“We are volunteers and that sometimes gets forgotten”:

Exploring the motivations and needs of volunteers at a healthy living resource centre in the North East of England, UK

Jon Warren (jonathan.warren@durham.ac.uk)

Kayleigh Garthwaite (k.a.garthwaite@durham.ac.uk)

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Aim of the Study

•Aim: To explores the motivations and needs of volunteers in the delivery of community health services at a healthy living resource centre in a former colliery village in the North East of England, UK.

•To think about volunteering more generally, its place within the NHS and it’s potential contribution to public services.

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Volunteers

• Big Society (remember that ?)

• The use of volunteers as unpaid staff , Commonwealth Games ,London Olympics 2012.

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Volunteering and the NHS

• The NHS has always had volunteers.

(League of Friends , Hospital visitors, WRVS)

• But supporting role not delivering services

• Might volunteering be part of an model of Health service provision, a more participatory community based model as an alternative to privatisation.?

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Health4All (pseudonym)

•Aim: To explores the motivations and needs of volunteers in the delivery of community health services at a healthy living resource centre in the North East of England, UK.

•Health4All, a community health improvement initiative in the North East of England.

•Opened in 2008 and provides access to a wide range of services and activities for all ages.

•Provides more than 45 health and community support services. GP drop in centre, Juice Bar, Gym.

•A community focal point where service providers and community groups can come together in order to address issues that affect the quality of life in the local area.

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Methods

•Four focus groups involving 16 participants were completed by JW and KG from March – May 2013.

•Participants were provided with an information sheet prior to the beginning of the focus group which explained the study aims, objectives and provided contact details for the researchers.

•Informed consent was gained via written consent forms which were thoroughly explained.

•The groups were asked a number of questions about volunteering in general; barriers to becoming a volunteer; and more specifically about what it is like to be a volunteer at the centre, including suggested areas for improvement.

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Results- Becoming a volunteer

• ‘It was easy - I came in one Thursday and started the next day’. Nina

• “I found it very straightforward to get involved; I can pick my own times and it suits me very well as my husband works shifts.” Emma

• Not all positive – Standard NHS induction day for all new staff and volunteers almost universally disliked

• “It’s just not appropriate for people who are volunteering - it’s for people who are working in hospitals, not us, and it can be quite a negative thing for people”. Anna

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Results- Becoming a volunteer (2)

• Major Issue- Criminal Records Bureau Checks (CRB)

• “My CRB forms didn’t get passed on so it took ages for me to get started here; it just got left in a drawer, no-one sent it off.” Cheryl

• Potentially very negative

• “I know someone who didn’t come as they lost her CRB forms twice and she just said ‘That’s it, I’m going elsewhere’.” Colin

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Results-motivations and benefits • “Supporting people was something I found I really could do and I

enjoyed and after my dad died I wanted to carry on.” Ellen

• I’m doing training here that will help me get on with my health trainer champion training. I don’t just want a job, I want a career .This is a way to do it - they will help you get the training you need here. Donna

• “‘To be a member of this society you have to understand the culture or you will never fit in’” Riaz

• I’m volunteering here and also at the food co-op in my village and doing my degree with the Open University. I’ve now done about six other courses connected with here, too. Donna

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Results-motivations and benefits

• Two kinds of volunteers – Admin, Support groups and activities.

• “There are plenty who want to do admin, but we struggle for volunteers to say they’ll help with the support groups at times, I’m not sure why. Sometimes I worry about how we’ll cope long-term.” Linda

• Flexibility was evident.

• “I have been here since day one - I saw an ad in the paper saying they needed volunteers, so I came down and it went from there it’s the best thing I have ever done. I do anything that they ask of me, I just enjoy it.” Linda

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Results- Suggestions for improvement

• “There is a problem with communication here - messages don’t get passed on. I know they have tried to improve things but it’s still not happening.” Colin

• “Just one person to look after the volunteers would be good - one person who, you know, that you could talk to. I’d like to be given regular tasks each Tuesday and have regular meetings. I’d feel like I was being looked after.” Cheryl

• “There are always a lot of meetings, and they always seem to go on for hours. After the first hour I’m lost - I just switch off.” Colin

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Results- Suggestions for improvement (2)

• “You do one thing and they ask you to do more - that always seems to happen.” Robert

• “We are volunteers and that sometimes gets forgotten. When you are a volunteer you aren’t going to do what you do when you get paid. Volunteers and paid staff get classed as the same and they aren’t, nor should they be”. Coin

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Results- Conclusions• Relevant training that is tailored to the individual needs of volunteers is

required in order to avoid alienating volunteers and in minimising their motivation.

• Successful communication is central to fostering positive relationships between volunteers and staff members in organisations.

• It is vital that the contribution volunteers make, particularly in terms of time, is fully recognised and appreciated.

• It must be acknowledged that volunteers are not substitutes for paid employees due to the fundamentally different relationship between organisations and volunteers which is not based upon a contractual obligation

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Impact –(yes we have had some!)

• Recruitment process

• Health4all have have worked with HR department to speed up recruitment process and has seen the introduction of “e DBS” (electronic application of CRBs now called DBS that is now taking 2 weeks or less).

• This was introduced in April 2014 to will eliminate the delays in processing DBS and potential loss of paperwork

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Impact –(yes we have had some!) (2)

• Volunteer support and communication

• Health4all have developed volunteer pathways/checklist for recruitment process.

• Introduction of monthly Volunteer Framework Policy Framework Group meetings where all Volunteer Coordinators within Health4all and the wider Health Improvement service attend.

• In January 2014 a new Volunteer Coordinator at Health4all was appointed to provide additional support in managing volunteers

• The establishment of volunteer forum, where nominated volunteer representatives can share their views/suggestions in order to help shape service improvement and overall volunteer experience.

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Finally….

• This article has been published by Perspectives in Public Health.

• The online version of this article can be found at: http://rsh.sagepub.com/content/early/2014/04/09/1757913914529559:DOI:10.1177/1757913914529559 published online 9 April 2014 Perspectives in Public Health