Students: Voluntary Work

(asked on 22nd November 2023) - View Source

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Education on the potential impact of the cost of living on university students' ability to participate in volunteering.


Answered by
Stuart Andrew Portrait
Stuart Andrew
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
This question was answered on 27th November 2023

The Government recognises the valuable contribution that student volunteers make to their communities and the benefits they gain from these experiences.

My department funds and works closely with the Vision for Volunteering, which is a voluntary sector initiative to lead the ongoing support and development of all volunteering in England.

My department has also funded several other initiatives to support volunteering participation including the Volunteering Futures Fund, Know Your Neighbourhood and the Big Help Out, which was a day of community volunteering to mark the Coronation of His Majesty the King and Her Majesty The Queen, held on 8 May 2023. My department has allocated funding for a repeat of the Big Help Out campaign, which will take place from 7-9 June 2024.

The Government continues to recognise and celebrate the extraordinary contributions of volunteers across the country. Since 2014, over 2,100 people have been named Points of Light by the Prime Minister, highlighting a wide array of innovative and inspirational volunteering across the UK.

The department has not specifically discussed student volunteering with the Secretary of State for Education.

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