Network Members General networking discussion

17 December 2024

Recruitment

The main conversation during this session was about the difficulties sometimes faced when recruiting a volunteer who has not lived in the UK for 5 years or more. The process can often take so long that the candidate loses interest and pulls out.

There were concerns that some may be misguided into paying for documentation that is not valid. Guidance is not always clear what the document should look like making it difficult to verify that the documents presented are genuine.

For the person applying, volunteering is often used as a steppingstone for them to enter the workforce. They are often skilled clinicians and will use volunteering as a way to keep up their skills while waiting for the appropriate paperwork.

The group discussed the issues they were facing and although there were not any clear-cut answers there were some helpful tips shared.

Here are some links that you may also find useful.

• NHS employers Identity Checks Standard

• Volunteer recruitment for asylum seekers and refugees.docx

• https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/sn01403/

• DBS Waiver Form

• DBS Exemption risk assessment

DBS checks

Another issue that some were facing was having applications for DBS checks pushed back from an internal department, mostly querying the type of check that had been requested - basic, standard or enhanced.

Again, some useful tips were shared.

• Have a note on the system somewhere that clarifies the DBS level required for specific volunteer roles.

• If volunteers are completing their own forms make sure that they all use the same wording for their role description.

• Set up a standard reply to DBS queries. It may not solve the problem, but it will take less time to reply.

Team sizes

One member is looking at their team structure and resources and asked the group about the size of their teams.

• The ratio of staff to volunteers varied considerably.

• The number of staff on the team ranged from 1 to 6.

• The number of volunteers ranged from 35 to 400.

• The pay bands ranged from 3 to 5.

• Some teams covered a large geographical area.

• Some staff roles covered apprenticeships, work experience as well as volunteering.

Christmas celebrations

• E cards are quite popular this year, saving on paper and postage.

• Older volunteers still appreciate a physical handwritten card.

• Handwritten birthday cards are still popular.

Further reading

• Focused discussion on supporting asylum seekers and refugees to volunteer - 1 November 2023

• Focused discussion on recruiting and supporting asylum seekers and refugees - 2 November 2022

• General discussion on asylum seekers and refugees, End of Life support - 19 May 2022

• General discussion on recruitment, DBS checks and volunteer passports - 17 October 2024

• General discussion on recruitment, DBS checks, sharing volunteers and reporting - 14 May 2024

• Focused discussion on supporting asylum seekers and refugees - 6 July 2023