Links between volunteering and employability

This research has set out to investigate systematically the link between volunteering and employability. The focus of this research has been on whether voluntary activity can improve an individual's ability to gain, maintain or improve their employment. The main aims of the research are to: investigate the nature of the link between volunteering and employability (including access to training and education) and the mechanisms operating; and to establish whether there are circumstances in which unemployed people who volunteer increase their employability compared to similar people who do not volunteer. The report explores the characteristics of those who volunteer and those who do not; analyses the nature of the volunteering experience that survey participants have had; and investigates who benefits and how based on four analyses: by perceptions of individuals, by time taken to (re-)enter work, by work histories, and by statistical regression of the factors contributing to employment entry. This study has shown that volunteering experience, particularly if it contains certain features, is often perceived to have boosted employability. Half of all volunteers reported that their volunteering activity has had a positive impact on their chances of employment. However, only some statistical analyses suggest that this impact has fed through in the timescale available to this study into improved employment outcomes.

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