Who works in the voluntary sector?
By gender
- The voluntary sector has the highest proportion of women in the workforce (67%), closely followed by the public sector (64%). The private sector has more men than women working in the sector (58%).
- Over time, there has been a slight fluctuation in proportion of men and women in comparison to the other sectors over the last 10 years, although the percentage ratio has remained stable since 2018.
Women make up two thirds of the voluntary sector workforce
By age
- The voluntary sector has the oldest workforce compared to the public and private sectors, with one in four (25%) of staff being over 55.
- Both the voluntary sector (6%) and the public sector (6%) have half as many people under the age of 25 (13%) than the private sector. This could potentially be due to lack of formal entry schemes in the sector in comparison to the private sector or even public sector – see spotlight below. There is a smaller proportion of people under 25 in the voluntary sector than there was in 2011, with an overall 15% decrease.
- About 9 in 10 people (89%) are aged between 25-64 in the voluntary sector. This is similar to the public sector (91%) but higher than in the private sector (83%).
The voluntary sector has half as many people under the age of 25 as the private sector
By ethnicity
- Since 2012, ethnic diversity has been less ethnically diverse than both the public and private sector. There has been a 2% decrease in the percentage of white people in the voluntary sector since 2012, falling from 92% to 90% white workforce in 2021, compared to 10% BAME in the same year. This is a lower decrease than both the public (4%) and private sector (3%).
- Of the 10% BAME employees in the voluntary sector, there are a similar amount of Asian (4%) and Black (3%) employees. This is a lower decrease than both over the past decade
There is less ethnic diversity in the voluntary sector workforce than both the public and private sector
By disability status
- Since 2016, the voluntary sector has had a higher proportion of disabled people in its workforce than both the public and private sectors.[1]
- The voluntary sector has had a 21% increase (19% to 23%) in the proportion of disabled people in its workforce since 2016.
- From January 2020 to January 2021, there has not been a significant increase in disabled people in the voluntary or public sector.
- The higher proportion of disabled people in the voluntary sector workforce could be influenced by more people declaring their status over time and practices within the sector such as an increase in flexible working arrangements.
The amount of disabled people is growing, with just over 1 in 5 (23%) people identifying as disabled in the voluntary sector
More data and research
- Download more Almanac data
- Read NCVO’s analysis on employment skills gap in the voluntary sector
- Have a look at a report on the pay conditions in the sector carried out by NCVO and other partners, including the Cardiff Business School
- Read our analysis on the number of EU nationals working in the voluntary sector
Links and resources
- Human resources and employment law overview
- Employing people essentials
- Recruitment and starting employment
- Equality, diversity and inclusion
- Get discounts on HR support packages through Roots HR.
Footnotes
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Respondents are regarded either as disabled according to the Disability
Discrimination Act, or as having a work-limiting disability. Please see this Office for National Statistics brief on measuring disability in the workforce for more information