Community
Volunteering provides numerous benefits to the broader economy and community, including improvements in engagement and social cohesion.
Volunteering can provide numerous community benefits and improvements, including economic, social capital, cohesion, and community engagement, and enabling greater participation in community life. 1, 4, 5, 15, 16, 17, 18
The desire to contribute to their community is one of the most common reasons why people volunteer. 5, 7, 8, 15, 19
In Australia, the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) General Social Survey highlights that the top two reasons for volunteering are: 7
- To help others or their community (74% of volunteers)
- For personal satisfaction or to do something worthwhile (66% of volunteers)
The 2017 ‘Intergenerational Review of Australian Sport’ estimated that sport volunteers donated 158 million hours each year – equivalent in time to nearly 90,000 additional full-time jobs and $3 billion in economic value. 20
Research from the United Kingdom (UK) found that compared to those who never volunteer, people who volunteer in sport were significantly more likely to trust others, to feel a part of their community, and to feel that contributing to their community makes them feel good and is a source of pride. They also estimated that each volunteer in a community sporting organisation, creates the capacity for 8.5 players. 15
Several reports and surveys have shown a high correlation between sport participation and volunteering, for any type of organisation.
- In 2014, 84% of people who volunteered in Victoria had also participated in organised team sport as a child. Significantly higher participation than other organised activities, such as youth groups (62%) and arts/cultural activities (52%). 8
- In 2010, over three quarters of those who volunteered their time and services to any organisation also participated in some sport or recreational activity. The sport and recreation participation rate for non-volunteers was much lower. 1
Resources and reading
- Sport Volunteering in Europe: Realities, opportunities and challenges, opens in a new tab, V4V: Skills acquired through volunteering in sport project, European Observatoire of Sport and Employment, (October 2023). This report is the first intellectual output from V4V, a major three-year collaborative partnership project, co-funded by the European Union’s Erasmus+ sport programme, consisting of 12 partners (national and international federations, universities and education bodies, sport and research institutes, and national, European and global umbrella organisations) all of whom have a deep interest in the promotion and development of sport volunteering. V4V was led and coordinated by the European Observatoire of Sport and Employment (EOSE). Key findings relating to community benefits include their role in building links with the local community and contributing to the health, social and economic value of their communities.
- European Report on Skills Needs Identification: Situation, trends, perspectives and priorities for the sport and physical activity sector, opens in a new tabEuropean Observatoire of Sport and Employment, (March 2023). In every nation in Europe, the backbone of the sector is a network of sport clubs, most of which are volunteer-run and not-for-profit. The contribution of volunteers to the sport sector, which while not direct financing is worth billions of euros to the European sport sector and indeed sport would grind to a halt without volunteer input of time and effort to make sport happen in communities. In relation to benefits of volunteering, the skills and attributes acquired through volunteering experiences in the sector should also be emphasised to support personal development as well as employability and career development. This could be a strong added value to encourage citizens to get involved in volunteering activities all over Europe.
- Evidence Insights: Volunteering and mental health, opens in a new tab, Jack McDermott, Dominic O'Neill, Volunteering Australia, (October 2021). This review focuses on the effects of volunteering on the mental health of volunteers themselves. Improving mental health and wellbeing is an important outcome for many government policy areas. Volunteering, including in sport, can help. Key insights include:
- Volunteering is associated with better perceived mental health and quality of life. Those who contribute more than 100 hours a year experiencing stronger wellbeing benefits.
- Volunteering supports mental health by increasing psychological and social capital. Research suggests that the key mechanisms which link volunteering activity to better mental health are social interaction and sense of purpose.
- Volunteering can support mental health recovery. Volunteering can be a component of social prescribing programs, in which primary care providers link patients with non-medical sources of support within the community.
- General Social Survey, opens in a new tab, Australian Bureau of Statistics, (June 2021), latest release. During the time that the GSS was conducted in 2020, initiatives were in place to help reduce the spread of COVID-19 and support the economy. Because of changed methodology and the impact of COVID-19 restrictions on the Australian population, care should be exercised when making comparisons with previous years. This report provides a breakdown of the volunteer characteristics:
- Australians had volunteered for 489.5 million hours in 2020 and 596.2 million hours in 2019.
