity or commitment. There are many different ways people can contribute to their communities.
Together, we can build a stronger Edinburgh through volunteering and active citizenship.
Other types of volunteering
Volunteering can take many forms, depending on an individual’s availability, interests and circumstances.
Informal volunteering is also an important part of the wider volunteering community. Often described as social activism or community action, it plays a vital role in creating stronger, more connected communities. This type of activity is often organic and driven by a particular cause, community need or shared interest. People involved may not even describe themselves as volunteers.
At Volunteer Edinburgh, we recognise these activities under the broader heading of active citizenship or community participation. As active citizenship is often self-directed and community-led, we do not normally recruit individuals for these activities. However, we recognise their significant value to society.
Other types of volunteering include:
One-off volunteering: Short-term activities such as fundraising events, festivals and community events.
Micro-volunteering: Small, flexible tasks that can often be completed remotely and at a time that suits the volunteer.
Full-time volunteering: More intensive volunteering commitments, including some overseas volunteering opportunities.
How Many Hours Can You Volunteer?
For clarity, when we refer to part-time volunteering, we mean an activity that is typically undertaken weekly, with a commitment of up to 15-20 hours per week.
If a Volunteer Involving Organisation (VIO) wishes to advertise a volunteering opportunity requiring more than 20 hours per week, we recommend reviewing the role and dividing it into smaller, more manageable time commitments. It is important to note that the average Edinburgh volunteer donates 4.4 hours of their time per week.
Realistic time commitment ask and flexibility make volunteering more accessible, allowing more people to get involved and contribute their skills and experience.
Our aim is to promote volunteering opportunities that are realistic, inclusive and mutually beneficial for both volunteers and the organisations they support.
When is volunteering not volunteering?
We believe that volunteering must always be a matter of free choice. Nobody should be forced, pressured or compelled to volunteer. Participation must be entirely voluntary, and we will not support any programme or initiative that requires individuals to undertake volunteering against their wishes.
The freedom to choose whether or not to volunteer is one of the fundamental principles that underpins our approach to ethical volunteering. Volunteering should be a positive and rewarding experience, benefiting both the individual and the organisation or community they support.
Volunteering, Work Experience and Internships: What’s the Difference?
We recognise that volunteering is just one of several ways in which people can develop skills, gain experience and improve their future employment prospects.
Other opportunities, including work experience placements and internships, can also help individuals build confidence, develop practical skills and gain valuable workplace experience.
However, we believe it is important to distinguish clearly between volunteering, unpaid work experience and internships. These activities have different purposes and expectations, and using the terms interchangeably can create confusion and undermine the principles of genuine volunteering.
Volunteering should never be used as a substitute for unpaid employment, compulsory work experience or an internship.
Our Position on Internships
An internship is generally a period of work experience linked to ongoing or recently completed formal education or learning.
Although internships can provide valuable opportunities for skills development and career progression, they are distinct from volunteering.
For this reason, Volunteer Edinburgh does not normally advertise internships or internship opportunities through our volunteering service.
Our focus remains on promoting genuine, freely chosen volunteering opportunities that benefit individuals, organisations and communities across Edinburgh.
What can I do if I am concerned about a volunteering opportunity?
If you are currently volunteering and have concerns about any aspect of your role or volunteering experience, we recommend taking the following steps:
1. Talk to the organisation you volunteer with
Your first step should normally be to raise your concerns directly with the organisation where you volunteer. Speak to your volunteer coordinator, supervisor or another appropriate member of staff. Many issues can be resolved through an open and constructive conversation.
2. Contact Volunteer Edinburgh for additional support
If you have spoken to the organisation but still feel you need further advice or support, you can contact Volunteer Edinburgh. We will do our best to offer guidance, discuss your concerns and help identify possible ways forward.
Our aim is to support positive volunteering relationships and help ensure that volunteering remains a safe, fair and rewarding experience for everyone involved.
How to Report a Concern About a Volunteering Opportunity
If your concern relates to a volunteering opportunity advertised on the Volunteer Edinburgh website, please contact us and let us know.
We take concerns about advertised volunteering opportunities seriously. We will consider the information you provide and investigate the matter where appropriate.
We are committed to ensuring that organisations advertising volunteering opportunities through our service understand and uphold our core values and principles of good volunteering practice.
If you need advice about a volunteering concern, would like support with a volunteering issue or wish to raise concerns about an advertised opportunity, please get in touch with our team.
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