CEO's Welcome
Happy New Year to all our members, partners, volunteers and friends.
The start of the year has seen much devastation and I have been extremely saddened by the effects the bushfires have had on our country.
Now more than ever we understand the crucial role volunteers play in assisting communities, especially during times of crisis. For more information on how you can help please visit our website. We will continue to rally behind our fellow states and territories during this time. Volunteering WA, our state and territory counterparts and Volunteering Australia have written a submission in response to the Australian Government’s compensation scheme for emergency service volunteers.
For the first time in 25 years Volunteering WA is extremely proud to be hosting the National Volunteering Conference in Perth and we’re thrilled to give our members and key stakeholders the opportunity to attend and enjoy a prestigious list of national and international speakers. Tickets are still available here but numbers are capped so please book early.
We had a double celebration at the International Volunteer Day Garden Party when we were delighted to be presented with a cheque from Lotterywest to support the National Volunteer Week grants 2020. The grants are available to volunteering involving organisations to hold thank you and celebration events for their volunteers.
Applications are now open, and we encourage you to visit our grants webpage to apply. We are very grateful to Lotterywest for their support again this year.
We pride ourselves on listening to our members and responding to your needs, and I would like to thank those who completed our member survey. This survey provides us with important feedback on our services and sets our directions for 2020. We were delighted to receive an incredible 96% satisfaction rating, which is something the Volunteering WA team can feel very proud of heading into the New Year. You can view the results here.
We have a busy and exciting year planned for 2020 and we look forward to sharing it with you.
Happy Volunteering,
Tina
OUR NEWS
National Volunteering Conference 2020
Tickets are still available here for the National Volunteering Conference to be held on 18 - 20 March 2020 in Perth. The last conference in Sydney hosted over 500 guests and we would love you to be a part of this one, which is promising to be an incredible event full of knowledge sharing, networking and learning.
Keynote Speaker
We are excited to share the news that Arihia Bennett, Chief Executive Officer of Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu, New Zealand will be one of our keynote speakers at the 2020 National Volunteering Conference. Arihia will be speaking about her learnings from the Christchurch earthquakes. We are excited to hear how she worked collaboratively with other leaders in the Christchurch area to advise on the redevelopment of the city.
National Volunteer Week grants now open!
Volunteering WA, with thanks to ongoing support from Lotterywest, is pleased to announce that we are once again offering our members and volunteer involving organisations around the state a fantastic opportunity to apply for a grant of up to $1,000 to organise an event which recognises and thanks volunteers during National Volunteer Week 18 - 24 May 2020.
Corporate Volunteering
The corporate volunteering team had a very successful year in 2019, facilitating more than 137 team days, comprising over 1,600 corporate volunteers supporting their local community with over 8,250 volunteer hours. Skills-based volunteering was also extremely well received with more than 80 projects scoped for corporate volunteers.
We thank all our community organisations that supported the program through skills-based and team-based volunteering projects, and look forward to another fantastic year in 2020!
We need you!
If your organisation needs a helping hand and you have a project you think might be suitable for our corporate volunteers please let us know. Our friendly VWA corporate volunteering team would love to chat to you about your needs and find out whether corporate volunteering support is right for you. If you would like more information on how your organisation can access the corporate volunteering program contact corporate@volunteeringwa.org.au.
Regional News
Our regional hubs welcome our members and the community in the Pilbara, Kimberley and Wheatbelt to contact them with any volunteering enquiries. We encourage you to follow the hub Facebook pages to see local activity in the area and also to view what training sessions are coming.
Towards the end of last year we welcomed Ashlee Jenal, who is employed by Broome Circle, working 2 days per week providing the VWA Kimberley Volunteer Hub services. Ashlee has shown great engagement with local volunteer involving organisations and we look forward to our future partnership with Broome Circle.
Staff News
Policy Officer
This year we welcome Meredith Blais to the Volunteering WA team as Policy Officer. With a background in strategy, policy and community engagement, she liaises with government, our members and the community to develop policy that supports the growth and development of the volunteering sector.
Vacancy - Manager Training & Development
Volunteering WA is currently looking for a highly experienced and motivated Manager Training and Development to join the team. The position is responsible for delivering and implementing Volunteering WA’s training and development program with a focus on building organisational capacity and professionalism in volunteering and in the management of volunteers.
VIRA/VIKTOR
2019 was a big year for VIRA and we have seen a large growth in numbers using this fantastic platform.
The VIRA team is always working on new exciting features, and the first new feature of the year has been added. When using the event calendar in VIRA the run-sheet export now provides the user with total volunteers expected and total hours. Keep up to date by following the VIRA Facebook page here.
SECTOR NEWS
Department of Social Services' Volunteer Grants
Applications for the Department of Social Services' Volunteer Grants are open, but this year applicants are required to be invited by their Federal Member of Parliament (MPs) to apply. Grants of between $1,000 and $5,000 are available to eligible not-for-profit community organisations to support volunteers as well as to encourage and increase participation in volunteering. MPs need to nominate organisations within their electorate to apply for funding by 21 February 2020.
Your Help WA
More than half a million Western Australians need support and services, but community service organisations do not have the resources to meet the growing need in our community.
Managing volunteers in times of crisis
Justice Connect Not-for-profit Law has released a new article that looks at the legal responsibilities of organisations to manage risk and protect the health and safety of volunteers, including spontaneous emergency volunteers.
Spontaneous volunteers create particular challenges for organisations, especially where organisations are already managing significant workloads due to an emergency. Follow the link below for resources providing guidance on managing spontaneous volunteers and ways to manage risk and keep your volunteers safe.
Training & Events
Introduction to Volunteering WA & VIKTOR
Thursday 20 February 2020 | 9.30am to 11.30am | West Leederville
This session will help you to make the most of your membership, and get you off to a good start with VIKTOR (the national online volunteer recruitment database) to promote your volunteer positions. Register here.
Please visit our website here to see our upcoming training sessions.
New Members
A warm welcome to our new and returning members:
We look forward to working with you.
Saturday Shout Out
Do you need help finding volunteers to fill a position in your organisation? Our Saturday feature, only for members, advertises your position on our Facebook page, with over 6,500 followers. Email nazreen@volunteeringwa.org.au to promote your volunteer vacancies.
Please ensure your volunteering role is on VIKTOR so that we can link the Facebook post straight through to the Volunteering WA website.
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Level 1, 3 Loftus Street
West Leederville WA 6007