- One quarter (25%) of Australians aged 15 years and over participated in unpaid voluntary work through an organisation in 2020, lower than the 30% in 2019.
- Volunteering rates for males and females were similar at 23% and 26%.
- The most common types of organisations for which people volunteered were those relating to sport and physical recreation (31% of volunteers), religious groups (23%), and education and training (19%).
- Volunteering and Settlement in Australia: A snapshot, opens in a new tab, Volunteering Australia, Settlement Council of Australia, (May 2019). Volunteering Australia and the Settlement Council of Australia have conducted a National Survey on Volunteering and Settlement in Australia to inform our findings. Motivations to volunteer differ for everyone, however respondents were largely looking to contribute to society, make friends, improve their English or gain local work experience.
- Volunteering has many benefits for both the volunteers and organisations. Volunteering is critical to building strong and resilient communities by encouraging economic participation, mitigating isolation and loneliness, and increasing social inclusion, community participation and cohesion.
- Volunteering can lead to employment by increasing workforce participation, helping people develop key skills, and connecting people to career paths that are better paid and more stable.
- Value of Sport, opens in a new tab, Sport NZ, (March 2018). A study exploring the value of sport to New Zealanders, their communities and our country. Active NZ in 2013/14 estimated that 28.1% of adults had volunteered at least once over the previous year, and these volunteers contributed 67.7 million hours of volunteered time over 12 months with an estimated market value of NZ$1.031b. 35% of volunteers state that their reason for volunteering is to contribute to their community.
- Volunteering Australia Response on a National Sports Plan, opens in a new tab, Volunteering Australia, (July 2017). The National Sports Plan aims to guide the future priorities and approaches of the Australian sporting sector for the long term. Volunteering Australia believes that a National Sport Plan needs to acknowledge volunteering as a key pillar for sporting activity in Australia, and develop mechanisms to facilitate and enhance its contribution. They also emphasised that volunteering must be considered in policy development and workforce planning. The response highlights the need for a sustained investment into the volunteering sector by the Australian Government to ensure long term benefits.
- Volunteers in Victoria: trends, challenges and opportunities, opens in a new tab, State of Victoria, Ministerial Council for Volunteers, (June 2017). [Download link] This report was developed to provide a contemporary narrative for volunteering. It also provides a summary of the known social benefits, economic value and current trends. Findings from this report highlight key trends, challenges and opportunities for volunteering and have informed the development of strategic priorities to strengthen and support the volunteer sector in Victoria. Some key findings include:
- Most people volunteer because they want to help others and the community (66%), for personal satisfaction (62%), or to do something worthwhile (56%).
- Sport and recreation organisations attract the highest proportion of volunteers (32%), followed by education and training (25%), welfare and community (21%), religious (19%) and health organisations (11%).
- In regional Victoria, the sport and recreation (15%) and church and spiritual (10%) sectors had the highest rates of weekly volunteering.
- Over 231,000 Victorians (48% of sport and recreation volunteers) reported contributing 50 hours or more per year, which equates to a minimum of nearly one hour per week.
- Sporting and recreation clubs are the engine room of volunteering – in 2014, 84% of people who volunteered had also participated in organised team sport as a child. This was significantly higher participation than other organised activities, such as youth groups (62%) and arts/cultural activities (52%).
- d63c877f-8822-4929-b5eb-533704d90679, Boston Consulting Group (BCG) for the Australian Sports Commission, (2017). This review focused on the overall sports sector, with a particular emphasis on participation in sport and community level sport. In regards to volunteering the report calculates that the sector employs over 220,000 people, with a further 1.8 million committed volunteers donating 158 million hours to sport each year – equivalent in time to nearly 90,000 additional full-time jobs and $3 billion in economic value.
