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Volunteering is doing more than you have to, because you want to, because you care. There are so many different ways people can volunteer, the list is truly endless.
Many people volunteer based on their likes or interests. The important thing is to decide what you’re interested in or passionate about and look for a role that matches that.
3 Steps to becoming a Volunteer
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The Benefits of Volunteering
Gain confidence
Volunteering can help you gain confidence by giving you the chance to try something new and build a real sense of achievement.
Make a difference
Volunteering can have a real and valuable positive effect on people, communities and society in general.
Meet people
Volunteering can help you meet different kinds of people and make new friends.
Be part of a community
Volunteering can help you feel part of something outside your friends and family.
Learn new skills
Volunteering can help you learn new skills, gain experience and sometimes even qualifications.
Take on a challenge
Through volunteering you can challenge yourself to try something different, achieve personal goals, practice using your skills and discover hidden talents.
Purpose and connection
Volunteering offers senior citizens a flexible, enjoyable and rewarding way to stay socially connected, active and purposeful, supporting their wellbeing while enabling them to share their skills, learn new ones and build confidence in retirement.
Have fun!
Most volunteers have a great time, regardless of why they do it.
Volunteering & Social Welfare
You are allowed to volunteer while receiving Jobseekers Benefit and Jobseekers Allowance, in fact the Department encourage it – but there are a few conditions.* People in receipt of other benefits such as Disability Payment, Carers Payments etc. my need to read specific conditions for their payment rules.
You need to be available for and genuinely seeking employment. The amount of hours you volunteer for is not necessarily a barrier.
Your volunteering activities need to be really voluntary (i.e. unpaid) and the organisation you volunteer with has to be not-for-profit.
You should inform your deciding officer that you’re volunteering. They will give you a for to bring to the organisation you’re volunteering with (it’s called a VW1 form). The organisation fills in the form and return it to DSP. You may have to sign a part of it. This form is not designed to ‘check up on you’ – it is actually about making sure the organisation is an organisaton who genuinely involves volunteers for genuine reasons.
The Deciding Officer decides if the person can volunteer or not based on the type of volunteering involved; the aims and standing of the voluntary body; the weekly hours volunteered; and the amount of any payment received by way of out-of-pocket expenses. Note: there are no set weekly hours, and even people who contribute lots of voluntary hours may not be affected.
OTHER PAYMENTS
Disability Payments: If you are in receipt of Disability Allowance, Illness benefit or Invalidity Pension, you must get permission to volunteer before you begin.
If you are getting Invalidity Pension you cannot do more than 19.5 hours per week voluntary work (no limits for those in receipt of Illness benefit or Disability Allowance)
If you are in receipt of Carer’s Allowance, you can do a maximum of 15 hours per week voluntary work. You must get permission from Department of Social Protection before commencing Volunteer Work.