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Contents:

No Substitute for Experience: Media Toolkit

Page Number:

Introduction 3

How to use the toolkit:

Knowing your audience 4

Which medium to use and when 5

What to do with this information and how to present it in an article 6 Evidence files:

Statistics 7

Student Case Studies 9

Employer Comments 17

Policies and Government Reports 20

About Student Volunteering England: 22

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Introduction: Volunteering is an amazing experience, benefiting communities, universities and of course the student volunteers themselves! Student volunteers are amongst the most active students, identifying and serving the needs of their local and wider community, dealing with challenging situations, interacting with a diverse group of people, and of course having fun! Too often students are portrayed as hindering the local community and contributing to the ‘town and gown’ divide. There are over 42,000 student volunteers throughout the country, all of them contributing to more balanced communities through inventive, challenging and diverse projects. The skills that student volunteers develop whilst working on these projects are invaluable, and help contribute to an impressive career history and skill set. This toolkit provides the essential tools for you, the Volunteer Coordinator to use the media as an effective means to promote the amazing projects and students, whilst providing evidence of how volunteering provides the perfect arena in which to develop essential ‘employable skills’, and gives a competitive edge when applying for that ‘dream’ job. This toolkit enables you to appropriately publicise the great work of student volunteers, and gain new audiences who may want to begin volunteering themselves. The toolkit contains case studies of just a few amazing volunteers whose experiences have helped them identify their next steps, or have secured a placement heading towards their ideal career. It also contains extracts from government reports, quotes from leading employers detailing the immense skills and competencies volunteers can offer companies and some eye opening facts and figures.

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How to use the toolkit: This toolkit provides you with the essentials for appropriately conveying information with the media, and provides evidence to support the idea that volunteering increases employability. Knowing your audience: The amazing work that student volunteers undertake should be shouted from the rooftops, by using effective means your article can:

Encourage new students to volunteer Highlight the service and support needs of the local community Attract support and recognition from members of the government Attract more support from the local population, businesses and companies Highlight the amazing work student volunteers undertake to senior

university staff By using information regarding the employability and skills capacities of graduates - a current hot topic of discussion - will not only highlight the remarkable projects, but the immense and vital arena it provides for developing skills. Thus:

Giving those students interested in building their skills and competencies a further incentive to begin volunteering

Highlighting the transfer of essential skills between the university and community

Attracting support from the government, who are currently addressing the issues of nationwide skill gaps, and combating recent reports on graduate competencies

Attracting local businesses and companies to invest in future student volunteering projects, once seeing the skills and experiences student volunteers can bring to their business

Allowing senior management staff in universities to invest in these projects, seeing the ideal arena it provides for developing highly employable graduates

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Which medium to use, and when:

The university or local paper is a great place to begin publicising the benefits of volunteering to the university and local audience through short articles or interviews with student volunteers and project managers. Using the Student’s Union or university website can help to bring another facet to the world of student volunteering. Sending out e-bulletins or submitting a piece for an online magazine can also help to widen the audience. Choosing the appropriate times for submitting such articles can affect how the message is received. Great times to publicise volunteering are:

Freshers week or re-freshers week, which can attract new attention from students looking to settle into university life, make friends and immerse themselves in the student experience

When a new project begins and interest from the student population increases When actively recruiting for new volunteers, leaflets could amongst other

publicity tools, contain votes of support from leading companies, recruiters or government and independent reports, highlighting the reality of the skills gap and giving the cause more depth

When publicising successful projects within the community, which helps audiences recognise the aims and efforts of student volunteering projects.

National Student Volunteering Week- a week long celebration of student volunteering projects which occurs annually in February

National Volunteers Week- occurring annually in June, recognises the efforts of all volunteers nationwide

At the moment there are many discussions of the skills gap of graduates and the nation as a whole. With extracts from the Leitch review, Dearing report and studies by the Association of Graduate Recruiters (described in detail within this toolkit) highlighting this gap. Volunteering offers an alternative and practical learning method to counter this, whilst developing and investing in the local and wider community and helping to form a structured and supported society. Mentioning volunteering for enhanced employability can create ideal counter replies and articles to those detailing:

Skills Gap Reduced graduate earning Graduate unemployment ‘Town and gown’ divides Local Community Issues

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What to do with this information and how to present it in an article:

Before preparing an article or piece for use in the media, first assess your audience through the following questions. This will help gauge what information to include, which evidence is needed and what the tone and narrative of the article needs to convey. Assessment questions: Who is your audience? Students who may want to volunteer, but don’t know much about it. What are they interested in? Having fun, experiencing university life, unsure of which line of work they want to pursue or which resources are available for them to build skills needed for their ideal job. What message do you want to give them? Student volunteering is an amazing way to meet loads of exciting people, experience different and demanding roles within a work environment, help you decide which career would be most suited to you and make you more employable once you graduate. So, join us! What kind of evidence do you need?

