A lifelong commitment to volunteering: Read Olive's story

Supporting volunteers: a personal perspective

“I have been a volunteer all my life, I started at 17 at school where you were encouraged to do volunteering, I became a leader within the Girl Guiding association.

I have the experience from both being a volunteer and working with volunteers. My first job was a volunteer co-ordinator, I was managing, supporting and recruiting between 45-50 volunteers. I then moved into community services, and I needed to get a volunteer team together to support with that. At that stage my volunteers were supporting the service and doing sighted guiding too.

I manage 3 roles, sighted volunteers who help with sighted guiding and with confidence building programmes, supporting people using public transport, meeting peers trying to normalise things again; they are fantastic. I manage blind and partially sighted volunteers to help with delivering Understanding Sight Loss to organisations, they also deliver awareness raising talks about their sight loss journey and look after information stands and events, I have around 20 volunteers at present.”

Getting to know your volunteers

Olive discusses the importance of volunteer managers being engaged from the very beginning of the journey. “When someone comes to me to volunteer I always sit down with a coffee and find out about them and their interests. I explain about the role and give them the details of what they will be doing. There have been occasions where they realise it’s not right for them after explaining in more detail. It’s important to not be afraid to say that and get a good and right match from the start. It is more personal to sit down with someone and take notice of them and have that personal approach.”

Building relationships and communication

Olive values good communication with her volunteers and feels this is what builds good relationships. “Communication is very important with volunteers and letting them know where they stand. Once a year I try to get my team together to do training or an information day together, it’s hard to have conversations when we are out supporting so we also have one social event a year. Throughout the year I do one-to-ones over coffee and set time aside to meet and see how they are and check-in and ask ‘are you happy with everything you are doing, is there anything we need to change? Are you ok with the role?’ When they have been out supporting with me that day or if they are out and I am not present they always link in with me, did they get home safely? How did it go? I always give them a message to say thank you. Time does need to be set aside, it is hard work. It is a highlight to me that a lot of the volunteers I manage have been with me a long time and we have good steady relationships. Some good friendships have been made among my volunteers too.”

Understanding the impact of supporting volunteers

“Personally as a volunteer I know what I need, the right support and recognition and how thank you is so important and also having good relationships. The enjoyment you have, you feel you are making a difference and you are getting something out of it too.”

Thank you, Olive, for highlighting the importance of support, recognition, and genuine appreciation in volunteering. And for your reflection that when volunteers feel valued and connected, not only do they make a meaningful difference, but they also find fulfilment in their contributions.