The volunteer landscape has seen significant changes over the last few years, with volunteers increasingly being viewed as the solution to address vital issues such as workforce capacity within health and care settings. Nationally the Vision for Volunteering recognises these fundamental changes and the need to put the volunteers (rather than what they can do for us), at the centre of our policy decisions to tackle long-standing inequalities.
As volunteer management professionals, we are committed to high quality and inclusive volunteering. These volunteer principles articulate our agreed, shared standards and ways of working for the benefit of volunteers, staff, our partners, and our communities. They aim to bring a shared approach and clear framework for all the volunteering across our Partnership ensuring all our volunteers are supported, safe and have meaningful, appropriate volunteering roles, alongside giving us all confidence that volunteering is accessible, inclusive and delivered to high standards across West Yorkshire.
The principles form the basis of any future strategic decision making and developments in relation to volunteer programmes across the West Yorkshire Health and Care Partnership.
Our volunteer principles have been shaped by the West Yorkshire Integrated Volunteering Approaches (IVA) Group. The IVA Group supports collaborative working that will embed, value, and raise the profile of volunteering across all partners working in health and care. New members working in volunteering are welcome to join this group if their organisation share our volunteer principles.
If you would like further information or to sign up to our volunteer principles, please email us on wyicb-wak.strategyandtransformation@nhs.net.
