Your Voice counts because Volunteering matters

We did this across several aspects of our work, namely: Leadership and collaboration, Influencing Government Policy, Events and Campaigns, Research and Evaluation, Training and Quality Standards and Websites and Communications. This year we’ve also added ratings around our work on the Cost of Living Crisis and in implementing Scotland’s Volunteering Action Plan.   

I’m very grateful to all of our respondents – through their time and constructive feedback we have a basis to improve. This year, we told stakeholders ‘Your voice counts’, more than a motivation to respondents it’s also a reminder to ourselves that our performance counts.  

As the national centre for Volunteering in Scotland we are no ordinary organisation – the stakes are higher! They should be. Volunteering is too important to society for any organisation – never mind one with a vision of ‘more people volunteering, regularly, enjoyably and safely’ – to rest on its laurels or become complacent.  

I believe this year’s survey report is a fair reflection of the progress we’ve made over this last year; we’ve sharpened our focus and we’re getting fitter and more able to generate impact. Just as important however, is the knowledge of where we must do more; raising awareness, increasing our reach, building out our networks are key.  

We all have a stake in the future of volunteering; it’s the beating heart of communities across Scotland. With the Volunteering Action Plan – we’ve also never been clearer on the actions we must take to create ‘Volunteering For All’. So while there’s work to do, we’re eager to listen to our Stakeholders, make more positive change and move forward stronger and more impactful for the year ahead.