We are excited to share our new West Yorkshire Integrated Volunteering Strategy and supporting delivery plans.
The strategy sets out our shared priorities for the next two years (April 2025 to April 2027), the deliverables we believe are better done together on a West Yorkshire footprint across our health and care system. It doesn't aim to capture all the great work we know is happening across West Yorkshire, or the many ambitions and priorities of different parts of the system. It does aim to complement existing volunteering programmes and activities in different organisations and sectors, building on this, identifying and sharing good practice and innovation, and maximising opportunities for collaboration.
Building on our West Yorkshire Volunteering Principles, through developing an Integrated Volunteering Strategy for West Yorkshire, we aim to strengthen collaboration across organisations, enabling easier movement of volunteers, and improving volunteer experience, opportunities, access, inclusion and support.
Our strategy will be supported by the underlying delivery plans which are focused on the three key themes: access and inclusion, value and recognition and volunteer experience.
The work on developing this strategy has been led by the West Yorkshire Integrated Volunteering Approaches Group which comprises of volunteer managers from across our system, including NHS Hospital Trusts, Yorkshire Ambulance Service (YAS), the Voluntary Community and Social Enterprise (VCSE) sector and Hospices. There has also been input from the West Yorkshire Combined Authority and local authorities.
If you would like to get involved, please email us on wyicb-wak.strategyandtransformation@nhs.net.
Volunteering is more accessible to a wider, more diverse population group.
Across the system, there are known barriers that volunteers experience when accessing volunteering opportunities which risks widening the inequalities gap.
Develop flexible routes into volunteering for those experiencing the greatest barriers and health inequalities
Identify existing evidence-based good practice and scale across the system
Produce a shared diversity data set
Volunteers will report a better experience in accessing volunteering
Increased diversity of volunteers which reflect our communities
People will experience better care by connecting with volunteers they relate to
Complete a mapping exercise of diversity data collected across the system.
Develop a framework to establish a constant approach to core diversity data collection in West Yorkshire.
Map what pre-volunteering support is available.
Collect and promote volunteer stories.
Develop West Yorkshire webpage linking to volunteer organisations and opportunities.
Harness the diversity data collected to identify targeted groups for developing supported pathways into volunteering.
Expand the pre-volunteering support available across West Yorkshire, building on existing good practice.
Expand advertising of volunteering opportunities through alternative non-digital methods.
Develop an evidence base of current investment and costs for volunteering across the system
Collaborate to bring additional investment into the system
Build a network of volunteering advocates
Deliver a system response to challenges faced by the volunteering community
Future volunteer-related decision making is informed by evidence and influenced by advocates
Launch and raise the profile of the new West Yorkshire Integrated Volunteering Strategy.
Complete a West Yorkshire-wide data collection exercise to demonstrate costs and value of volunteering.
Recruit volunteer champions.
Support volunteer leaders to access professional development opportunities.
Share existing resources, and develop new resources and toolkits to strengthen volunteering across West Yorkshire.
Establish a volunteer network including volunteering leaders and champions to promote volunteering.
Expand volunteer leaders’ training and development opportunities to all organisations signed up to the West Yorkshire Volunteering Principles.
Develop activity with volunteers to accurately understand current volunteer experience across the system
Review, expand and embed the West Yorkshire volunteering principles
Share good practice and identify opportunities for collaboration that can be utilised by all organisations
Volunteers will report a positive and rewarding experience
Volunteers experience positive personal outcomes and achieve their personal goals
The West Yorkshire volunteering principles will be widely embedded
Good practice will be adapted and shared across the system
Expand adoption of the volunteering principles to more organisations across West Yorkshire.
Explore what portability models are available and compare to understand the commonalities, differences, and challenges.
Organise a networking event for volunteer organisations to share learning and opportunities for collaboration.
Explore opportunities for volunteer mentors to support development and progression.
Develop ways to support volunteers to easily move between organisations, acknowledging previous training and experience.
Generate a volunteer experience survey to gather intelligence from local organisations, acknowledging existing data collection methods.
Utilise the volunteer network to share good practice and identify opportunities for collaboration including shared training sessions.
Communications
Investment opportunities
Data intelligence
Digital
"As the Healthwatch Volunteer Officer, I have reviewed the proposed strategy and fully support its well-structured and collaborative approach to addressing the volunteering needs in West Yorkshire. The concise, one-page format is particularly effective in conveying the key points clearly, and the context provided by colleagues has been invaluable." - HealthWatch Wakefield
"As the Healthwatch Volunteer Officer, I have reviewed the proposed strategy and fully support its well-structured and collaborative approach to addressing the volunteering needs in West Yorkshire. The concise, one-page format is particularly effective in conveying the key points clearly, and the context provided by colleagues has been invaluable."
- HealthWatch Wakefield
"It would be good to have a joint approach with other organisations to make volunteering more accessible to all and improve volunteer experience" - Leeds Mind
"It would be good to have a joint approach with other organisations to make volunteering more accessible to all and improve volunteer experience"
- Leeds Mind
"We wish to be an active partner in this strategy. As an NHS Trust and Yorkshire-wide organisation, we would like to work with partners to increase diversity in volunteering, to provide fulfilling opportunities to volunteer, and to ensure that the value of volunteering is better understood." - Yorkshire Ambulance Service
"We wish to be an active partner in this strategy. As an NHS Trust and Yorkshire-wide organisation, we would like to work with partners to increase diversity in volunteering, to provide fulfilling opportunities to volunteer, and to ensure that the value of volunteering is better understood."
- Yorkshire Ambulance Service
"The three themes of access/inclusion, value/recognition and experience are all equally important and relevant and relate to current volunteering challenges and experiences" - Kirklees Council
"The three themes of access/inclusion, value/recognition and experience are all equally important and relevant and relate to current volunteering challenges and experiences"
- Kirklees Council
"It aligns with the work we have been doing" - Leeds Teaching Hospitals Trust
"It aligns with the work we have been doing"
- Leeds Teaching Hospitals Trust
"Love the simplicity of a one-page strategy." - West Yorkshire ICB Work and Health Board
"Love the simplicity of a one-page strategy."
- West Yorkshire ICB Work and Health Board
