Policies on active citizenship and volunteering
The government is attempting to increase public engagement in civic institutions and society and respond to societal breakdown by promoting active citizenship and public participation as the responsibility of every individual. The government’s commitment to such policies can be seen by the promotion of volunteering in schools through the introduction of citizenship as a subject in the national curriculum, extra support made available for employee volunteering, the creation of new institutions that promote citizenship and, new funding initiatives for volunteering.
What are the implications?
- Changes to levels and sources of income due to a rise in funding initiatives around volunteering.
- Changes to numbers of volunteers across the public and private sector.
- Increased competition for volunteers.
- Possible increase in engagement in formal politics and public participation in decision making.
- Increase in employee volunteering.
- A change in attitudes towards community responsibility.
- Volunteering increasingly on the Conservative agenda as a way of addressing societal breakdown.
- If volunteering becomes something that everyone is expected to do, it may change the nature of what it means to volunteer and why people volunteer.
Moving forward
An increasing focus on active citizenship and volunteering may result in an increase in funding initiatives around volunteering.
- Are there funding streams available that you could use to develop the way your organisation engages volunteers?
- Do you need to promote the value of volunteering in your organisation to colleagues, current and potential volunteers?
- What strategies can your organisation put in place to make sure it can benefit from these funds but still retain its independence.
With increased interest around volunteering, volunteer numbers are likely to grow across the public and voluntary sectors.
- How can your organisation respond to competition for volunteers?
- Should you invest in volunteer recruitment and management?
Policies around active citizenship may change the reasons why people choose to volunteer.
- How much do you know about why volunteers choose to volunteer with you?
- Are these reasons changing?
Want to know more?
Brown hails volunteers as he unveils vision for Britain
Published by: The Guardian - a left of centre newspaper
Date: 2007
Format: Web
What is it? An article outlining a speech by Gordon Brown where he outlined his commitment to put volunteering and community activism at the heart of his vision of the "British way of life”.
How useful is this? In the speech Gordon Brown emphasises his core beliefs in the value of service, commitment, civic duty and neighbourliness. He also highlights the critical role the VCS plays in bringing together communities and generating progressive social change.
Other comments:
Civil renewal and active citizenship: a guide to debate
Published by: NCVO
Date: 2005
Format: Web
What is it? A report giving an overview of active citizenship from the perspective of the VCS as well as an outline of government policies in this area.
How useful is this? Chapter two maps out the Government agenda around civil renewal and active citizenship looking at the policies and initiatives of the Home Office as well as how the agenda relates to other government departments.
Other comments:
Published by: The Guardian - a left of centre newspaper
Date: 2007
Format: Web
What is it? An interview with Julia Neuberger, the Liberal Democart peer chosen by Gordon Brown to be his volunteering champion.
How useful is this? Neuberger explains that she expects her role to be twofold: as well as being a general champion for volunteering, she hopes to examine the part volunteering plays in one sector - such as health or social care for older people - to see how it could be supported and improved.
Other comments:
Recent discussion
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Dhara
This focus on trying to increase the numbers of people actively engaged in both civil and civic life is gaining pace following the publication of the recent DCLG white paper communities in control
The first chapter is entitled ‘active citizenship and the value of volunteering’. It sets out what the Government plans to do to make it easier for people to be involved in voluntary and community activity. As suggested in this driver, it does indeed include the announcement of funding streams, and builds on other funds as well as the extension of local pilots of ‘Take Part’ pathfinders
It interesting to note that the Government also plans to consult on extending the right to time off for people serving in roles which are considered to be decision making functions in statutory bodies – e.g. as members of probation boards, or as co-opted members of overview and scrutiny panel. (Currently only certain roles are eligible for time off) There are also plans to consult on the right to time off for certain roles in the housing sector (e.g. members of boards of tenant management organisations)
Further to consulting on extending the right to time off, the Government also wants to explore how they can encourage more active involvement in independent voluntary and community activity, through non-regulatory ways: this is interesting because there is much good practice and guidance available on volunteering policies in the workplace, and one could argue that the focus perhaps ought to be on what DCLG can do to create an environment in which voluntary and community organisations can thrive (this has obvious links to national indictor 7) as well as what the department can do to encourage better time off or condition which encourage volunteers and activism through its policy/strategic responsibilities – for example by considering what local government, and indeed what all LSP partners can do to encourage more community activism.
DCLG plans to begin the consultation at the end of September and any changes will be made by secondary legislation.