volunteer development scotland limited

description of organisation

Volunteer Scotland is the national centre for volunteering in Scotland. We have a leadership role in promoting and developing volunteering in Scotland, acting as advisory body to the Scottish Government and working closely to develop the Government’s National Volunteering Framework. We work with and engage the public, third and private sector as well as the general public and existing and prospective volunteers to meet our mission to get ‘More people volunteering: enjoyably, safely and regularly’.

We have six strategic outcomes: leadership, collaboration, practice, participation, inclusion and wellbeing.

Intermediate outcomes:
1. Leadership – innovative leadership for system change
2. Collaboration – key partners across all sectors are better supported to increase volunteering participation through a collaborative approach
3. Practice – national, local and community volunteer engagers are more effective in their volunteer practice

Final outcomes:
4. Participation – more people actively participate in their communities (place and interest) through volunteering
5. Inclusion – excluded groups are volunteering in mutually supportive communities for a fairer Scotland
6. Wellbeing – volunteers’ health and wellbeing is increased through volunteering

Our regular activities include developing volunteering strategy and policy in Scotland; conducting research and evaluating impact; developing learning, practice and training for volunteer practitioners and volunteer-involving organisations; providing advice and guidance to VIOs and the public and private sector; providing matching services to volunteers and VIOs; developing CSR and employer-supported volunteering; coordinating the cross-party group on volunteering in Scottish Parliament; awarding and assessing the Investing in Volunteers status in Scotland; providing Disclosure services to VIOs and administering the Protection of Vulnerable Groups scheme.

Our training courses have been carefully researched and have been informed by discussions with organisations and volunteers to ensure that we fully understand what it takes to deliver a great volunteer experience. They also benefit from our 30 years’ worth of experience supporting organisations that involve volunteers. Our research function allows us to include all the latest volunteering statistics, trends and examples from across Scotland to improve volunteer practice.