A selection of some amazing projects other students have set up Case studies of current or former students detailing how volunteering gave

them the upper hand Statistics of volunteering and employability Employers comments on the benefits of volunteering

After assessing these questions you can collate relevant ‘evidence’ material available in this toolkit including:

Former and current student volunteer case studies Government and independent reports Comments from leading employers Eye-opening statistics on volunteering and employability

Good luck!

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Statistics: These statistics can be used to support your article, or act as a header, bringing more attention to the current situations, and helping frame the benefits of volunteering for employability.

There are over 42,000 student volunteers in Britain (National Student Volunteering Survey)

Formal volunteering is estimated at contributing a staggering £40 billion a year to the economy! (National Volunteering Survey, www.ivr.org.uk)

90% of the population agree that a society with volunteers shows a caring

society (National Volunteering Survey)

According to a survey by Timebank, 73% of employers said they would rather employ someone with voluntary experience than someone without

The Timebank survey also states that 58% of employers say that voluntary

work experience can actually be more valuable that experience gained in paid employment

In a recent YouGov survey carried out for Edge found many employers feel

graduates are lacking basic business awareness, with 71% of employers saying they would always consider candidates under 25 with poor exams results but a lot of work-related experience

A recent report by the Association of Graduate recruiters (AGR)1 found that

almost 50% of chief executives believe there will not be enough suitable candidates over the coming year, blaming the lack of skills

A survey conducted by GraduateBase.com indicated that one in three

employers feel graduates lack basic business awareness, one in four, feel they lack interpersonal skills, and one in ten think they lack general common sense.

91% of student volunteers think support staff are very important (National

Student Volunteering survey)

80% of students feel employers should recognise the work of student volunteers (The Student Response to the Russell Commission)

Student volunteers gave 3,459,653 hours to their communities, contributing

£42 million to the economy 1 www.agr.org.uk

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Each student volunteer gives on average 82 hours per year to their

community, contributing nearly £1,000 per year to the economy

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Student Case Studies: This section contains comments and experiences from several former and current student volunteers. All of them have undertaken some amazing projects and developed an impressive set of skills and experiences to give them that added ‘X Factor’! Name: Paul Rowden Degree discipline: Geography University: Lancaster Which volunteering project are you involved with? CommIT, a project focused on bringing the benefits of IT to deprived communities, currently based in Blackpool. Students perform a variety of tasks including helping young people create video diaries and build PCs as well as giving tailored IT tuition to charity workers and selected individuals. I have been involved in delivering the IT tuition. What skills did you bring to this project? I feel that along with a good understanding of computers, I also brought adaptability, patience, common sense and interpersonal skills to the project. What attracted you to volunteering? It is very easy to sit back and lose touch with the “real world” whilst at university. I saw volunteering primarily as a good way to put something back into the area I am studying in, as well as exposing me to a wider variety of people and situations. I enjoy meeting people and this is just as big a part of the project as the IT subject matter. Volunteering also gives me experience that will prove valuable when it comes to getting a job after university. Which skills have you developed whilst volunteering? I would say that I have developed in terms of leadership, planning, organisation, confidence, interpersonal skills, empathy and patience. I have had to work in small teams and on my own with small groups of tutees as well as in one-to-one situations. In many cases I have needed the confidence to devise/adapt sessions on the spot as I am not always fully aware of who will be turning up and what they expect to learn. What are your plans for the future, or future career paths? I really am unsure at this stage! Various things interest me including jobs in local government, the environment and transport but I remain very open-minded. Has volunteering aided you in this decision? Volunteering has given me extra confidence and assured me that I can adapt most of my skills to whatever career path I choose in future.

