The Volunteer agreement
A Volunteer Agreement will help your organisation and your volunteers work well together. It should contain what the organisation expects from and what it offers to the volunteer. A written individual volunteer agreement is helpful so that everybody has clear expectations from the start. An agreement should also explain what to do if problems arise down the line.
Top tips for creating a volunteer agreement:
- Remember that your agreement is NOT a contract of employment, although it may contain some similar items such as how expenses are paid or how disputes are to be resolved.
- Try to avoid using language found in employment contracts.
- Keep your agreement simple, clear, inclusive and friendly.
- Keep it short – one side of A4 can be enough for an individual agreement. This can be challenge as there is always lots to communicate, so try to include just the essentials in writing. You have lots of other ways to communicate too – team meetings, internal newsletters, your website or your volunteer handbook.
Your organisation should decide what your agreement should cover, however we have created a template which can be used a starting point.
If you need further support please contact our volunteer team.