Scotland's People Annual Report: Results from 2011 Scottish Household Survey

12 Volunteering

Introduction and Context

The Scottish Government recognises that volunteers of all ages form a valuable national resource, vital to the success of Scotland, and that volunteering is a key component of strong communities. Volunteering is all about new experiences, feeling good and making a difference. Volunteering has a number of benefits, in terms of skills development, well-being, community empowerment and strengthening public services.

The definition of volunteering currently used by the Scottish Government is: 'the giving of time and energy through a third party, which can bring measurable benefits to the volunteer, individual beneficiaries, groups and organisations, communities, environment and society at large. It is a choice undertaken of one's own free will, and is not motivated primarily for financial gain or for a wage or salary'.^[89] This broadly encompasses 'formal volunteering' - where unpaid help is undertaken through a group, club, charity or other organization^[90], to help other people or to help a cause. In contrast, 'informal volunteering' refers to unpaid help given as an individual directly to people who are not relatives.

The volunteering questions in the Scottish Household Survey (SHS) ask about providing unpaid help to organisations or groups, therefore the focus of this chapter is on formal volunteering. This chapter presents findings about the prevalence and frequency of volunteering, the type of organisations and activities for which individuals give up their time, hours spent volunteering in the past month, and reasons why people who volunteered in the past have now given up. A number of terms are used interchangeably to refer to volunteering throughout the chapter (e.g. unpaid help, unpaid work, unpaid activity and voluntary work).

It should be noted that the main volunteering questions in the SHS are only asked of half the sample, whilst follow up questions, such as what might encourage people to volunteer in the future are asked of one quarter of the sample. As such, analyses on volunteering can be based on smaller sample sizes and be affected by wider confidence intervals.

Main Findings

• Levels of volunteering have remained relatively stable over the last five years, with around three in ten people providing unpaid help to organisations or groups.
• Levels of volunteering vary according to gender across all age groups. Overall, a slightly higher percentage of women (33%) than men (27%) volunteered in the last twelve months.
• Levels of volunteering vary by economic status, with a lower proportion of people from lower income households volunteering in the last twelve months compared with higher income groups.
• The type of organisations most commonly volunteered for are schools (23%), followed by other youth/children's organisations (19%), and health, disability and social welfare organisations (19%).
• Younger adults are more likely to volunteer with children/young people, and help with sporting activities, whilst older adults are more likely to volunteer with the elderly and for religious organisations.
• 57% of volunteers in Scotland volunteered for less than six hours in the previous four weeks.
• The most common reasons that people gave for stopping volunteering were due to changes in their circumstances, such as no longer having time (27%), changing job (12%), moving house (11%) or due to illness (10%).

Providing Unpaid Help to organisations or Individuals

Prevalence of volunteering

Table 12.1 shows that three-in-ten adults (30%) have provided unpaid help to organisations or groups in the last 12 months. There was a small difference by gender, with a slightly higher percentage of women (33%) saying that they volunteered compared with men (27%).

Table 12.1: Whether provided unpaid help to organisations or individuals in the last 12 months by gender

Column percentages, 2011 data

Adults	Male	Female	All
Yes	27	33	30
No	73	67	70
Total	100	100	100
Base	2,782	3,646	6,428

This question is only asked of half the sample

Figure 12.1 shows the trend in volunteering over the past five years. The overall rate of volunteering has remained relatively stable over the time period, at around three in ten adults. Between 2007 and 2011 the proportion of females volunteering has been consistently higher than males.

Figure 12.1: Percentage providing unpaid help to organisations or groups in the last 12 months by gender and year
2007 to 2011 data, Adults (2011 base: 6,428; minimum: 2,782)

This question is only asked of half the sample.

Figure 12.2 shows that the gender difference is true for most age groups. In 2011, the biggest difference between males and females was within the 35 to 44 age group, where a higher proportion of females (39%) volunteered than males (26%).

Figure 12.2: Percentage providing unpaid help to organisations or groups in the last 12 months by age within gender
2011 data, Adults (base: 6,428; minimum: 228)

This question is only asked of half the sample.

Rates of formal volunteering are lower among men aged 25 to 34 compared to all other age groups under 75, with less than one quarter (24%) of men aged 25 to 34 providing unpaid help. After the age of 74, the level of volunteering declines: 17% of men and 19% of women aged 75 and over provided unpaid help to organisations or groups in the last 12 months.

Table 12.2: Whether provided unpaid help to organisations or groups in the last 12 months by current economic situation

Column percentages, 2011 data

Adults	Self -employed	Full-time employ-ment	Part-time employ-ment	Looking after home / family	Perma-nently retired from work	Unem-ployed and seeking work	Higher / further education	Perma-nently sick or disabled	All
Yes	41	30	40	31	26	20	34	14	30
No	59	70	60	69	74	80	66	86	70
Total	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100
Base	353	2,015	663	333	2,077	288	229	334	6,428

This question is only asked of half the sample.