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Name: Ramya Ramaswami Degree discipline: Medicine University: Imperial College Which volunteering project are you involved with? Community Action Group (CAG) – This is a well-established student society within the union, which hosts a ‘soup run’ (providing sandwiches, hot drinks and conversation) for homeless individuals in Lincoln’s Inn Fields, London. What skills did you bring to this project? CAG has been running for numerous years, with a few dedicated followers. With previously acquired skills of organising fundraising events, we hope to advertise CAG this year to a larger audience. We will be staging a conference to address homelessness concerns with other homeless support projects in London. What attracted you to volunteering? I’ve always enjoyed volunteering as it provides an opportunity to meet people with different perspectives. This may be other volunteers or people who benefit from voluntary services. In the case of CAG, the idea of working with homeless individuals was appealing. I grew up in Singapore, where there are no homeless people on the streets. Whilst studying in the UK, a country known around the world for its affluence and wealth, it was difficult to ignore the social problems of homelessness and excluded individuals. Being a part of CAG has given me a unique opportunity to give something back to a society that has helped me as a student. Which skills have you developed whilst volunteering? I have developed and reinforced leadership and organisational skills during my time at CAG. As a medical student, it has been useful to gain a better understanding of the homeless situation and the legal aspects regarding this issue. Often there are homeless individuals in A&E, and some medical staff may feel intimidated to approach these patients. CAG has given me the confidence to help patients with difficult social circumstances. What are your plans for the future, or future career paths? After qualifying, I hope to continue volunteering at CAG. The experience has been positive and can be applicable in any country. I decided to study medicine for the humanitarian aspect, and one day I would like to work for a large NGO, the World Health Organisation or Medicins Sans Frontiers. I am sure that the skills I have gained during my volunteering experience will come into use in my career. Has volunteering aided you in this decision? Being a part of CAG has reinforced my quest to follow humanitarian pursuits. I have been fortunate to meet individuals at CAG who have given me insight into their difficult situations. Initially, when I started CAG, I used to give out sandwiches and see many hands rather than faces. After two years, these faces now have names, stories and histories.

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Name: Am Devaiah Degree discipline: BCom – Business Administration University: University of Birmingham Which volunteering project are you involved with? Kids Adventure, Spread the Secret, Ravens, Carnival and other one off projects. What skills did you bring to this project? - Leadership and organisation - Fun, enthusiasm and energy - The ability to interact with children and have fun with them, whilst still keeping

authority What attracted you to volunteering? The chance to get involved with projects, and experience situations which you would not normally get a chance to do. As well as actually seeing that the things you do make a difference. There is nothing that compares to seeing the change in a child after a week long Kids Adventure holiday, or the smile on someone’s face when they do something they didn’t think they’d be able to. There is nothing like the friends you make through volunteering. Which skills have you developed whilst volunteering? Patience, communication and the ability to take a calmer approach to things when it seems like everything is going wrong. Whilst volunteering you do hit a number of barriers, but with the help of the involve staff and fellow volunteers I have come to realise that there isn’t a lot that can be done if you get stressed. What are your plans for the future, or future career paths? I want to be a mum, but I would also like to foster lots of children. From working with Kids Adventure, and specifically having seen children removed from their homes due to abuse, I have seen the difference that foster parents can make. So many children just need someone to provide the basic need that many people just don’t seem able to give them and that is what I would like to do. I would also like to set up a permanent ‘farm’ in the style of Kids Adventure, but with a learning environment so that inner city children can come for week long holidays, and learn how to grow their own food, see cows and sheep and learn the skills that living in the city means you miss out on. I would also like to have a high-ropes section, a quad bike track and a lake, so that the ‘play’ element is a chance to experience things they might not get a chance to do otherwise and also be challenging to them. Has volunteering aided you in this decision? Yes, I can’t imagine my life without my volunteering. The friends I have made from Kids Adventure and Carnival are like my family.

