We’re on the sixth day of Volunteers’ Week 2015 now, and here we return to the theme of Trustees and Volunteering that we explored previously.
Here’s Vicky’s reflections on Volunteering and Trustees…
At some point in our lives we have all organised something; a birthday party, a night out with friends or a trip out somewhere. What about those people who organise events like Cleethorpes Carnival? Do we class them as trustees? What about the people who organise outings and events for the community? Are they trustees?
The answer, quite simply, is yes! Members of Organising Committees are trustees; they may not be subject to the exact rules and requirements that the trustees of organisations are, it does depend upon how the organisation is registered; without question they are still volunteers as they are not paid and are giving up their time without being remunerated for it.
Did you know that the average age of trustees is 57? I didn’t. Did you know that 0.5% of trustees are aged between 18-24? I knew the figure was low, but that does surprise me, simply because I thought that the figure was higher than that, I would have guessed at 1.5%. I won’t deny that being a trustee is not one of the easiest ways in which you can volunteer, but without having a dedicated group of people to lead organisations we would not have the thriving voluntary sector that we do today.
Being a trustee may entail a higher level of responsibility than other areas of volunteering, but on the plus side it looks good on your CV and, depending on the organisation, can ask for a lot less time commitment.