Infrastructure: Managing, Supporting and Developing Volunteers

The infrastructure required to resource and operate a volunteer programme is sizable, including leadership, direction and vision for involving volunteers, an implementation framework, operating procedures and appropriate role descriptions, and an effective system of ‘on the ground’ delivery and support (Choudhury, 2010). Each of these have costs attached. Volunteers are not ‘free’ and considerable infrastructure is required to ensure that programmes are able to deliver the services they intend to (Hucklesby and Corcoran, 2016). Cordery et al. (2015) assert that the organisations that benefit most from volunteers are those with well-organised and resourced volunteer programmes. Indeed, it is the underpinning infrastructure that enables features shown in this chapter to be important in volunteering to be delivered (or not):

motivations that are identified and understood; opportunities for volunteers to fulfil their motivations through meaningful contributions; and an environment where

volunteers feel recognised and appreciated, and regularly engage with paid members of staff. Each of these have been linked to volunteer satisfaction, organisational commitment, and increased likelihood that a volunteer will continue to give their time. Three themes emerge from the literature around volunteer programme infrastructure: leadership, investment, and tasking. This section explores each of these areas – first from a broader volunteer perspective, then turning to police volunteer programmes specifically.

2.6.1. Volunteer Leadership

The literature refers to two levels of volunteer leadership – strategic and ‘on the ground’. Turning first to strategic matters, securing ‘buy in’ from senior leaders in an organisation to embrace and deliver a volunteer programme, together with written policies to govern their involvement, is an important starting point (Brudney, 2000).

Grossman and Furano (1999: 215) argue that organisations need initial buy in for volunteer programmes, together with a clear understanding of “how the volunteers will help it better achieve its missions”. While the importance of senior level commitment for involving volunteers is undisputed, numerous studies (e.g., Gill, 1986;

Brudney and Kellough, 2000; Choudhury, 2010; Cordery et al., 2015) have highlighted

‘on the ground’ paid management and co-ordination as perhaps the most crucial level of volunteer leadership. Indeed, proactive managers play a vital role in programme implementation, engagement, and communication, together with delivering a range of factors which have been identified as important to successful involvement of volunteers: job descriptions that clarify volunteer and paid staff roles, induction to and orientation within the organisation, training and development, schedule flexibility, reward and recognition, supporting integration with the paid workforce, and access to adequate resources (Davis et al., 2003; Compact Code of Good Practice on Volunteering, 2005; Wisner et al., 2005; Cordery et al., 2015). Brudney (2000) highlighted the importance of a significant proportion of volunteer manager work time being devoted to coordinating and supervising volunteers, demonstrating a strong correlation between this and perceived benefits of using volunteers within an

measure the performance of volunteer programmes, Cordery et al.’s. (2015) study of two health non-profit organisations found that voluntary programmes that employed paid dedicated volunteer managers, adopted good volunteer management practices, and relied on volunteers for a substantial proportion of their service delivery, were most likely to perform well on the NBI.

2.6.2. Investing in Volunteers

Training and development have been shown to hold great value in the volunteering sphere, engaging individuals, signalling that they are valued, and helping them to integrate within, and build up commitment to, the organisation (Gill, 1986; Brudney, 2000; Clamp, 2014). In their schools-based study, Grossman and Furano (1999: 270) pointed to the importance of orientation and training in making volunteers feel comfortable within the school culture and positively impacting on teacher views of whether volunteers were “interlopers or valuable assets”. Furthermore, volunteers in not-for-profit human service agencies in Jamison’s (2003) study were considerably more likely to state that they were unsatisfied with their volunteer experience if they had received no training, and significantly less likely to state that they were satisfied compared to those who had received training. The author points to the importance of training that goes beyond a volunteer being adequately skilled to carry out tasks.

Indeed, training can provide orientation within the organisation, communicate the agency’s mission and the volunteer’s role within it, and bring together volunteers, both with each other and staff members. Despite this, Brudney and Kellough (2000) suggest that ongoing training and development is often notably underdeveloped for volunteers, with only 12 per cent of respondents in their study of volunteer involvement in US state government departments providing ongoing training and professional development for volunteers. Grossman and Furano (1999) also comment on the sparse training landscape for volunteers – going as far to argue that, in some organisations, training and development for volunteers is overlooked altogether.