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Name: Ahmed Ali Job Title: Audit Assistant Organisation: KPMG LLP (London) Please provide a brief summary of your voluntary experience: Together with the society I helped to create, we were able to organise a charity collection for the Children of Iraq, in conjunction with the Human Relief Charity. This involved co-ordinating a collection on different campuses over a week at lunch-times, on different floors. By allowing flexibility to the team of 8 people, I directly co-ordinated the collection and supervised the count. My role also involved in coaching the collectors and providing them with material to hand out to donators. So, what does your current job involve? It involves auditing clients in the Consumer Markets Division of KPMG. Clients range from Food/Drink manufacturers to High Street Retail companies. Also, assurance engagements are also worked on, with the aim of providing an independent professional opinion on the financial statements or financial reports produced by our client. The work is mainly client based and is quite diverse (not just travelling wise) but also in nature; this is not only in terms of the type of business the client is involved in, but also the different regulations imposed e.g. stock exchange listed client versus small owner/managed companies. Also studying towards the professional ACA qualification plays a major role in the job. Did you do any specific education or training that helped you to get the job? The job doesn’t require any pre-requisites or specific training to get onto the Graduate Assurance Programme offered by KPMG. Having studied Business Management at undergraduate level, did help to understand the functioning of some organisations. What skills do you bring to the job, How did volunteering help you develop these? I do feel that volunteering did help me as it provided me with team working and leadership skills. They are good examples of the skills and capabilities I possessed in accomplishing a task, whilst working with others. Volunteering also showed how vital preparation is in order to deliver the service when required; this is similar to an interview, where preparation is crucial for success. I feel that I am able to work well in teams and will make sure that I have my say in a discussion, as well as incorporating everyone else’s opinions – this was important in achieving my charity collection task as we did stray away from the initial plan and were able to better deliver. What kind of personality is suited to a job like yours? Patience and good social skills is required to be successful, especially since this job is client based and client facing is probably the toughest challenge when you start as a junior. What are your plans for the future, or future career paths? I would like to pursue a career in consulting and perhaps specialise in corporate recovery, once I have achieved my ACA qualification. What are your top tips for someone wanting to get into this job? Preparation of the key developments in the industry and of the actual programme you are getting into. Also showing an interest in the company will differentiate your answers from the standard

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answers applicants give. Consideration of future career paths shows that ambition and forward-thinking. Most of all remain calm and give your opinion, even when you are not sure of the correct answer. What advice would you give to students at university to improve their employment prospects? Ensure that you do take part in societies and involve yourself in teams to achieve a common goal. This can range from organising a social event or leading teams in project work. Ensure that you do take on a variety of roles, so that you are able to demonstrate this on the Assessment Day. Remember, an internship is not the only way to get into the career path you have chosen but relevant or similar work experience, such as volunteering is important. Not just in making you more appealing as a candidate, but also providing you with an insight and awareness to the work environment.

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Name: Joanna Watson Job Title: Volunteer Coordinator Organisation: Involve – BUGS (Birmingham University Guild of Students) So, what do you actually do? My main role concerns the support and recruitment of volunteers, with a focus on our external volunteering projects, liaising with local organisations and charities to both develop new and maintain existing volunteering opportunities for our students. I help students complete CRB checks, provide accreditation for volunteers, record their MV hours and manage our MV figures, targets and funding. I help with the general promotion of Involve, and also work on bigger events such as Volunteer Fairs or Creative Energy Day. Did you do any specific education or training that helped you to get the job? Before working for Involve I did a 3 year music degree. The subject music did not specifically aid me in getting the job, but the skills I learnt through my degree such as organisational and time management skills, writing and presentation skills, communication and people skills I feel helped. How did you get into this job? Did your volunteering aid you? I started working here in September, 3 months after graduating from the University, having worked in an admin post over the summer between. I feel volunteering definitely helped me get the job. I had previously been a student at Birmingham University and had volunteered through Involve myself with two of their student-led projects. My experience of volunteering, what it’s all about and how it works was very useful, especially my knowledge of how Involve and the Guild of Students works. What skills do you bring to the job, How did volunteering help you develop these? I feel I brought good organisational, time management, writing, people and communication skills to the job. Taking part in both volunteering and other activities, such as music and fitness, all at the same time as studying for my degree helped me develop good time management skills. I had previous work experience of working with a range of different types of people of all ages in different situations, which is useful as in this role I work with a lot of different people. Volunteering added to this, as I experienced the challenges of working with children with learning difficulties. This was beneficial as it both built my confidence in dealing with more challenging situations, working with others and increased my communication skills. When I was a student I was a member of the University Music Society and contributed to the general running of the society and was the choir manager. I was also the producer for an opera. These experiences helped with my organisation skills, managing other people and ability to work with other students. All of which are useful skills to have for my job now. What kind of personality is suited to a job like yours? I think someone who is friendly, has good communication skills and likes working with a variety of people would be suited to the role as it involves working with various people