Additional categories suppressed from table due to low base totals.

There is also variation in volunteering according to individuals' current economic situation (Table 12.2). Those who are self-employed (41%) and those in part time employment (40%) are most likely to volunteer, followed by those in higher or further education (34%). Adults who are permanently sick or disabled (14%) are least likely to volunteer. One fifth (20%) of those unemployed and seeking work had volunteered in the previous 12 months.

Table 12.3 shows that the prevalence of volunteering is lower for those in the most deprived areas^[91] (19%) than in the rest of Scotland (32%).

Table 12.3: Whether provided unpaid help to organisations or groups in the last 12 months by Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation

Column percentages, 2011 data

Adults	15% most deprived	Rest of Scotland	Scotland
Yes	19	32	30
No	81	68	70
Total	100	100	100
Base	937	5,487	6,424

This question is only asked of half the sample.

In general, the percentage of adults volunteering increases with income (Table 12.4). Around 24% of all adults from lower income households (those earning less than £15,000) volunteered in the last 12 months, compared to 43% of those with a net household income of more than £40,000.

Overall, the results from 2011 looking at levels of volunteering by economic situation, area deprivation and household income support existing knowledge about the under-representation of disadvantaged groups in volunteering.

Table 12.4: Whether provided unpaid help to organisations or groups in the last 12 months by net annual household income

Column percentages, 2011 data

Adults	£0 - £6,000	£6,001 - £10,000	£10,001 - £15,000	£15,001 - £20,000	£20,001 - £25,000	£25,001 - £30,000	£30,001 - £40,000	£40,001+	All
Yes	23	25	24	26	30	34	32	43	30
No	77	75	76	74	70	66	68	57	70
Total	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100
Base	357	825	1,272	976	772	532	731	749	6,214

This question is only asked of half the sample.

Household income in the SHS is that of the highest income householder and their partner only. Includes all adults for whom household income is known or has been imputed. Excludes refusals/don't know responses.

Frequency of volunteering

As well as considering the prevalence of volunteering it is also useful to consider the frequency with which it takes place. Table 12.5 shows that 17% of those who provided unpaid help in the last month did so several times a week. Just under a quarter (24%) of volunteers provide unpaid help about once a week, whereas 23% provide it a few times a year.

There was some variation in the frequency of volunteering between men and women, with a higher proportion of males (20%) than females (15%) volunteering several times a week, and a higher proportion of females (18%) than males (13%) volunteering at least once a month (but less than once a week).

Table 12.5: Frequency of unpaid help to organisations or groups in the last 12 months by gender

Column percentages, 2011 data

Adults who volunteer	Male	Female	All
Several times a week	20	15	17
About once a week,	23	25	24
Less than once a week but at least once a month	13	18	16
Less than once a month, but a least five or six times a year	11	11	11
A few times a year	24	22	23
Less often,	7	9	8
No answer	1	0	1
All	100	100	100
Base	728	1,151	1,879

This question is only asked of half the sample.

Figure 12.3 shows how the frequency of volunteering varies by area level deprivation. Although the proportion of volunteers in the 15% most deprived areas is lower than the rest of Scotland, those who do volunteer in these areas do so more frequently than in the rest of Scotland (either several times a week or about once a week).

Figure 12.3: Frequency of unpaid help to organisations or groups in the last 12 months by Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation
2011 data, Adults who volunteer (base: 1,878; minimum: 180)

This question is only asked of half the sample.

Types of volunteering

Table 12.6 represents the types of groups or organisations that adults volunteered with in the last 12 months. The most common type was volunteering through schools (23%). This was followed by other youth and children's organisations and health, disability and social welfare organisations (both 19%) and religious organisations (18%).

There is some apparent variation in the types of organisations people volunteered for by area deprivation (Table 12.6), although given the relatively small sample size for the 15% most deprived areas, these differences could have occurred by chance. The largest difference was in the percentage volunteering for groups relating to health, disability and social welfare, which was higher in the most deprived areas (26%) compared to the rest of Scotland (18%).

Table 12.6: Types of organisations or groups for which adults provided help for in the last 12 months by Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation

Percentages, 2011 data

Adults who did voluntary work in the last 12 months	15% most deprived	Rest of Scotland	Scotland
Childrens activities associated with school	19	24	23
Youth / children	18	19	19
Health, disability and social welfare	26	18	19
Religion	17	18	18
Sport / exercise (coaching or organising)	12	15	15
Local community or neighbourhood groups	16	15	15
Hobbies / recreation / arts / social clubs	11	14	14
The elderly	13	11	11
The environment, animals	6	6	6
Education for adults	7	5	5
Safety, first aid	4	4	4
Citizens groups	5	3	3
Politics	2	1	2
Justice and human rights	3	2	2
Trade union activities	3	2	2
None of these	5	4	4
Base	183	1,723	1,906

Columns may add to more than 100% since multiple responses were allowed.

