1. Managing Volunteers at Dogs Trust
Adam Marsh – Volunteering Development Manager

2. Volunteer Journey

3. Volunteer recruitment
Assessment of need
What is the role?
How many opportunities do you have?
Do we need specific shifts covered?
Flexibility?
What are you looking for?
Do we have capacity?
Manage expectations
Recruitment
Role Descriptions
Local opportunities for advertising?
Flyers / Posters / Social media
Word of Mouth
Think about the wider community
Church halls
Social clubs
Local supermarkets
Manage expectations
Volunteer motivations

4. Governance Volunteer handbook
Support and guidance for volunteer supervisors
Role Descriptions
Essential Documents

5. Management of volunteers
Signed volunteer agreement & diligent recruitment
Clear communication
Manage their expectations
Reinforce the organisations “mission”
The most effective volunteers are often those that know what is expected of them and where they fit in to the organisation.
Offer time & support
Reinforce boundaries / expectations (both ways)

6. What to expect from your volunteers
A regular commitment
A thorough understanding of the organisations mission and values
To be on time and act appropriate to the situation and volunteering role
Be respectful at all times and be mindful of the organisations reputation
Excellent communication skills
Flexible & adaptable

7. Training, Support and Development
Expectations Managed
Additional Support Needs
Essential elements of the role
H&S
Skill specific training
Where our volunteers fit in
Ongoing
Interesting opportunities
Crossover with the other areas?
Support & development
Build relationships
To identify concerns or problems
Maintain boundaries
Manage expectations
Offer your time
Ask questions
Care and Nurture
Identify Training needs

8. What if things go wrong? Remember - it’s OK if things don’t work out!
Identify what the problem is and why it may have occurred
Training needs?
Personality clash?
Unable to perform duties associated with the role.
What can we do?
Could we have done anything differently?
Where can we go from here?
Withdrawal of the offer of a voluntary role

9. Volunteers & Dogs Trust
Volunteers across all areas of the organisation but loosely grouped into the following areas:
Rehoming Centre / Retail / Dog School / London Office
Other areas of opportunities including Corporate groups, Admin support, events etc.
3500 Active volunteers but this is likely to be higher if we include events and one off supporters.
In ,778 hours were logged across 23 different volunteering roles.
A contribution of 5,490 days or, the equivalent of 15 years!
Within Rehoming centres we have volunteers who carry out vital support tasks such as; Canine Care assistant support, admin, maintenance etc. and we also have the HFH scheme which does…
Volunteers are incredibly important to us, and without our volunteers (across all areas) we wouldn’t be able to help as many dogs as we do. Our rehoming centre volunteers provide valuable support by carrying out tasks at the centre that enable our canine carers to invest more time with the dogs who are finding kennel life difficult, or need additional training etc.
Our RHC volunteers clean out kennels, socialise the dogs and take as many dogs as they can for walks!
Retail volunteers work across our network of 33 charity shops and our tea rooms located at the Harefield rehoming centre fulfilling various roles; sorting, sales, stock checks pricing etc.
Dog School volunteers help to organise the sessions and ensure they run smoothly, meet & greet roles etc.
Other areas including corporate groups that will visit centres for their fun filled team away days, fulfilling vital roles on allocated days through out the year.
3500 volunteers based on registered volunteers within the system, but estimations for total volunteer workforce have been up nearer 5 ½ to 6k.
The 131,778 equates to almost £1.2 million of monetary value to the organisation based on basic CC hourly wage.