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including students, other guild staff, people form local charities and other volunteering projects. It is necessary to have good organisational skills as it is a busy job and you always have various tasks to do at once and so a person would need to prioritise and be able to work to deadlines. I work in my job as part of a team, so you need to be able to work both independently and with others. Also, it is important to get work done on time as it usually affects the work of others. What are your plans for the future, or future career paths? At present to continue working for Involve. What are your top tips for someone wanting to get into this job? Do some volunteering! People who work in the voluntary sector tend to be very passionate about what they are doing and so you really need to demonstrate that this is the area you want to work in and have experienced volunteering yourself. Volunteering also, of course, will increase your confidence, let you experience new and challenging situations and work with a variety of people. What advice would you give to students at university to improve their employment prospects? To improve your employability gets involved in lots of other activities whilst you are studying. Whether you do volunteering, something musical, creative or sporty, join a society or even create your own, it will all give you new experiences and add to your personal development, whilst being enjoyable for you. Having a degree is not enough to get a job, it doesn’t say anything about you as a person! There is a lot of competition for jobs so you need to stand out and it’s all the additional things you take part in that will do this and give you the extra skills you need. I also think having a part time job is beneficial. If you haven’t much time for work and are lucky enough you don’t need the extra money, you could still get a job that only commits you to a small number of hours a week or do some one off jobs. Chose the right part time job and it will again increase your skills, add to your personal development, provide you with new experiences and possibly experiences that are key to your future career. When you start looking for a job after university they will ask about your previous work experience and it’s better that you have some, even if it’s only short. If you can maintain a part time job though, it will demonstrate to a potential employer that you can show commitment and reliability.

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Name: Paul Colpitts Job Title: Student Organisation: BPP Law School, Leeds So, what do you actually do? I’m studying for the GDL (law ‘conversion’ course). Did you do any specific education or training that helped you to get the job? No, I was just generally brilliant. How did you get into this job? Did your volunteering aid you? Volunteering made me the man I am today: whatever I’m up against, I know that if I can look after Birmingham’s naughtiest children and Poland’s finest – to name but two volunteering opportunities I had – then I can get through it. What skills do you bring to the job, How did volunteering help you develop these? The ability of a person to communicate effectively is one of the most accurate measures of intelligence and aptitude there is, and there are few better ways to develop a skill like this than to spend time with people who struggle with it the most. What kind of personality is suited to a job like yours? You need a finely tuned façade of arrogance, tempered slightly with a hint of sarcasm. What are your top tips for someone wanting to get into this job? The easiest way in is to: read the Financial Times; care about the FTSE; be interested in politics, on both a domestic and European level; be ambitious (it’s dog-eat-dog out there); expect people to be motivated by money; and so on. The harder way in is to pretend to do all that. What advice would you give to students at university to improve their employment prospects? For God’s sake, volunteer. At best, you’ll enhance both your employability and interpersonal skills whilst helping other people and having a great time. At worst, you’ll enhance your interpersonal skills whilst helping other people and having a great time; either way, you’ll be a better person.

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Employers: Advocates of Volunteering Recognising the immense potential and multitude of skills and competencies student volunteers can offer, these employers comment on just how amazing student volunteers are, and their possession and evidence of the skills they want to see from their employees. Use these comments and quotes to support you article, they can act as headlines or used as evidence for how employers view voluntary experience. "Volunteering provides graduates with an invaluable set of skills and competencies which cannot be rivalled by other experiences, even in the commercial sector."

Rebecca Martin, Graduate Manager, The Co-operative Group “Volunteers are amongst those who are more likely to have “sparkle”, the self-confident, self-aware, unafraid individuals who looks at your face when you are interviewing them as they have more confidence and more to talk about”

Linsey Perry, Graduate Recruiter, Network Rail “Common sense, initiative and the ability to work well in a team are also practical workplace skills which can be developed through volunteering. Examples from volunteering experiences that demonstrate such skills are just as valid as workplace examples given by other interview candidates.”

