HISTORIC PRESS RELEASE : Chancellor leads Government, sector and business effort on youth volunteering [January 2005]

The press release issued by HM Treasury on 31 January 2005.

Chancellor Gordon Brown today called for a step change in the participation of young people in volunteering, encouraging young people to do voluntary work as part of their normal lives and enabling them to do voluntary work in the UK during pre-college gap years.  He spoke at a conference forming part of the Chancellor’s pre-Budget consultation, involving the voluntary and community sector and businesses, coming at the start of 2005 – The Year of the Volunteer.

The Chancellor was joined by Home Secretary Charles Clarke, Chief Secretary to the Treasury Paul Boateng, and Economic Secretary John Healey. Ian Russell, Chief Executive of Scottish Power plc, announced the results of the Russell Commission consultation on youth volunteering.  The Russell Commission report will be published around the time of the Budget.

The Chancellor highlighted the importance of voluntary action and mentoring, and called for more people to give up time to help others.  He discussed how to expand the participation of young people in volunteering, how to extend the scope of mentoring, and how businesses as well as individuals can be more involved.  He also launched a new guide explaining the tax incentives for corporate giving.

The Chancellor said:

“I believe we have a goodwill mountain just waiting to be tapped.  Building upon the current engagement of young people – 3 million each year in voluntary work – we find that a majority of young people aged 15 to 24 year old – 59 per cent – want to know more about how to get involved in their communities.

Let us set a practical aim: that the majority of young people do volunteer and that over the next five years 1 million new young people become volunteers. And let us now set a national framework: business, government and the voluntary sector working together to encourage, enthuse and engage youth in community action.”

Home Secretary Charles Clarke said:

“Volunteering enables people to make a real difference in both their lives and the lives of others in a huge variety of ways, from working as a mentor to assisting a neighbour do their shopping. Earlier this month the Chancellor and I launched the Year of the Volunteer 2005 which forms an important part of a cross-Government commitment to encourage citizens to give their time to make communities better places for us all.

“I recognise the important role that volunteering can play in a young persons life and the Russell Commission is currently working in partnership with voluntary groups and businesses to identify and build on what works in UK volunteering. Their proposals will inform the Government’s National Youth Volunteering Strategy and I await the Commission’s report with interest.”

Ian Russell, CEO of Scottish Power said:

“By responding to the needs and aims of young volunteers themselves, the national framework aims to make volunteering the norm among young people and help establish a pattern of lifelong engagement which will be to the mutual benefit of the individual, the local community, and Britain as a whole.”