Volunteer Ireland

Volunteer Ireland is a national organisation dedicated to developing, promoting and supporting volunteering across Ireland. Rather than operating primarily as a direct-service charity, it functions as part of the country's volunteering infrastructure: it supports a network of local Volunteer Centres and Volunteering Information Services, helps organisations improve their volunteer practices, promotes participation, and provides information about opportunities for people interested in volunteering. The organisation's origins lie in cooperation among established local volunteer centres and national volunteering advocates. In 2000, several older volunteer centres, including the organisations now associated with South Dublin County and Fingal, joined discussions about common challenges and shared national objectives. Those discussions led in 2001 to the formal establishment of Volunteer Centres Ireland, which adopted a constitution, membership requirements and agreed aims. The emerging network sought recognition that volunteering required a coordinated national infrastructure rather than only isolated local initiatives. Policy engagement became an important part of this work. Volunteer Centres Ireland advocated for government support for a national network of volunteer centres, reflecting recommendations made in the 2002 report Tipping the Balance. A 2005 report from the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Volunteering, Volunteers and Volunteering in Ireland, specifically recommended developing the existing infrastructure through Volunteer Centres Ireland and Volunteering Ireland. Later that year, the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs announced funding measures for the infrastructure, including support for volunteer centres and funding that enabled Volunteer Centres Ireland to employ a national development officer. Volunteer Ireland was created through the merger of Volunteer Centres Ireland and Volunteering Ireland in 2011. The merged organisation brought together national development, advocacy, information and local-network functions under one identity. It subsequently continued to work with public bodies, local volunteer services and community organisations, while also participating in international networks such as the European Volunteer Centre, the International Association for Volunteer Effort and Points of Light. A central public-facing service is I-VOL, a phone application and volunteering information platform designed to help people find opportunities in their area. Through its network and related services, Volunteer Ireland connects prospective volunteers with community, social, environmental, cultural, sporting and other organisations. It also releases research and data about volunteering and volunteers in Ireland, contributing to public discussion about participation, the value of unpaid work and changes in the profile of volunteers. In 2012, the organisation reported that volunteer contributions over the preceding two years represented €22.7 million in free labour and argued that volunteering generated substantial value for the State. In 2018 and 2019, it reported that the average age of volunteers was becoming younger year on year. Volunteer Ireland also promotes volunteering through public campaigns and recognition programmes. National Volunteering Week has been held annually in May since 2012 and is intended to raise awareness of volunteering and encourage participation. The Volunteer Ireland Awards, established in 2007, recognise volunteers and volunteer groups across fields including community work, sport, culture, health, education, the environment, social inclusion and international development. The principal individual honour is the Christine Buckley Volunteer of the Year award. The organisation has also supported targeted programmes. In 2019, it partnered with Dublin Airport on Fáilte Abhaile, or Welcome Volunteers, a Christmas-period pilot in which volunteers welcomed and assisted people arriving at the airport. During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Volunteer Ireland and the local-centre network helped recruit and coordinate volunteers for support activities involving the Health Service Executive and other government departments. This demonstrated the role of the national infrastructure in mobilising people at scale during a public emergency. Volunteer Ireland receives funding from Ireland's Department of Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht and remains focused on strengthening volunteering capacity throughout Ireland.

