Volunteer Policy

GLOBAL CHINA ACADEMY

VOLUNTEER POLICY

Introduction

Volunteering is the commitment of time and energy for the benefit of society and the community: the environment of individuals outside one’s immediate family. It is undertaken freely and by choice without concern for financial gain.

Global China Academy believes that voluntary activity is an important expression of citizenship and an essential component of a free and democratic society. GCA supports and promotes volunteering in the public and third sectors and has a responsibility to ensure that volunteers within the organisation are appropriately involved, valued for their contribution and respected as colleagues.

In adopting this Volunteer Policy, Global China Academy (GCA) wishes to:

formally acknowledge and support the role of volunteers in GCA’s work;
set out the principles governing volunteer involvement and provide guidelines to ensure good practice in volunteer management;
encourage and facilitate, rather than restrict, volunteer participation.

This Volunteer Policy and accompanying guidelines apply to GCA paid staff and volunteers.

Volunteer Policy Statement

GCA Equal Opportunities

As an employer and engager of volunteers, GCA is committed to equal opportunities. This principle applies to service provision, recruitment, promotion, training, facilities, procedures and all relevant terms and conditions.

Recruitment and Selection

Volunteer recruitment will be open to appropriate sections of the community and consistent with GCA’s equal opportunities policy. Appropriate targeting may be used where necessary.
New appointments to ongoing, named or institutionally representative roles should normally complete the relevant GCA application form before appointment or formal confirmation, together with any assessment appropriate to the role. Short-term, event-specific or occasional voluntary assistance may use a simplified registration or confirmation process.
Appointments are made at the appropriate level: governance and senior institutional roles at the relevant governance level; project roles by the relevant project leadership; and general administrative and support roles at executive level.
Existing role-holders are not normally required to apply retrospectively, and an application already completed for an equivalent or higher level need not be repeated. Urgent appointments may use a simplified process where appropriately authorised and recorded.

In adopting this volunteer policy, Global China Academy (GCA) wishes to:

Formally acknowledge and support the role of volunteers in its work
Set out the principles governing the involvement of volunteers and provide a set of guidelines to ensure good practice in working with volunteers
Encourage and enable, rather than restrict, the involvement of volunteers.

This volunteer policy and accompanying guidelines are intended for use by GCA paid staff and volunteers.

Volunteer Policy Statement

GCA Equal Opportunities

As an employer and engager of volunteers GCA is committed to a policy of equal opportunities. This principle will apply to service delivery, recruitment, promotion, training, facilities, procedures and all terms and conditions.

Recruitment & Selection

Recruitment of volunteers will be from all sections of the community, and will be in line with GCA’s policy of equal opportunities policy. Appropriate targeting may be used.
New ongoing, named or institutionally representative roles should normally follow an application and assessment process appropriate to the role. Short-term, event-specific or occasional support may use simplified arrangements.
Appointments are made at the appropriate level: governance and senior institutional roles at the relevant governance level; project roles by the relevant project leadership; and general administrative and support roles at executive level.
Existing role-holders are not normally required to apply retrospectively, and an application already completed for an equivalent or higher level need not be repeated. Urgent appointments may use a simplified process where appropriately authorised and recorded.

Information & Training

Volunteers will receive full information about their chosen area of work and will be given a clear idea of their responsibilities to GCA.
Volunteers will be given induction and training in the specific tasks to be undertaken.
Volunteers will be consulted in decisions which affect them.

Support & Supervision

Volunteers will be assigned a named contact person for supervision and support.

Problem Solving

GCA recognises that problems do arise and aims to identify and resolve these problems at the earliest stage. Volunteers who have a problem of any kind should discuss it in the first instance with their named contact person.

Confidentiality

Volunteers will be bound by the same confidentiality conditions as GCA paid staff.
Without authorisation, volunteers must not disclose or forward internal correspondence, contact or guest lists, working documents, non-public information or personal data.

Expenses & Insurance

GCA will ensure that there is a clear and accessible system to enable volunteers to claim out of pocket expenses.
Volunteers will be adequately covered by insurance while carrying out agreed duties.

Health & Safety

All volunteers are covered by the same health and safety provisions as staff.

Relations with Paid Staff

GCA is committed to ensuring that volunteers’ work complements the work of paid staff, and that it will not be used as a substitute for paid work.
Steps will be taken to ensure that staff at all levels are clear about the roles of volunteers and to foster good working relationships between staff and volunteers.
GCA recognises the need for training for all those working alongside and managing volunteers.

Costs

GCA will endeavour to identify and cover the costs of involving volunteers and recognises the value of designated responsibilities within specific posts for the management of volunteers.

References

On the basis of their voluntary work, volunteers will have the right to request a reference.

Monitoring & Evaluation

GCA will systemically monitor and evaluate its involvement of volunteers with reference to this Volunteer Policy.