This question is only asked of half the sample.

Table 12.7 shows that volunteering with schools was most common among adults aged 35 to 44 (41%). Adults aged 16 to 24 were most likely to have volunteered with other organisations working with young people or children (24%). Volunteering through sport also showed some differences by age, with 22% of adults aged 16 to 24 volunteering in sports compared to, at most, 16% across the other age groups. In contrast, volunteering for religious organisations and organisations dealing with elderly people tended to increase as adults get older. Close to half (46%) of those adults aged 75 and over who volunteered did so with religious organisations.

Table 12.7: Types of organisations or groups for which adults provided help for in the last 12 months by age

Percentages, 2011 data

Adults who did voluntary work in the last 12 months	16 to 24	25 to 34	35 to 44	45 to 59	60 to 74	75 plus	All
Children's activities associated with school	21	31	41	23	9	3	23
Youth / children	24	26	25	20	9	4	19
Health, disability and social welfare	15	20	15	20	22	20	19
Religion	10	10	11	17	28	46	18
Sport / exercise (coaching or organising)	22	16	15	13	12	7	15
Local community or neighbourhood groups	9	12	14	14	24	12	15
Hobbies / recreation / arts / social clubs	18	14	13	14	11	10	14
The elderly	7	8	8	12	18	14	11
The environment, animals	9	5	7	6	4	3	6
Education for adults	5	9	2	5	4	5	5
Safety, first aid	8	5	3	3	1	2	4
Citizens groups	1	1	3	3	5	4	3
Politics	1	2	1	1	3	0	2
Justice and human rights	4	1	3	2	2	3	2
Trade union activities	.	2	3	3	1	1	2
None of these	6	4	4	4	4	5	4
Base	154	268	341	508	484	152	1,907

Columns may add to more than 100% since multiple responses were allowed.

This question is only asked of half the sample.

Table 12.8 shows the type of unpaid help or activities that respondents undertook on behalf of the group or organisation they gave most help to in the last 12 months. The most common activity was 'generally helping out', with 44% of adults who volunteered doing this. In terms of more specific roles, one third (33%) of adults helped to raise money, whilst 29% helped to organise or run events or activities, and 28% said they did 'whatever is required'.

There are some differences in the types of activities that adults from the 15% most deprived areas of Scotland have undertaken compared to adults in the rest of Scotland (although due to small base sizes for the 15% most deprived areas, these could have occurred by chance). The biggest differences were in 'committee work' (11% in the most deprived areas compared with 19% in the rest of Scotland), 'helping to organise events' (22% in the most deprived areas compared with 29% in the rest of Scotland) and 'representing others' (10% in the most deprived areas compared with 4% from the rest of Scotland).

Table 12.8: Types of unpaid activity adults have undertaken in the last 12 months by Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation

Percentages, 2011 data

Adults who did voluntary work in the last 12 months	15% most deprived	Rest of Scotland	Scotland
Generally helping out	41	44	44
Raising money	31	33	33
Helping to organise or run events or activities	22	29	29
Doing whatever is required	23	28	28
Committee work	11	19	19
Education or training or coaching	15	17	17
Providing advice or assistance to others	13	15	15
Office work or administration	7	12	11
Visiting, buddying or befriending people	9	7	7
Providing transport or driving	5	7	7
Managing, organising or co-ordinating other unpaid helpers	6	7	7
Providing direct services (e.g. meals on wheels, doing odd jobs)	7	6	6
Campaigning	4	5	5
Representing others	10	4	4
Counselling	4	3	3
IT Support	3	3	3
Advocacy	2	2	2
None	7	1	2
Base	180	1,695	1,875

Columns may add to more than 100% since multiple responses were allowed.

This question is only asked of half the sample.

Time spent volunteering

Respondents who had volunteered in the last 12 months were asked the number of hours that they had done so in the last four weeks. Table 12.9 shows that almost three quarters (74%) of volunteers in Scotland spent 10 hours or less volunteering in the last four weeks, and the majority of these (55% of volunteers) did so for between one and five hours. A lower proportion (13%) of those in the most deprived areas spent between 6 and 10 hours volunteering, compared to 18% in the rest of Scotland; while a higher proportion (11%) in the most deprived areas spent between 16 and 20 hours volunteering, compared to 6% in the rest of Scotland.