Volunteer Ireland developed from efforts to create a coordinated national structure for volunteering in Ireland. In 2000, a number of established local volunteer centres began working together on shared issues and objectives. The participating centres included organisations associated with South Dublin County and Fingal, alongside Volunteering Ireland. The cooperation reflected a practical need for common standards, stronger public recognition and a national voice for local services that helped people and organisations engage in volunteering. In 2001, the grouping formalised itself as Volunteer Centres Ireland. It adopted a constitution, membership criteria and agreed aims, giving the network a more defined organisational basis. One of its main objectives was to persuade the Irish Government to support a national infrastructure of volunteer centres. This advocacy was consistent with recommendations in Tipping the Balance, a 2002 report that addressed the development of volunteering in Ireland. The case for national infrastructure was reinforced in January 2005, when the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Volunteering published Volunteers and Volunteering in Ireland. The report specifically recommended developing Ireland's existing volunteering infrastructure through Volunteer Centres Ireland and Volunteering Ireland. Several months later, the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs announced funding measures for the infrastructure. The measures extended funding to volunteer centres and enabled Volunteer Centres Ireland to employ a national development officer, strengthening its ability to coordinate and develop the network. Volunteer Centres Ireland continued its policy and public-interest work during the following years. On 28 January 2009, it addressed the Oireachtas Subcommittee on Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs on trends in volunteering. The organisation's activities combined advocacy with practical support, research, information provision and efforts to improve the experience of both volunteers and the organisations that involve them. In 2011, Volunteer Centres Ireland and Volunteering Ireland merged to form Volunteer Ireland. The merger consolidated two strands of national work: support for the local volunteer-centre network and broader development and promotion of volunteering. The resulting organisation became a national volunteer development body supporting local Volunteer Centres and Volunteering Information Services throughout Ireland. Volunteer Ireland's work includes publishing research and data about volunteering. Its public statements have addressed the social and economic contribution of unpaid work, as well as demographic trends among volunteers. In 2012, it stated that volunteers had contributed free labour valued at €22.7 million over the preceding two years and emphasised that volunteering saved the Irish State substantial sums. In 2018 and 2019, it reported that the average age of volunteers was declining year on year, suggesting changes in participation patterns and the continuing importance of engaging younger people. The organisation also operates public information and matching services. Its I-VOL phone application helps users locate volunteering opportunities in their area, linking the public with organisations seeking volunteers. This digital function complements the local advice and referral role of Volunteer Centres and Volunteering Information Services. Promotion and recognition are recurring elements of Volunteer Ireland's public work. The annual National Volunteering Week has taken place each May since 2012. It provides a national focus for awareness, recruitment and celebration of volunteering. The Volunteer Ireland Awards, held annually since 2007, recognise contributions in areas such as animals and the environment, campaigning, children and youth, community work, culture, education, health, international development, social inclusion, sport and group volunteering. The principal individual award is the Christine Buckley Volunteer of the Year. Volunteer Ireland has also taken part in practical partnership programmes. In 2019, it worked with Dublin Airport on Fáilte Abhaile, or Welcome Volunteers, a pilot that placed volunteers at the airport during the Christmas period to welcome and assist arriving passengers. In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic created an exceptional need for coordinated community support. Volunteer Ireland worked with its network of local centres to recruit volunteers for activities supporting the Health Service Executive and other government departments. The response illustrated how the national network could be used to mobilise volunteers beyond ordinary local matching and information services. Volunteer Ireland receives funding from Ireland's Department of Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht. It is also connected internationally through membership of the European Volunteer Centre, the International Association for Volunteer Effort and Points of Light. Its continuing role is to strengthen the conditions in which volunteering can take place across Ireland, rather than to replace the many local, community and charitable organisations where volunteers perform their work.

• 2020

  Pandemic volunteer mobilisation

  [1]Volunteer Irelanden.wikipedia.org

  The organisation and local Volunteer Centre network recruited and coordinated volunteers for pandemic-related support involving the HSE and government departments.

• 2019

  Welcome Volunteers pilot

  [1]Volunteer Irelanden.wikipedia.org

  Volunteer Ireland and Dublin Airport piloted a Christmas programme in which volunteers welcomed and assisted arriving passengers.

• 2012

  National Volunteering Week established

  [1]Volunteer Irelanden.wikipedia.org

  Volunteer Ireland began holding National Volunteering Week annually in May.

• 2011

  Merger creates Volunteer Ireland

  [1]Volunteer Irelanden.wikipedia.org

  Volunteer Centres Ireland and Volunteering Ireland merged to form Volunteer Ireland.

• 2009

  Oireachtas evidence on volunteering trends

  [1]Volunteer Irelanden.wikipedia.org

  Volunteer Centres Ireland addressed an Oireachtas subcommittee on trends in volunteering in Ireland.