Informal and formal reward and recognition – particularly that which is consistent with a volunteer’s motivations – are an important feature of volunteer involvement, signalling the value of the volunteer and their role within the organisation (Wisner et al., 2005). In their study of volunteer personnel in an Australian state-based emergency service provider, Rice and Fallon (2011) identified recognition as a key factor in volunteer satisfaction and intention to remain committed to the organisation in the longer term. Clark and Wilson (1961) argued that all organisations must provide tangible or intangible incentives to individuals in exchange for their contributions, whether in a paid or voluntary capacity. Indeed, rational choice theory suggests that individuals are unlikely to contribute unless they profit in return. In the absence of a salary, intangible rewards include having a stake in the organisations’ field of influence, social benefits, opportunities for interaction and feeling part of a community, status, fulfilment not received in other areas of life, and interpersonal reward and recognition of volunteering efforts (Clark and Wilson, 1961; Wilson, 2000).

Wilson and Musick (1997: 709) referred to these as the “symbolic and expressive

‘goods’ that articulate the organisations’ values” with people generally stopping volunteering because they feel that their efforts are unrecognised, that their skills and interests are not suitably matched to roles, or that they are not afforded enough autonomy to give their service as they wish (Wilson, 2000).

2.6.3. Tasking Volunteers

Engaging new volunteers in worthwhile organisational activities is an important focus for volunteer managers. Indeed, the “worst personnel mistake”, according to Penner (2002: 464) is to have no tasks for a new volunteer recruit. Jamison (2003) argues that even where volunteers have adequate supervision, good interpersonal relationships, and equitable treatment by paid staff – features that have been identified throughout the literature as important to the volunteer experience – if tasks are not challenging or fail to provide opportunities for development or growth, volunteer satisfaction will be lacking.

Creating small but ‘make a difference’ tasking opportunities can provide both volunteers and paid staff with an understanding of how volunteer roles contribute to the mission of the organisation (Grossman and Furano, 1999; Choudhury, 2010).

Furthermore, roles that offer volunteers decision-making capacity and opportunities to consider the direction of the organisation can strengthen attachment, and commitment to the volunteer role and environment, and a sense of role identity (Grube and Piliavin, 2000; Laverie and McDonald, 2007). Wilson (2000: 223) argues that being able to view themselves as ‘the kind of person who helps others’ is sometimes more important to volunteers than receiving praise – perhaps pointing to reasons why people are often willing to volunteer for demanding or challenging roles, over the mundane or trivial. However, creating fulfilling volunteer opportunities and balancing these appropriately alongside paid positions can be problematic, particularly in an organisation where the paid workforce may be unaware of the presence of volunteers or how to involve them (Brudney, 2000; Cordery et al., 2015;

Minoura, 2018). As Gill (1986: 352) argues “underworked but willing volunteers” can feel alienated and disillusioned and are “anathema to the agency cause”.

2.6.4. Police Volunteer Leadership

Reflecting broader volunteering contexts, leadership is a crucial element of involving volunteers in policing. This is recognised in the College of Policing PSV Action Plan (undated) which contains a leadership strand promoting the role of senior management in actively demonstrating support, embedding volunteers in force strategy, ensuring that officers understand and engage with volunteering, and providing training for officers and staff in managing and leading volunteers. At a more operational level, Callender et al. (2019) reported a strong association between factors relating to management, supervision, and PSV morale, while PSVs in Bullock’s (2017) study positioned their much-valued management team as essential to the operation of the volunteer programme.However, studies (e.g., Wilkins, 2008; Bullock, 2017) have pointed to variance in the level of supervision, guidance and management for PSVs, with similar themes noted for Special Constables. Indeed, only around half

(55%) of Specials in Bullock and Leeney’s (2014) study agreed that they received sufficient support to conduct their current role, 45 per cent that they received regular supervision, and fewer than 30 per cent that they were provided with regular feedback on their performance. Whittle (2014) noted the importance of good volunteer management for Special Constables, arguing that poor management and tasking can lead to disengagement.

