Rural Scotland People, Prosperity and Partnership

The "Make a Difference" Initiative

Volunteering has a vital role to play in the life of rural communities where people can be remote from services. Volunteers can bring significant social, economic and personal values to local communities. The range and extent of volunteering in rural communities in Scotland is well known, especially though such organisations as the Scottish Women's Rural Institutes and the Scottish Women's Royal Voluntary Service. As part of its Make a Difference Initiative, the Government wishes to encourage volunteering in all aspects of life.

The report "Make a Difference: An Outline Volunteering Strategy for the UK", published in June 1995, was produced by a team drawn from the volunteering, public and private sectors: it made 81 recommendations for strengthening and enhancing volunteering. Key elements of the Government's response to the report include Youth Challenge which will provide:

  • a volunteering opportunity by the end of 1997 to all 15-25 year olds in the United Kingdom who wish to volunteer

  • funding for 50 innovative projects throughout the United Kingdom which will help develop volunteering by young and older people

  • a national media campaign to promote volunteering

  • a new Make a Difference Award to acknowledge volunteering.

A Scottish Office Task Force has been established to consider how best the recommendations can be taken forward throughout Scotland. The Task Force will look to increasing the opportunities for young people to volunteer and to extending the network of volunteer bureaux throughout Scotland. This will build on the work presently being carried out by Volunteer Development Scotland through four Scottish Office funded pilot volunteer projects which are testing various methods of encouraging greater numbers of volunteers and matching them with relevant volunteering opportunities. These projects have a rural or island focus:

  • a network project throughout Highland Region involving nine councils of voluntary service to examine the problems involved in providing opportunities for volunteering in geographically disadvantaged areas;

  • a partnership project based in Dumfries with an outreach centre in Upper Nithsdale providing volunteering opportunities with a council of voluntary service;

  • a volunteer information and placement project in the Isle of Lewis

  • a project for Stirling and its surrounding rural areas is looking at the development of a "portable" service approach which could be used to make volunteering more accessible to rural areas.

All projects will run until at least March 1997. The lessons learned from the projects will help to develop the Make a Difference initiative to strengthen the volunteering network throughout Scotland, particularly in rural areas.

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Reviewed 21 April 1997