There's never been a more crucial time to lend a hand and make a change. The Big Help Out is back, and it's gearing up to be bigger and better than ever before. Here's why your organisation should get involved this year.
The Big Help Out is a nationwide campaign to showcase the benefits of volunteering and get more people giving back to their communities. The campaign will take place from 7–9 June, offering individuals the chance to sample volunteering and explore the range of ways they can contribute to their communities.
Using The Big Help Out app and website, voluntary organisations can showcase a variety of opportunities – from one-off events to micro-volunteering projects and informative 'taster' sessions aimed at fostering long-term engagement. It’s not just about getting people to volunteer for a day, it’s about inspiring a new generation of people to get involved in volunteering!
While millions answered the call to volunteer during the pandemic, we’ve seen a concerning decline in volunteering numbers since.
We also know from our Time Well Spent research that satisfaction among volunteers has fallen in recent years. Volunteering rates are disproportionately lower in areas of higher deprivation, and volunteers from underrepresented communities are more likely to feel even less satisfied, more excluded, and less likely to continue compared to volunteers overall.
Alongside Volunteers’ Week, The Big Help Out hopes to reverse these trends. Backed by a high-profile media campaign and a one-stop-shop digital platform, the initiative aims to connect more volunteers with meaningful opportunities, and promote volunteering in underserved communities, engaging schools and workplaces to inspire a new generation of volunteers.
So, why should your organisation lend its support? Last year The Big Help Out reached over 100 million people through social media and generated over 37,000 press articles, as well as securing a number of primetime television features. A third of Brits heard about The Big Help Out and 70% of the seven million people who took part said they were more likely to volunteer again in the future.
In addition, 80% of those signing up told us they had no prior relationship with the charity or group offering the opportunity they selected, while 40% had done no other volunteering in the past year. And a third said they went back to volunteer again with the same organisation after their initial activity.
With this year’s campaign taking place during Volunteers’ Week, we hope to build on the success of last year. It allows organisations to build a bridge between any celebration and recognition activities they’re already planning for Volunteers’ Week, with their wider recruitment ambitions.
The campaign also offers voluntary organisations a new audience, and gives us the opportunity to create a positive experience for those involved so they’re inspired to continue volunteering.
If we’ve inspired you to take part in the campaign, here are some simple steps your organisation can take to create great volunteering opportunities.
Join the campaign and be part of the movement to inspire a new generation of volunteers.
