Volunteer Voices – our research
Volunteering plays a vital role in extending the reach of our services, helping blind and partially sighted people to build the skills, confidence and independence to live the life they choose.
"Volunteering has challenged me, built my confidence and brought me fulfilment and new friendships - as well as offering me opportunities I may not have otherwise got to experience."
Because of this, it’s essential that we truly understand what it’s like to volunteer with RNIB. We want to know how volunteers feel about their experience, what’s working well, and where we can do better. To help us do this, our Volunteering team carries out regular surveys at key stages of the volunteer journey.
Volunteer feedback is crucial to shape our future work. It helps us ensure the volunteering experience at RNIB, for both current and future volunteers, is a positive one. This page shares the key findings from our volunteer surveys and highlights what we’ve learned so far.
A huge thank you to everyone who has taken the time to complete our volunteer surveys and share their honest feedback. Your voices really matter, and your insights are invaluable in helping us create a positive, supportive volunteering experience at RNIB.
Upcoming research
Our next volunteer survey will go live in summer 2026.
Volunteering experience: key stats
- 91% of respondents feel like they are making a difference in the lives of others by volunteering with RNIB.
- 85% of respondents would recommend volunteering with RNIB to others.
- 84% of respondents are extremely satisfied or satisfied in their volunteering role(s).
- 80% of respondents agree that RNIB is a great organisation to volunteer with.
- 80% of respondents feel supported in their volunteering role.
- 72% of respondents agree that their volunteer manager provides a good volunteering experience.
- 67% of respondents have learnt or developed new skills through volunteering with RNIB.
- The average overall volunteering score is 8.3 out of 10, with 75% of respondents rating their experience as 8 or higher.
Volunteering insight activities and reports
We carry out regular surveys to understand the experience of volunteering with RNIB.
- Volunteer Survey Report - Winter 2026 (Word)
- Volunteer Summer Check-in Survey 2025 Report (Word)
- Volunteer Winter 2025 Check-in Survey Report (Word)
- Volunteer Summer Survey 2024 Report (Word)
- Volunteering Winter Survey 2024 Report (Word)
- Festival of Volunteering 2023 Evaluation Summary (Word)
- 2023 Volunteer Summer Survey Report (Word)
- 2022 Annual Volunteer Survey Report (Word)
- July 2022 Pulse Survey Report (Word)
- April 2022 Pulse Survey Report (Word)
- February 2022 Pulse Survey Report (Word)
For more information or to become a volunteer email us on [email protected].
“Volunteering with Rnib is very important to me as I can use my existing skills to help others. I believe in giving people confidence and empowering them and I can do this through my volunteer work with Rnib.”