Table 12.9: Total number of hours of unpaid work provided in the last four weeks by Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation

Column percentages, 2011 data

Adults who did voluntary work in the last 12 months	15% most deprived	Rest of Scotland	Scotland
Less than an hour	3	2	2
Between 1 and 5 hours	56	55	55
6 to 10 hours	13	18	17
11 to 15 hours	8	7	7
16 to 20 hours	11	6	7
21 to 35 hours	4	5	5
36 hours or more	6	6	6
Don't know	-	0	0
Total	100	100	100
Base	180	1,695	1,875

This question is only asked of half the sample.

Reasons for Stopping Volunteering

Table 12.10 shows that of those respondents who said they had not given unpaid help to clubs or organisations in the last 12 months, 27% said they had nonetheless done so previously. This figure has remained fairly constant in recent years, ranging between 25% and 29% of respondents since 2007.

Table 12.10: Reasons why adults stopped providing unpaid help by gender

Column percentages, 2011 data

Reasons for stopping unpaid help	Male	Female	All
I didn't have the time any longer	29	26	27
My circumstances changed	17	17	17
Changed job/started work/job got busier	11	12	12
I moved house	9	12	11
Through illness	9	11	10
I had children	5	7	6
I had new caring responsibilities	3	4	4
I got bored or lost interest	5	2	3
I had achieved what I wanted to achieve	3	3	3
Things could have been better organised	2	1	2
I wanted a change	2	2	2
I didn't feel appreciated	2	1	2
It was costing me money	1	0	0
Other reasons	27	24	26
Base	435	612	1,047

This question is only asked of a quarter of the sample.

Table 12.11 shows that the most common reasons people gave for stopping volunteering were because of changes to their life circumstances, for example because they no longer had the time (27%), their circumstances had changed (17%), they had changed job (12%), they moved house (11%) or due to illness (10%). There was little indication that people stopped volunteering due to anything the organisation they had volunteered for had done, or had failed to do: for example, 2% said they had felt unappreciated and 2% felt things could have been better organised.

Generally, there is not much difference between men's and women's reasons for stopping volunteering. Men were slightly more likely than women to say they did not have the time any longer (29% compared to 26%) or that they got bored or lost interest (5% compared to 2%). Women were slightly more likely than men to say they had moved house (12% compared to 9%), stopped through illness (11% compared to 9%) or had children (7% compared to 5%).

Table 12.11: Reasons why adults stopped providing unpaid help by gender

Column percentages, 2011 data

Reasons for stopping unpaid help	Male	Female	All
I didn't have the time any longer	29	26	27
My circumstances changed	17	17	17
Changed job/started work/job got busier	11	12	12
I moved house	9	12	11
Through illness	9	11	10
I had children	5	7	6
I had new caring responsibilities	3	4	4
I got bored or lost interest	5	2	3
I had achieved what I wanted to achieve	3	3	3
Things could have been better organised	2	1	2
I wanted a change	2	2	2
I didn't feel appreciated	2	1	2
It was costing me money	1	0	0
Other reasons	27	24	26
Base	435	612	1,047

This question is only asked of a quarter of the sample.

Correspondingly, when asked what might encourage them to volunteer again in the future, the most common response (as outlined in Table 12.12) was 'if it fitted in with my other commitments' (14%). This suggests that people are most likely to opt in or out of volunteering according to how much time they have to give to it, and the fit with other commitments in their life at the time. However, 8% of respondents said they might be encouraged to volunteer again in the future 'if it fitted with my interests and skills', suggesting there may be potential to tailor more volunteering opportunities to the interests and skills individuals feel they have to offer.

There was little difference in the reasons that men and women gave for potentially starting to volunteer again in the future. Females were slightly more likely to say they would volunteer in the future if it fitted in with other commitments (16% compared to 13%), while men were slightly more likely to say if it fitted in with their interests and skills (9% compared to 7%).

Table 12.12: Reasons why adults may undertake unpaid help in the future by gender

Column percentages, 2011 data

Reasons for undertaking unpaid work in the future	Male	Female	All
If it fitted in with my other commitments	13	16	14
If it fitted in with my interests and skills	9	7	8
If I thought I could help others	4	4	4
If someone asked me to do something	4	4	4
If I could volunteer when I felt like it	4	4	4
If it would improve my career/job prospects	4	3	3
If it was good fun	3	2	3
If I knew more about the opportunities available	2	2	2
If it would improve my skills	2	2	2
If it helped me gain qualifications	2	2	2
If I was certain that it wouldn't effect my benefits	1	1	1
If I was sure I wouldn't be out of pocket	1	0	1
If someone I knew volunteered with me	1	2	1
If there were more people like me volunteering	1	1	1
If I had more confidence	1	1	1
Other (specify)	25	27	26
No others	22	22	22
Don't Know	23	17	20
Base	1,677	2,065	3,742

This question is only asked of a quarter of the sample.