Your rights as a volunteer
We work hard to ensure all of the opportunities on our interactive volunteering system are from reputable organisations who follow best practice in volunteer management.
If you volunteer, you will normally be given a volunteer agreement or information pack. The volunteer agreement should explain:
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what supervision and support you'll get
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the training you'll get
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insurance cover
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equal opportunities
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what out-of-pocket expenses the organisation will cover
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health and safety
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Some volunteer positions may require criminal record checks
Health and safety
Under health and safety law, an organisation only has to have one paid employee to be an employer. If you're volunteering for an employer, it must assess any risks to your health and safety and take steps to reduce them. This is the same as if you were a paid employee.
If there are different health and safety risks for volunteers than employees, then the protection you're given should reflect this.
Pay, expenses and training
As a volunteer, you'll generally be excluded from the National Minimum Wage and receive only basic expenses for your work. Expenses don't count as wages, as they're repayment for costs that only came about through volunteering. Normally expenses will be limited to money for travel, food and drink, as well as repayments for things you have had to buy for your work.
If you receive any 'perks' as a volunteer, these should be limited to what you need while working. This could include food and drink and, if you are doing work away from home, accommodation. Training for your work may also be provided.
If you receive any other payment or benefit in kind for volunteering, you may be classed as in a contractual relationship like an ' employee' or a 'worker'. These categories have a specific meaning and have particular employment rights associated with them.
You might be classified as an employee if you get certain kinds of benefits in the role - for example, if you are:
receiving training that's not directly relevant to your voluntary work
receiving a fixed regular amount for 'expenses' that is more than you spend
Please let us know if this is happening so we can warn the volunteering provider that they are in breach of UK employment legislation.
Data protection
As a volunteer, you have the same rights under the Data Protection Act as an employee. This means the organisation you're volunteering for must comply with rules on personal data about you held on a computer or in paper files. They can't process any of this data without your permission.
Right to say no
As a volunteer you have the right to, well, not volunteer! If an organisation is coming to rely on you too heavily, asks you to sign any kind of contract stating you have to come in at certain times or asks you to do something you're not comfortable with, it's fine to say no. You can always refer back to your initial role description on our volunteering website and highlight what your agreed duties are.
Please let us know if an organisation you are volunteering with are not following these requirements by emailing volunteering@eusa.ed.ac.uk or by dropping into the Connect Centre in Potterrow.