A Vision for Volunteering: Where we are now

In the autumn of 2022, BVSC set out to create a Vision for Volunteering for Birmingham.  Building on the national Vision from NCVO and partners, the Birmingham Vision was co-produced with volunteers, community groups, public sector and academic partners through a series of events across the city. It’s a shared plan for making volunteering stronger, fairer, and more accessible for everyone.  

What is the Vision for Volunteering? 

The Vision for Volunteering sets out an aspirational picture of what volunteering in Birmingham could look like by 2027. The five-year, city-wide collaborative programme is designed to strengthen and grow volunteering, shaped by local priorities and grounded in the national Vision for Volunteering. 

The changing landscape 

The pandemic and cost of living crisis reshaped volunteering in Birmingham, placing new pressures on organisations and volunteers alike with an increase in demand, reduced capacity and rising costs. The initial crisis led to a short-term surge in volunteering, but formal volunteering struggled to return to pre-2020 levels, with many older, regular volunteers not returning. 

The Vision’s Three Key Principles 

Birmingham’s vision is underpinned by three key principles, beneath which there is a vision statement for each. The three principles are:​ 

1. Celebrating Difference - using data and lived experience to remove barriers and make volunteering genuinely open to people who are currently underrepresented. 

2. Collaboration - bringing partners together around a shared Vision for Volunteering, aligning it with wider city priorities and being open about what’s been achieved. 

3. Awareness and appreciation - building a clear picture of volunteering in Birmingham, making opportunities easier to find, and recognising good practice and real impact. 

Getting the Vision off the ground 

In 2023, BVSC recruited a Vision for Volunteering Implementation Manager, tasked with driving the Vision forward.  

In the first year, we focused on putting the Vision for Volunteering in place by setting up a Strategic Group, testing ideas through workshops and Find Out More sessions, and embedding the vision across key local networks. We supported this with practical resources, a clear communications plan, a presence at local events, and by backing national activity such as the Big Help Out 2024. 

In the second year, we took the Vision for Volunteering into more strategic spaces, positioning it as a practical way to drive better practice and new approaches. We strengthened delivery by developing the Volunteer Brum brokerage platform and securing funding to support programmes such as NHS Volunteering for Health, Birmingham Health Champions, and environmental volunteering through the National Lottery and partners. 

Progress so far and lessons learned 

BVSC has reestablished its support for volunteering, and working with our partners has helped make volunteering more accessible across the city. 

A major challenge remains securing funding to develop and sustain volunteering infrastructure in a tough funding landscape across Birmingham. 

We’ve also learned that co-production is essential, volunteering models need to be flexible, groundwork is key for real buy-in, and the vision only works if people can see how it applies in practice.