- Hidden diamonds: Uncovering the true value of sport volunteers, opens in a new tab, Join in, (2014). Our starting hypothesis was that volunteers should not be seen as a cost saving but as investors – people who invest their time, skills and energy both for their own benefit and for the wider community. Going beyond traditional valuation methods, which use the cost-replacement model, the research investigated the true value of sports volunteering to personal wellbeing and happiness of the volunteers themselves, plus the wider benefit to their communities. Sport is the single biggest sector of volunteering in the UK. More than one fifth of the 15 million people who volunteer regularly spend their time volunteering in sport – 3.2 million people in total. Combining the emerging science of the economics of wellbeing with traditional approaches and wider industry research, we can value the contribution of volunteering in sport to society by adding the following factors: 1. The economic value of the time given by the volunteer; 2. The value of the personal wellbeing, mental and physical benefits to the volunteer; and 3. The participation capacity and benefits that every volunteer enables. If we accept the assumption that these benefits are all separate and additional to each other, then we arrive at a figure that suggests every individual volunteer in sport produces over £16,032 worth of social value to communities in the UK. This is over 30 times the old value under simple cost replacement. And with each volunteer in sport staying involved for 6.2 years on average, the profit of volunteering in sport is truly astonishing.
- Compared to those who have never volunteered in sport, people who have volunteered in sport score these measures: 3 x higher: I feel it’s important to be part of my community; 4 x higher: I trust others in my community; 3 x higher: Being part of my community makes me feel good; 5 x higher: I put a lot of time and effort into being part of my community 8 x higher: I feel that I have an influence over what my community is like; 4 x higher: My important needs are met by being part of my community
- Economic Value of Volunteering in Victoria, opens in a new tab, Duncan Ironmonger, University of Melbourne, Victorian Government, Department of Planning and Community Development, (December 2012). Although anecdotal evidence suggests that the economic contribution of volunteering is great, there are limited reliable figures on the exact monetary value. While we have various official statistics about participation rates, there are no readily available official statistics to show the important contribution volunteering makes to the Victorian economy. This report estimated that by adding the value of organised, unorganised and travel together, volunteering was worth about $7.1 billion to the Victorian economy in 1992, growing to $16.4 billion in 2006. Volunteers also provided a volume of work equivalent to 260,500 jobs in 1992 rising to 359,100 in 2006. This is equivalent to an additional 13.4 per cent of the paid number of people employed in Victoria 1992 and 14.2 per cent in 2006.
- Sport and Social Capital, Australia, 2010, opens in a new tab, Australian Bureau of Statistics, (March 2012) Final report (ceased). This report examines the relationship between participation in sport and physical recreation and social wellbeing using a range of indicators from the 2010 General Social Survey (GSS). Literature suggests that volunteering in the community is an important contributor to the development and maintenance of social capital (Nicholson and Hoye 2008). Data from the GSS show that sport participants are an important source of volunteers in the community. Over three quarters of those who volunteered their time and services to an organisation also participated in some sport or recreational activity during that same time period. The participation rate for non-volunteers was much lower.
- The economic contribution of sport to Australia - 2009, Frontier Economics report to the Australian Sports Commission, (2010). There are three main ways in which sport delivers economic benefits to society: (1) promotion of physical activity for public health benefit delivers an estimated saving of $12 billion in health care costs, (2) labour input of volunteers is valued at around $4 billion, and (3) the international success of elite Australian sportspeople is one of the most significant measurable positive impacts on social well-being; with a value that is likely to exceed the current annual budget for elite sports.
- Australia, opens in a new tab, Sheranne Fairley, Pamm Phillips, Chapter 1 in Sports Volunteers Around the Globe: Meaning and Understanding of Volunteering and its Societal Impact, Kirstin Hallmann, Sheranne Fairley (eds.), Springer, pp.7-20, (2019). Volunteerism is a central part of Australian society. In the sport sector, volunteers have been described as the backbone of the sport system. Sport relies heavily on volunteers – not only to stage sport events but also to deliver sport to the masses through a well-structured and formal network of community clubs and organizations. Australia’s hosting of large-scale events such as the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games, the 2006 Commonwealth Games, the 2007 FINA World Swimming Championships, and the 2018 Commonwealth Games has illuminated the value of volunteers, the reliance upon them, the skills that they contribute, the work that they undertake, and the contribution that they make to Australian society. Further, these events highlight how important engaging in volunteer roles can be to the health and well-being of those individuals. While events can be leveraged for volunteer outcomes, there is much more that can be done to capitalize on the attention that events bring to volunteers and the contribution that they make to society.
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