The Developing Volunteering Toolkit will support staff to involve colleagues in short and tailored engagement sessions. It should provide the necessary tools to explore the concept of volunteering, understand the boundaries of volunteering and to ensure that:

• staff are prepared for volunteering
• staff are receptive to volunteers
• staff are confident in engaging with volunteers
• staff have ownership over the development of volunteer roles, and
• staff, patients and volunteers benefit from the volunteer roles.

The tools have been developed to cater for a range of circumstances, taking into account the environment and any history of volunteer engagement.

The Toolkit was originally created to support staff engagement in hospital-based settings within NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde, and to help to develop a culture that supports volunteering. It has since been piloted in other NHS boards (NHS Health Scotland, NHS Shetland and The State Hospital) and further developed to allow use in community and other health and care settings.

Editable checklist

The Developing Volunteering Checklist (DOC 50.5 KB) can help when developing roles for volunteers in NHS boards and healthcare settings.