Senior Recruiter, Norwich Union, Aviva Group “When recruiting we would look favourably on candidates who have volunteering experience in the charity sector. Nowadays employers are looking for the candidate who is prepared to go that little bit further and experience of volunteering can provide that evidence.”

Alan Jeffs, Head of HR, British Heart Foundation “Relevant voluntary experience is really important; it differentiates the candidate from others and shows initiative”

Senior recruiter, Christian Aid “Every year Enterprise Rent-A-Car recruits hundreds of graduates. We’re always on the look out for applicants who can display a range of qualities, including leadership skills and initiative. One of the best ways graduates can show these skills is through volunteering. The knowledge and experiences graduates get out of volunteer work can transfer very well into the environment we strive to create for our new recruits.

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“Aside from specific skills, volunteer work can speak volumes for an applicant’s character. At Enterprise, we place a high value on becoming part of the communities we work in. This often takes the form of engaging with local charities and finding ways to benefit the community as a whole. If a graduate can show that they are similarly socially spirited, then that’s a big step towards matching up with the culture of Enterprise. “As a whole, volunteering can be evidence of a very rounded applicant. It can be a great experience for many, and the skills it provides graduates can be a great benefit to any company.”

Leigh Lafever-Ayer – Director of HR UK, Enterprise Rent a Car “Ward Hadaway receives about 500 applications from graduates wishing to join our training programme each year. We have ten posts and we need to differentiate candidates, most of whom come with glittering academic records. A history of volunteering and work undertaken in the voluntary sector is an important part of that differentiating process, for us it shows a willingness to "get stuck in", a concern about "place" and a willingness to "participate" about participation all of which are extremely important indicators of the sort of person we are looking to recruit at Ward Hadaway a trainee solicitor with a view to becoming the Partners of the future.”

Jamie Martin, Managing Partner, Ward Hadaway “At KPMG we see at first hand the advantages that volunteering brings to our graduate applicants. Our interviews are all competency based and that means we look for examples of how a student has demonstrated they posses the skills and abilities we look for. Whether it be team working, leadership or accountability there are few better ways of gaining the skills that employers need than via volunteering. Volunteering offers the ideal opportunity for a student to really stretch and challenge themselves. They can learn so much about themselves through volunteering and there is no doubt that employers like KPMG place great value on such experience in selecting their new graduate recruits. Once they join KPMG they will have the opportunity to continue their volunteering through our own community activities. Whether it be a new graduate hire or a Partner we believe everyone can benefit from volunteering and can give something back to their communities; for KPMG there can be no better win:win”

Keith Dugdale, Director of Recruitment and Resourcing, KPMG UK “Volunteering is a great way of using up your spare time whilst at university, as well as making a positive contribution to your local community. It can also be an essential stepping-stone to developing a career in the charity sector.

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A good example of the importance of volunteering is Harris Hill’s recent recruitment of two graduate fundraisers for a high profile children’s charity. The campaign generated over 1,000 completed applications, of which only 12 candidates were short listed to attend an interview. All of these candidates had volunteering experience. In addition to academic achievement, the key requirement was the applicants’ involvement in volunteering, not just as a participant, but also as an organiser and/or driver. Harris Hill would recommend that any candidate considering a career in a specific field such as fundraising or press and PR within the charity sector should secure voluntary experience within that targeted area. Any time spent volunteering demonstrates a real commitment to the sector, and charities are far more likely to employ a candidate with voluntary experience over one without. If you need another reason to start volunteering, many volunteers are given the opportunity to apply for paid appointments whilst they are volunteering within the organisation. So, what is there to stop you from securing a volunteering placement now?”

Managing Partner, Harris Hill Charity Recruitment Volunteering is viewed as very useful experience for potential candidates. In fact one of our Switched on to Volunteering Award winners this year got his job as a deputy store manager due to his volunteering experience with the Scouts. We do not have a specific graduate scheme but always look for a wide range of experience from potential candidates and volunteering is part of that.

