1. Introduction
The Parish Council recognises the important role that volunteers play in helping the Council deliver its services to the community. This policy sets out the principles for voluntary involvement in activities authorised by the Council. Where volunteers fail to comply with the policy, they will be acting without the permission of the Council. The policy does not apply to employees of the Council or to councillors.
2. Volunteering
Any person of at least 16 years of age may undertake voluntary work for the Council. Volunteers must satisfy themselves that they are physically fit and therefore able to undertake the work identified. Where a volunteer is accompanied by a person under 16 years of age, the volunteer is responsible for the young person’s safety and must remain in very close proximity to them at all times. Volunteers must be adequately trained for any role they intend to undertake. The training standard will vary between tasks and some may require no training at all. The responsibility to provide any necessary training rests with the individual to whom authority has been given by the Council to undertake this work.
The proposed work to be undertaken must be subject of a formal risk assessment which must be submitted to the Clerk of the Council before the work can commence. Risk assessments must identify where specific training is needed and they will be displayed on the Council’s website. All volunteers must read the relevant risk assessment before undertaking any work. Where a task is assessed as high risk, it should not be undertaken unless measures can be taken to mitigate the level of risk to medium.
Where volunteers intend to undertake authorised work, they must first inform the Clerk by email, written note or telephone message. The notification must include the area of work and list of volunteers. For example an email with the subject heading ‘Community Garden – 01/01/16’ and a list of volunteers within the body of the email will suffice. The Clerk will retain a list of volunteers and dates of work for insurance purposes. Where a lead councillor is involved they will take responsibility for notifying the Clerk. Where volunteers deliver leaflets or newsletters on behalf of the Council, their details and their intention to volunteer are already known by the Council and they do not need to contact the Council before making deliveries.
The Council will not allow the use of power tools by volunteers.
Only volunteers acting within the terms of this policy will be covered by the Council’s insurance policy.
Adoption and review history |
|
Adopted at Parish Council Meeting on |
05/12/16 |
Reviewed on | 02/11/20 |
Reviewed on | 04/03/24 |
Next Review Due |
November 2026 |