The Volunteering Support Fund 2021-2024, worth approximately £1.1million per annum, supports 113 funded projects.
Purpose of Fund
The purpose of the fund is to enable Scotland’s small to medium-sized third sector organisations to recruit additional volunteers who will contribute towards delivering a new volunteering project, or extending/expanding an existing one, and improve how volunteers are supported in their role. A list of funded projects can be found here.
Impact Funding Partners manages this fund on behalf of the Scottish Government and provides fund management including providing development support and creating opportunities for organisations to come together to share, learn, collaborate and network through participation at themed cluster groups. The groups provide a platform for funded projects to work on volunteer related issues such as recruitment and retention of volunteers and measuring the impact of volunteering.
Outcomes of Funding
Funded projects contribute towards the following four outcomes:
Increase diversity
Increasing the diversity of the third sector’s volunteer pool, especially to include people who experience disadvantage or would traditionally experience barriers to volunteering;
Create opportunities
Improving opportunities for skills and personal development through volunteering;
Volunteer Support
Improving the third sector’s capacity to support, train and deploy volunteers;
Service Development
Enhancing the services organisations deliver to better meet the needs of the communities they serve.
Year 1 - 6 volunteers
3 who experience disadvantages or would traditionally experience barriers to volunteering
Year 2 - 15 volunteers
10 who experience disadvantages or would traditionally experience barriers to volunteering
Year 3 - 15 volunteers
10 who experience disadvantages or would traditionally experience barriers to volunteering
Priority groups for this fund include:
- People on low incomes
- People with mental health conditions
- People who are physically disabled
- People with additional support needs
- People with long-term medical conditions
- Carers
- People affected by abuse
- Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or intersex people
- People with convictions or an offending background
- Young people at risk of offending
- People affected by homelessness
- People from minority ethnic backgrounds
- People with other disadvantages not listed here
Hear Their Stories…
Some of the important and valuable work organisations from across Scotland funded through the Volunteering Support Fund carry out each and everyday.
Denis Law Legacy Trust (Streetsport)
“Volunteering with Denis Law Legacy Trust is fun and it has given me so many different opportunities to meet new people and make a difference to various local communities.”
Read more here about CH and the impact volunteering has had on her.
View Case StudyKidz Eco
‘Z’ was shy and not very confident when he started volunteering with the team at Kidz Eco at the start of January 2023.
Read the case study below to find out how volunteering helped him in less than a year!
View Case StudyHome Start Edinburgh
Home Start Edinburgh adapted the way they were recruiting and supporting their volunteers. Have a read of the Case Study here.
View Case StudyVolunteering Support Blogs
The Learning Tree Partnership
The Learning Tree Partnership recently shared the positive impact of having an inclusive interview panel made up of volunteers with lived and living experience of disability. Click to read more…
View Case Study
