Volunteer recruitment, engagement and retention

I started volunteering as a Mentor and Befriender to develop my skills and build on my self-esteem after accessing counselling, about 11 years ago. From the offset I saw the value in volunteering, not just for myself but for organisations to get new perspectives, knowledge and skills, which benefits their clients.

Working for a pan-London charity, I led on the recruitment, engagement and retention of over 100 volunteers. This including creating role profiles; advertising, shorting and interviewing; training and supervising; and insuring that they all felt confident in delivering their roles.

I designed a volunteer booking system, which meant were able to create 'bubbles' of staff and volunteers delivering frontline services during the Covid-19 pandemic. This also meant that they were informed of where the shift took place, what to bring, the staff member's contact details, and confirmatory emails and text messages.

Below you'll see examples of:

• Role profiles outlining skills and knowledge requirements, time commitment, training and what to expect from the organisation
• Postcards and a fold-out booklets advertising volunteer opportunities
• Newsletters advertising opportunities and summarising their impact
• Training materials
• Socials to thank the volunteers and bring them together to celebrate our successes