Volunteering is not for free. Volunteer expenses, paid volunteer managers, volunteer recruitment and support, all require funding to be delivered properly. Lack of resources is one of the most frequently cited explanations for not being able to deliver best practice in volunteering.
For most agencies volunteer costs will be only one element of a funding application, but there is increasing evidence that funders are looking at evidence of good practice in volunteering as one of their criteria for funding. City of Edinburgh Council now asks questions about volunteering in its main grants form. Some European funding applications consider volunteer time as match funding. Many Charitable Trusts and government funding bodies have volunteering as high priority areas
Sourced: Volunteer Centre Edinburgh
