Evaluation of Volunteering in NHS Scotland Programme 2020
This report summarises key findings of an evaluation of Volunteering in NHS Scotland Programme, including its response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
We surveyed NHS Scotland staff with a responsibility for managing volunteers, including executive and strategic leads for volunteering and volunteer managers.
The evaluation gave NHS staff an opportunity to reflect on the activity carried out to date. It also gave them a chance to shape the future of the volunteering programme and how it can support and collaborate with the NHS Scotland boards in future.
The survey contained two sections: the programme's response to COVID-19 and the broader work of the programme. Respondents could also provide feedback on the Volunteering Information System (an information management system for NHS Scotland staff), online induction module, national guidance and any other areas of the programme.
Recommendations
- Programme to seek engagement with Executive leads on future strategic direction/contribution of volunteers to NHS Scotland
- Review membership of the National Group including length of term
- Create a Programme mailbox and implement a 3-day response time for advice and support to non-urgent enquiries
- Carry out a capacity analysis for the Programme
- Review the current resources to assess content, quality and circulation methods with an aim to making the information more meaningful and accessible.
- Promote increasing the diversity of volunteers through published resources, discussions and sharing good practice.
- Engage with volunteer managers to develop a volunteer induction programme that tailored to the needs of volunteers and delivered in a variety of formats.
- Engage with volunteer managers to identify refresher training that can be delivered in a variety of formats
- Reinforce that risk assessment is a responsibility within NHS boards, complying with their local processes
- Include discussions/workshops in the Volunteer Managers Network on:
a. Supporting volunteers remotely
b. Volunteer peer support - Run a webinar on how to use the Community of Practice website, encouraging members to share practice, templates and other documents
- Review frequency and timings of online meetings
- Publish an interim COVID-19 communications strategy linking to previously defined key messages and the published case studies
- Produce a template/planning tools for volunteer managers to work with their Comms colleagues to produce local case studies, linked to the national outcomes framework
- Make changes to the Volunteering Information System to allow more detailed recording of inactive volunteers
- Explore scope for including data on indirect volunteering
- Prioritise the equalities monitoring development of the Volunteering Information System and conduct the 2-yearly national survey for placed volunteers
- Carry out a review of volunteer recruitment and management workflow to assess how the system can better meet the needs of users
- Develop annual reports in the Volunteering Information System
- Provide the ability to produce customised reports in the Volunteering Information System
This evaluation report will be shared with relevant staff and stakeholders involved in managing volunteers in NHS Scotland. The programme lead will develop an action plan and engage with the National Group for Volunteering in NHS Scotland to take the findings from the evaluation forward.