Volunteering Geelong is Leading with Standards
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Volunteering Geelong has developed a new program to help organisations tailor and implement best practice in volunteer management.
Their Leading with Standards program is helping volunteer organisations to understand and use the 'National Standards for Involving Volunteers in Not for Profit Organisations'. The program focuses on looking at how to apply these standards in individual workplaces.
The National Standards outline eight elements that should be considered when developing or managing a volunteer program:
- Policies and procedures
- Management responsibility
- Recruitment, selection and orientation
- Work and the workplace
- Training and development
- Service delivery
- Documentation and records
- Continuous improvement
Fifty-five organisations in Geelong, surrounding regions and also Metro Melbourne have either completed, or are currently undertaking the program.
'We assist organisations to actively implement the National Standards, enhancing their volunteer management program,' said Gail Rodgers, Manager of Volunteering Geelong. 'The Volunteering Geelong program includes one on one tailored support for organisations of all sizes as they work toward building a best practice program to positively impact the volunteer experience.'
The program includes a number of components. All organisations attend an initial workshop which looks at how to implement the National Standards. There are also a series of workshops that will bring participants together to network and share ideas, concerns, strategies and documentation.
It doesn't stop there though – the program team also provide practical support to organisations for six months, which includes three site visits to make sure the implementation process is smooth and appropriate to each organisation, along with a range of online and hard copy resources.
Wendy Greaves from Geelong Food Relief Centre completed the program. 'The Leading with Standards Project has meant that I now have the knowledge, skills and confidence to continually make improvements to my volunteer program,' she says.
For more information, or to register your interest, visit the Leading with Standards website or contact Alison Duff at Volunteering Geelong on (03) 5221 1377.
You can also order a copy of the National Standards through the Volunteering Australia website.
To see how a volunteer organisation went about implementing the National Standards following the program, read Standards are go! Eastern Volunteers share best practice advice.
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