Senior Recruiter, Dixons PLC “We believe that young people are creative and enterprising and make a unique contribution to society. We share the convictions of the Russell Commission and are looking forward to supporting its charity later this year with ideas that will hopefully inspire and motivate people to get involved with volunteering”

Spokesperson, MTV "It’s essential that applicants make links between what they have gained from their volunteering and what we are looking for"

Wendy Massey, Graduate Recruitment, John Lewis Group

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Policies and Government reports:

There have been several government reports which detail the need for more investment in skills development. Use these examples to highlight the need to invest in skills development. Dearing report: The Dearing report has stressed the UK education systems need to update itself, to fit the new social and economic climate. Once education embraces and invests in the needs of the society, the UK can move towards greater economic prosperity and social cohesion. “Recommendation 18: We recommend that all institutions should, over the medium term, identify opportunities to increase the extent to which programmes help students to become familiar with work, and help them reflect on such experience.” Leitch Review (Interim report) The Leitch review outlines the need for the UK to further develop the skills of the population to accommodate with the changing economic climate by 2020. The UK has a head start from its strong economy and world leading employment levels, but its productivity trails many comparator nations; poor skills are a key contributor to this problem as well as having wider impacts on social welfare. “70% of the 2020 workforce have already completed their compulsory education. There is a need to develop and expand Higher Education as this is critical to becoming a high skill economy. This would produce significant economic and social benefits that would results from higher productivity and employment.” Leitch Review, Interim report. The Leitch review has suggested that by 2020 more than 40% of UK jobs could be filled by graduates- but there is a need to counter risks from developing global markets and increase:

basic and generic skills advancement of technological change investment in intermediate skills the proportion of adults holding a degree

“The Leitch Review believes that the UK urgently need to raise its game and set itself a greater ambition to have a world-class skills base by 2020.”

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Russell Commission Report: The Russell Commission report, March 2005, outlines the three year strategy to engage 1 million youth volunteers in schemes to support and contribute to their communities. The Commission proposes measures to significantly improve the range and quality of activities for which young people can choose to volunteer. Once the national charity is established it will create a funding infrastructure of £150 million of Government and private sector money. “Recommendation 4: It should be commonplace for young people to volunteer whilst they are at school, college or Higher Education. All education institutions should have a volunteering ethos. Recommendation 11: The opportunity to improve skills and employability is a powerful incentive for young people to volunteer. It is important to mark the contribution made by young volunteers, and to recognise the skills they learn in the course of their activity.”

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Vision: Student Volunteering England wants to see the day when ALL students can develop communities and their skills through the power of student volunteering. Mission: We make it easier for students to change the world through voluntary action. We do this in 2 ways:

- Locally, by listening to, learning from and advising student volunteering groups, their practitioners and student leaders, we develop and update a hub of good practice information. This enables us to offer individual advice by email and phone, and provide opportunities for groups to network with others around the country to develop both their local, and our national expertise.

- Nationally, we use this good practice expertise to contribute to the formulation of national policies that affect the student volunteering sector. We use our national profile to celebrate and promote the achievements of student volunteers, and to support the national movement of student volunteering. We promote an ethos of student-led action, and campaign to ensure that those in power recognise the commitment, the community impact, the innovation and the sheer brilliance of student volunteers.

In other words, we connect local student volunteering practice to national student volunteering policy. Our Values

- Student Leadership… - Community-driven… - ‘Can do’… - Professional… - Inclusive… - Innovative…

Our Work includes: We support a nationwide network of student volunteers and workers. National Student Volunteering Week launched by Student Volunteering England in 2001, provides a chance to profile and celebrate the achievements of student volunteers. The week culminates with the National Student Volunteering conference. We are currently working on a Big Lottery Project which aims to increase participation in Further Education by transferring our expertise and best practice from Higher Education. Student Volunteering England’s ‘Gold Awards’ are a prestigious mark of individual excellence, awarded annually to outstanding student volunteers in the areas of Leadership, Dedication and Achievement.

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For more information contact:

Oxford Road Derbyshire Street London E2 6HG 0800 0182 146 info@studentvolunteering.org.ukwww.studentvolunteering.org.uk Researched and written by Swatee Deepak Many thanks to: All case study contributors, editors and everyone who gave us quotes and endorsing materials, without your help the publication would not have been possible. Special thanks to the team at Agenda Design for the design of the cover. This publication has been produced with the assistance of the Department for Education and Skills. Responsibility for the content rests, however, with the author, with the author and views expressed are those of the author and not the Department.