Review

This policy came into force on 17th May 2022 and will be reviewed and updated as necessary in response to changes in legislation, governance arrangements, operational practice or relevant risks. This policy came into force on 17th May 2022 and will be reviewed and updated as necessary in response to changes in legislation, governance arrangements, operational practice or relevant risks.

Note

‘Staff’ refers to paid staff and those undertaking placements with GCA.

Guidelines for Involving Volunteers

These guidelines are intended for use along with the policy statement. They give further detail on recommended good practice in the involvement of volunteers within GCA.

Preparation

Prior to recruiting volunteers, full consultation and discussion should take place with users of the service, paid staff and, where relevant, unions to ensure that there is a genuine need for volunteers and to develop a clear description of their role. A contact person within the section proposing to involve volunteers should be identified and the staff time and expenses to train, support and reimburse volunteers determined.

Recruitment

GCA will prevent discrimination particularly on the grounds of gender, marital status, disability, race, colour, religious belief, political belief, sexuality, nationality, ethnic origin, age, trade union activity, responsibility for dependents or employment status.
In order to reach a wide section of the community, recruitment should be by a variety of means.
Positive action in recruitment may be used for specific voluntary tasks, for example specific work with minority ethnic groups.
A recommendation by an existing volunteer, Fellow, staff member or other GCA associate does not replace any application, assessment or confirmation process appropriate to the role.

Initial Contact

People interested in becoming volunteers with GCA should be invited for an informal talk with the appropriate contact person. They should:
Be given written information to take away
Have their role explained and how it fits in with GCA’s overall aims and ethos
Have the next stages of becoming a volunteer with GCA outlined
If the volunteer wishes to proceed with the application at this stage, the contact person should obtain referees’ details.

Selection

All volunteers should provide two written references or, in exceptional cases, one written reference. If the volunteer is to carry out specialised work (e.g. IT support), at least one reference should relate directly to this.
All information should be dealt with in the strictest confidence and should not necessarily prejudice the person being accepted for voluntary work.

Records

Minimum details should be kept on volunteers. This will include references, placement details, relevant information regarding the person’s health, correspondence and any other relevant information such as emergency contact details.
Record keeping must be secure but accessible to other members of staff if the contact person is absent.
The Data Protection Act enables people to access information held about them.
For ongoing or named roles, appropriate records should also be kept of applications, appointments, confirmations and significant changes in responsibility.

Induction – Induction sessions should be provided for all new volunteers and should cover:

Role of volunteers
Responsibilities of volunteers
Arrangements for training, support and supervision
Contact person
Need for confidentiality
Ethos/values, etc.
System for payment of expenses
Problem-solving procedures
Background to GCA
Building orientation
Health and Safety
Meeting staff

For senior, named or institutionally representative roles, induction should focus on responsibilities, limits of authority, reporting arrangements, use of institutional titles, formal external communication, confidentiality and conflicts of interest.

Expectations of Volunteers – GCA should expect volunteers to:

Participate in induction sessions
Comply with existing policies and procedures
Undertake voluntary work at agreed times
Inform relevant staff if unable to attend
Give some notice if unable to continue volunteering
Raise any issues of concern relating to their voluntary work with the contact person
Agree with the aims and ethos of the organisation
Act only within the authority agreed for the role; without explicit authorisation, do not issue formal invitations, commitments, statements or other institutional communications on behalf of GCA, GCP or GCD.
Use only approved institutional titles and clearly distinguish personal contacts or recommendations from formal institutional communication.
Do not use internal materials to imply unauthorised institutional authority, or mix personal, professional or commercial interests into formal institutional communication; conflicts of interest should be disclosed.

Placement

Once a suitable voluntary placement has been identified, details about the frequency and length of commitment and nature of the voluntary activity should be determined and an established trial period agreed.
GCA reserves the right to ask volunteers to leave and will give reasons in writing if requested.
Where necessary to protect the organisation, people, information, activities, relationships or reputation, GCA may adjust, suspend or end a voluntary role, including in cases of unauthorised representation, misuse of titles or institutional materials, unauthorised disclosure or commitments, serious conflicts of interest, or significant organisational, legal, financial, safeguarding or reputational risk.

Support, Supervision and Problem Solving

Regular support/supervision should be available to each volunteer. The type and level of support will depend on the needs of the volunteer and the nature of their role. Full information on this will be provided during induction.
Each volunteer should have a clearly identified supervisor who is responsible for the day-to-day management and guidance of the volunteer and who will be able to offer regular advice, support and feedback.

Expenses

The procedures for claiming expenses should be clear and accessible.
All agreed out-of-pocket expenses should be reimbursed on production of receipts.

Insurance

It should be ensured that volunteers have appropriate insurance cover in terms of employers and public liability.

Date: 17^th May 2022
Review date: 20^th October 2024

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