• 2007

  Volunteer Ireland Awards begin

  [1]Volunteer Irelanden.wikipedia.org

  The annual awards programme began recognising volunteers and volunteer groups across multiple fields.

• 2005

  Government funding measures announced

  [1]Volunteer Irelanden.wikipedia.org

  Following an Oireachtas committee report, the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs announced funding measures for volunteer centres and national development work.

• 2002

  Tipping the Balance supports national infrastructure

  [1]Volunteer Irelanden.wikipedia.org

  Recommendations in Tipping the Balance supported the development of a national infrastructure for volunteering and informed the network's advocacy.

• 2001

  Volunteer Centres Ireland formalised

  [1]Volunteer Irelanden.wikipedia.org

  The cooperating centres established Volunteer Centres Ireland with a constitution, membership criteria and agreed aims and objectives.

• 2000

  Initial cooperation among volunteer centres

  [1]Volunteer Irelanden.wikipedia.org

  Older volunteer centres and national volunteering organisations began discussing shared challenges, objectives and the need for a coordinated national structure.

National infrastructure and development partner for volunteering in Ireland, combining public awareness, volunteer matching, research, advocacy and support for local volunteer services.

• Volunteer opportunity information and matching

  I-VOL

  I-VOL is Volunteer Ireland's phone application and associated information service for discovering volunteering opportunities. It helps people search for ways to volunteer in their local area and connects prospective volunteers with organisations seeking assistance. The service complements the advice, referral and coordination work carried out through local Volunteer Centres and Volunteering Information Services.

• National volunteering infrastructure

  Volunteer Centre network support

  Volunteer Ireland supports a network of local Volunteer Centres and Volunteering Information Services across Ireland. The network provides local information, referrals and practical links between volunteers and organisations. At national level, Volunteer Ireland contributes development, coordination, advocacy and capacity-building rather than replacing the local services.

• Research and public information

  Volunteer research and data

  Volunteer Ireland releases research, statistics and public commentary on volunteering and volunteers in Ireland. Its published material has addressed the economic contribution of unpaid work, the scale of participation and changes in volunteer demographics, including reports in 2018 and 2019 that the average age of volunteers was becoming younger.

• 2019Fáilte Abhaile / Welcome Volunteers

  Ireland · Dublin Airport

  Volunteer Ireland partnered with Dublin Airport on a Christmas-period pilot placing volunteers at the airport to welcome and assist arriving passengers.

  Outcome. The initiative is described as a pilot; the available reference material does not provide a longer-term evaluation or continuation result.

  Source
• 2012National Volunteering Week

  Ireland

  An annual awareness and participation initiative held each May to promote volunteering, highlight volunteer contributions and encourage people and organisations to engage with volunteering.

  Outcome. The week became a recurring national volunteering observance. In 2017, Volunteer Ireland estimated that approximately 500,000 people in Ireland volunteered in some capacity each year.

  Source

• 2020

  Coordinate pandemic volunteer mobilisationStrategy

  Background

  The COVID-19 pandemic generated large-scale demand for community assistance and support for public services.

  Action taken

  Volunteer Ireland worked through local Volunteer Centres to recruit and coordinate volunteers supporting the HSE and other government departments.

  Aftermath

  The national and local network was used to organise volunteer support at an unusually large scale during the public-health emergency.

  Source

• 2011

  Merge Volunteer Centres Ireland and Volunteering IrelandM&A

  Background

  Two organisations were separately involved in developing Ireland's volunteering infrastructure and national volunteering activity.

  Action taken

  Volunteer Centres Ireland and Volunteering Ireland merged to create Volunteer Ireland.

  Aftermath

  The merger established a single national organisation supporting local Volunteer Centres and Volunteering Information Services while continuing national promotion, research and development work.

  Source

1. 1Volunteer Irelanden.wikipedia.org
2. 2Volunteer Ireland official websitevolunteer.ie