What’s Happening in the Third Sector?

Young People in Scotland Survey 2022

Volunteer Scotland have completed their fourth annual research project into young people. The research investigates their engagement with volunteering, which is based on data from Ipsos’ omnibus survey of secondary school pupils across Scotland.

Key Data

Between 2019 – 2022 there appeared to be a decline in volunteering activity. The results showed that:

  • Formal volunteering fell by 12 percentage points from 49% to 37%.
  • Informal volunteering fell by 7 percentage points from 25% to 18%.

These results may be indicative of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Ukraine war, and the cost of living crisis on young people’s health and well-being. Other contributory factors may include:

  • Volunteering tasks being less suited to young people during crises.
  • COVID-19 and the cost of living crisis restricting the spaces in which formal youth volunteering takes place.
  • The closure of schools during COVID-19 which removed the positive influence of teachers in supporting young people’s participation in volunteering.
Demographic Impacts
  • Age: The formal volunteering participation rate for young people aged 17-18 was 68%, much higher than those aged 11-16.
  • Gender: Girls and boys were equally likely to volunteer, both formally and informally, in 2022.
  • Deprivation: Young people living in the 20% most deprived areas of Scotland were less likely to volunteer formally than those in less deprived areas.
  • Long-term Health Conditions (LHCs): Young people with LHCs had higher volunteering participation rates compared to those without LHCs.
  • Faith groups: volunteering by young people of Christian faith has declined very significantly.

Download the full report here.

Sport England: What ‘Recover and Reinvent’ Means for Volunteering

To mark Volunteer’s Week, Jenny Betteridge (Sport England, Strategic Lead Volunteering) has analysed data from the latest studies across the sector to highlight the challenges and opportunities for those who give up their time to help others.

Take a look at the full report here.

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