A well-defined volunteering policy provides the necessary foundation for a successful programme. This formal document aligns expectations among employees, charities, leadership and stakeholders.
Before internal rollout, first establish policies that reflect your organisational culture and risk approach. Outline the specific parameters and guidelines for employee participation, charity eligibility, activities allowed, liability and other relevant factors.
A clear policy framework demonstrates the company's due diligence and commitment to executing initiatives responsibly. It protects both volunteers and the organisation while empowering participation.
Main output
Company policy document
Note: We have left a few examples in the document for reference & format.
Step 1 - Stakeholder engagement
Getting input from relevant internal groups is useful when formulating a company policy, to utilise knowledge and shape policy based on the motivations and goals of each group.
You may wish to consult the following groups from within the business on the formulation of your policy;
- Volunteering working group - to agree policy detail and plan the recruitment of charity champions
- Employees - to help determine the allowances, incentives or other factors that could encourage participation
- Senior directors - to encourage early senior-level engagement
Resources
Copy the email templates below in pink
Developing Policies to Support Employee Volunteering
Hi all,
As we've discussed, we're working on a company volunteering policy to empower you to get involved in charitable and community projects through Neighbourly.
The first step is gathering your input on what allowances and features would be most motivating for you. Please take a few minutes to fill out this brief survey on potential volunteering policies:
[Insert survey link]
We want to shape our policies around how to best support you and your volunteering goals. Your perspectives will ensure our programme is tailored to what you find most motivating and practical.
Thanks for taking the time to provide your feedback through the survey. Please reach out if you have any other thoughts or questions.
Developing a Volunteering Policy
Hello everyone,
As you may know, we recently partnered with Neighbourly to help our business get involved in local charity projects. A crucial first step is developing a company policy to drive employee engagement and ensure everyone feels supported to volunteer.
I'm inviting you because your input will be valuable as we shape our policy approach. If this is your first time hearing about the programme, please visit Neighbourly.com to learn more before the meeting.
We will hold a brainstorm on [insert date/time] to align on an impactful and feasible policy approach.
You can join virtually here: [insert meeting link] or via your calendar invite.
I'm looking forward to collaborating on how we can best empower and motivate employees to participate in volunteering. Please reach out with any questions!
Step 2 - Resource allocation
In order to provide adequate support for your policies, it's a good idea to outline available resources.
Resources may include:
- The number of days per year will you offer each member of staff as paid volunteering time
- Time allocation for charity champions to support the programme
- Money for donations to local good causes to help facilitate volunteer events - this is optional but can often help get projects underway
- Use of business equipment to support volunteer events e.g. computers, printers or stationery
- Reimbursement of staff expenses related to volunteering
Master doc worksheet
Collect your findings and input into the Resources tab in the master doc.
Resources
Note: We have left a few examples in the document for reference & format.
Step 3 - Charity policy
Having a charity policy is important for companies implementing employee volunteering programmes to ensure that support is targeted in the right way and that community needs are considered.
You policy may include:
- The types of organisations your business will support, for example any not-for-profit organisations, including registered charities, CICs and community groups
- Your geographic locations, for example UK-based good causes
- Any types of organisations that would not be supported, for example religious organisations that do not support the wider community
Pro tip: A charity policy should guide rather than limit employee volunteers. Avoid overly restricting the causes staff can support, to enable volunteers donate their time to organisations they feel passionate about.
Master doc worksheet
Collect your findings and input into the Company policy tab in the master doc.
Resources
Note: We have left a few examples in the document for reference & format.
Step 4 - Company policy
Clearly communicating key legal, supportive and financial details is vital for successful rollout of a volunteering programme. Companies will all have a slightly different approach to policy creation, but your finished document is likely to include a number of the items listed below.
Company policy may include:
- Terms of the policy
- Programme goals
- Top-level benefits of the programme
- Charity policy & charity donations
- Time allocation for volunteer days and how/when these can be taken
- Health & safety / insurance detail
- Incentives or rewards, if applicable
- Financial support policy e.g expenses and reimbursements
- Participation instructions
- Feedback expectations
- Key links & key contacts
Supporting policy examples
We've included a few policy examples from clients that have had success with engagement;
Volunteer time off (VTO)
Employees receive [X] paid days off per year to volunteer. Work duties are excused on these days.
(Specify how many days off employees are allowed to take).
No catch-up policy
Employees are not obligated to make up work missed while volunteering.
(Work demands and pressures have been identified as the primary obstacle preventing employees from volunteering. Addressing this barrier will be critical for the success of the programme).
Resources & support
Employees can utilise company resources like printers, equipment and supplies to enable volunteering activities.
Charity Champions/Ambassadors
Designated volunteers will spearhead engagement and serve as charity point people.
Donation Matching
The company will make a donation to the charity of the employee's choice when they volunteer.
Annual Awards
Top volunteers to be presented with awards at the yearly company event - categories like most hours volunteered or most helpful charity champion.
Tree Planting
For every [X] hours volunteered by employees, the company will plant one tree to support the environment.
(You can tie this in with encouraging users to submit success stories).
Pro tip: The “No catch up” policy is an important one for volunteers as work pressures are widely reported as the number one barrier for participation in a company sponsored programme.
Master doc worksheet
Collect your findings and input into the Company policy template tab in the master doc.
Note: We have left a few examples in the document for reference & format.
Step 5 - Charity Champions / Ambassadors
Charity Champions (or you may prefer Ambassadors) can be recruited to lead engagement efforts, connect teams with impactful local causes, assist volunteers and provide ongoing feedback to leadership. These respected internal advocates can encourage participation through their passion and knowledge.
While prior volunteering experience is beneficial, a genuine commitment to community action and enthusiasm for the programme’s goals are most important. Charity Champions should be influential team members excited to rally colleagues in supporting community initiatives.
Research shows that branches and locations with active champions consistently see higher participation and satisfaction rates. By establishing this supportive volunteer structure, organisations demonstrate commitment while enabling smooth execution.
Champions can support with responsibilities such as;
- Promoting the programme to colleagues
- Acting as a point of contact for queries
- Recommending local good causes for the company to support
- Helping to run gamification elements such as competitions, leaderboards etc
- Capturing and sharing success stories
- Encouraging social sharing
- Acting as a chair during programme meetings
- Organising group events for colleagues
Master doc worksheet
Collect your findings and input into the Charity Champions tab in the master doc.
Resources
Copy the email templates below in pink
Note: We have left a few examples in the document for reference & format.
Sign up as a charity champion!
Hello everyone,
As you know, we recently partnered with Neighbourly for our new volunteering programme.
To drive engagement and success, we're looking for 5-10 Charity Champions across the business. These internal volunteers will:
- Promote the programme internally
- Act as a point of contact
- Recommend local causes
- Support gamification initiatives
- Capture success stories
- Chair programme meetings
- Organise group events
Ideal candidates have volunteering experience, but it's not essential. This informal role is for those passionate about our company's community impact. Those with existing links to local charities have an opportunity to nominate them for support and get them added to our programmes.
If interested, please email [contact details] with your background and any thoughts.
We hope you'll consider this opportunity to have a positive impact on our volunteering efforts.
Thank you!
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This material is part of the Neighbourly Volunteer Engagement Success Plan, for use by Neighbourly partners only.