Making a Difference

Employer Supported Volunteering (ESV) is the term used to describe all forms of volunteering carried out by employees as supported / arranged by their employer.  This can be done formally, usually longer-term which has a structure and written policies or informally which is usually short term (commonly a day) where a group from a business carry out some support for a local organisation.  

Read our guide on what you could offer.

It is important for your business to know how much you can give and in what way, is it through time, resource, skills or money?  Can you spare a large number of people for a day to go off and perform a task and still operate effectively?

Read our Things To Think About page.

The benefits of volunteering are very personal to each individual but there are strong arguments from research and experience that we would like to posit are the potential benefits to entering into any sort of volunteering programme as a business.

Some of the benefits can include:

Business benefits

• Improving public image
• Creating networks with potential clients and partners
• Encouraging team building and internal communication
• Increasing employees’ commitment, morale and motivation
• Enhancing the skills of employees through new experiences
• Improving levels of recruitment and retention

Employee benefits

• Developing new skills or improving existing skills
• Making a difference to society and the environment
• Meeting new people and mixing in teams
• Exploring new situations and challenges
• Building self-confidence
• Changing or enhancing the way the individual feels about them-self and their employer
• Having fun and adding variety to the daily work routine

Community benefits

• Helps communities to maximise their impact through access to more volunteers, many with special skills
• Opportunity to widen networks and meet employers and employee representatives
• A great way to harness new skills, knowledge and energy
• Brings employers closer to the community giving employees the opportunity to find out about local groups and issues
• Creates ways to find common solutions between all sectors
• Increases opportunities for people from different backgrounds to work together

WVA can support you in a range of ways. Read our support offer.