Attracting volunteers: what charities can learn from Young Enterprise

The short answer: it's in the small points of friction can accumulate quickly.

Young Enterprise help young people build financial capability and enterprise skills, reaching more than half a million young people through programmes supported by around 1,500 volunteer mentors and judges.

Working at that scale means thinking carefully about how volunteers discover opportunities, apply, get started, and - for the long term - how to keep increasing volunteer participation.

A useful way to understand this comes from an exercise shared by Katherine Gale, Head of Volunteering:

Imagine meeting someone at a networking event who tells you about an organisation doing interesting work. They mention they’re looking for volunteers with your skills. It sounds promising, so you agree to hear more.

Later, they send through an outline of the role. The description makes sense and you can see how your experience might fit.

Then you notice the time commitment. Twelve to twenty-four hours a week.

Would you still apply?

Let’s say you decide to continue anyway. The recruitment form asks for a CV, a two-page cover letter, references and a full employment history. You submit everything and wait to hear back.

Two months later, there’s still no response.

Eventually you’re invited to attend your first volunteering session. But when you arrive, no one is expecting you and no one is quite sure what you’re meant to be doing.

At each stage, enthusiasm fades a little more, and contributes to the sector-wide decline in volunteering.

The point isn’t that any single step is unreasonable, but each ask accumulates into a potential, combined blocker. By the time someone finally reaches their first volunteer session, the excitement that brought them there may already be fading.

The earliest moment in this journey is often the volunteer advert.

It might seem like a small thing, but it’s often the first real insight someone gets into what volunteering with your charity might look like.

If the role description is vague, overly formal or full of internal jargon, potential volunteers can struggle to picture themselves in the role. If the commitment sounds unrealistic, people quietly move on. And if the benefits of volunteering aren’t explained clearly, even rewarding opportunities can appear less appealing than they really are.

Young Enterprise emphasises that clarity matters here. As Katherine explained:

“Make sure you have a role description in writing. Be clear about who you’re looking for, what skills are needed, and what someone will gain from volunteering.”

A good role description doesn’t just explain the work, it helps someone imagine themselves doing it.

Writing a good volunteer advert is only the first step in attracting volunteers. What happens immediately afterwards matters just as much.

If the application process is long, confusing or slow, potential volunteers can easily lose momentum. Even people who are genuinely interested may move on if it takes weeks to hear back or if they’re asked for unnecessary information early on.

Katherine highlighted this point when discussing volunteer recruitment:

“Only ask for the information you need and will use to make recruitment decisions.” 

Reducing friction in the recruitment journey can make a noticeable difference. Some charities now focus on:

• Shorter application forms
• Clear timelines for hearing back
• Informal introductory conversations before formal applications
• Simple onboarding steps that build confidence early

Of course, it's also important to listen to feedback from your current volunteers - nobody knows the experience you give better.

These changes may seem small, but they help maintain the enthusiasm that first attracted someone to the opportunity.

Despite the growth of digital recruitment channels, many volunteers still begin their journey in a simple way ... someone asks them.

This insight appears frequently across volunteer research. The NCVO Time Well Spent report notes that personal invitations remain one of the most powerful drivers of volunteering:

“Being asked is the most common reason people give for starting to volunteer.”

That doesn’t mean digital channels aren’t important though, they absolutely are.

Search engines, volunteer directories and social media are often where people first encounter adverts and opportunities. That’s where creative ways to recruit volunteers can help charities stand out.

Some organisations are experimenting with shorter, flexible roles that allow people to volunteer for just a few hours at a time. Others offer skill-based volunteering opportunities aligned with professional expertise, or trial sessions that allow people to experience volunteering before committing long term.

These approaches lower the barrier to entry, make recruitment easier, and help people imagine how volunteering could fit into their lives.

Getting volunteers through the door is only part of the challenge. Keeping them engaged depends on what happens next.

Research consistently shows that volunteers stay involved when they feel valued and connected to the impact of their contribution. According to the NCVO Time Well Spent report, volunteers who feel appreciated and well supported report significantly higher satisfaction with their volunteering experience.

Simple practices can make a big difference. Regular thank-yous, proactive communication and opportunities for feedback help volunteers feel part of the organisation rather than simply helping it.

Katherine highlighted this point in her guidance for volunteer managers:

“Say thank you. Do this often, and make it specific.” 

Recognition may seem small, but it’s often one of the strongest drivers of long-term volunteer engagement.

Of course, many volunteer managers already know what good looks like. The challenge isn’t understanding it.

It’s usually finding the time to deliver it!

Volunteer leaders often juggle recruitment, safeguarding checks, onboarding, scheduling, communication and reporting all at once. Research highlighted by Charity Digital shows that many charities struggle to meet demand for volunteers due to limited resources and operational pressures.

That’s why many organisations, including Young Enterprise, begin exploring volunteer management software, like Access Assemble.

These tools can help automate parts of the administrative workload, from managing applications to organising volunteer activities and communications. When those tasks become easier to manage, volunteer teams have more time to focus on the human side of volunteering.

Technology doesn’t replace thoughtful volunteer management - but it can support it.

The team at Young Enterprise demonstrate how thoughtful volunteer design can support programmes at scale. Their programmes connect young people with mentors and role models who help build confidence, financial skills and entrepreneurial thinking. 

Behind that impact is a structured volunteer approach focused on clear expectations, supportive onboarding and regular communication. Volunteers understand the role they play and the difference they help make.

Key takeaways

Successful volunteer programmes rarely happen by chance, they're shaped deliberately.

Organisations that succeed at attracting volunteers tend to focus on a few consistent principles. They create clear and engaging volunteer adverts, remove unnecessary friction from the recruitment process and communicate openly with volunteers throughout their journey. They also make time to recognise contributions and keep volunteers connected to the impact of their work.

When those elements come together, volunteering stops feeling like a transaction. And that’s where the real impact begins.