2.6.5. Investing in Police Volunteers

Poor or inadequate training, development, and support can feed perceptions that volunteers are ‘amateurs’, contributing to the low status sometimes afforded to them by members of the paid workforce, and presenting a risk to volunteers, the community, and the reputation of the organisation itself (particularly in frontline, operational services such as policing) (Gill, 1986; Bullock and Leeney, 2014; Dobrin et al., 2019). Despite this, only two-thirds (69%) of PSV respondents in Callender et al.’s.

(2019) survey indicated that their initial training was enough to be effective when they began their volunteering role, while just over half (53%) agreed that they received sufficient ongoing training to remain effective in their role. PSVs in Bullock’s (2017) study also highlighted inconsistencies around availability of training and development (possibly due to limited hours of PSVs which do not correspond with training schedules), with some PSVs receiving little, if any support, and frustration at not getting feedback on their contribution – both of which can have implications for feeling valued. Similar findings have been noted for volunteer Special Constables. In Gaston and Alexander’s (2001) research with serving and former Special Constables, around a quarter of current volunteer officers were dissatisfied with the training they received, increasing to a third for those who had resigned.

In their study of Special Constables, Bullock and Leeney (2014) argue that, in the absence of pay, efforts to make volunteers feel valued – including training, development, and recognition – take on greater significance. Indeed, results of Callender et al.’s (2018b) survey of Special Constables identified several key factors associated with morale including feeling recognised and appreciated for their service

and contribution, their perspectives on the adequacy of supervision and related personal and professional support and opportunities for feedback, and their perceptions of being treated fairly. However, again, police volunteers have reported mixed experiences here. For example, just over three-quarters (75%) of serving Special Constables in Gaston and Alexander’s (2001) study declared that they felt valued all or most of the time, dropping to 64 per cent for former Special Constables.

Only half (50%) of Specials in Bullock and Leeney’s (2014) study agreed that they were personally valued by the police service, while almost 40 per cent surveyed in Whittle’s (2014) research did not feel valued, or only felt valued to an extent.

Processes of training, recognising, and engaging volunteers have been shown to carry a broader role than simply skilling up an individual to carry out their role – developing feelings of connection between volunteers and the organisation (Callender et al., 2019). These features play a part in establishing role identity, which has been shown to be a critical feature in maintaining long-term volunteer activity (Penner and Finkelstein, 1998). The findings from Gaston and Alexander’s (2001) work outlined earlier is a case in point here – with greater levels of dissatisfaction with training and lower agreement with statements around feeling valued noted from Specials who had resigned, compared to those currently still serving.

2.6.6. Tasking Police Volunteers

Identifying well-defined and meaningful tasks that fill time and expectations and, ideally, ‘speak to’ volunteer skills is an integral part of effectively involving volunteers in policing (Gill, 1986; Bullock, 2017). However, this often proves a difficult balance to strike. Volunteer managers in Bullock’s (2017) study spoke about the challenges they faced in avoiding PSVs from ‘twiddling their thumbs’, while also not overburdening them with tasks. Literature would suggest that the police service have often failed to successfully meet this challenge though, with the scales tipped towards the former – thumb twiddling – rather than volunteers having too many tasks.

Indeed, feeling underused was an issue for PSVs in Millie’s (2019) study, while in a survey of PSVs, not being used or being under involved was one of the top reasons for

PSVs intending to leave their volunteering role (Callender et al., 2018a). Turning to Special Constables, Gaston and Alexander (2001) reported less than half (48%) of serving volunteer officers, and even fewer (39%) of those now resigned who thought that the police service used them effectively all or most of the time. In addition, 10 per cent of serving and 16 per cent of former Special Constables stated that they were never or seldom deployed effectively. Feeling ‘well used’ as a volunteer is important.

Studies of Special Constables suggest that those deployed in specialist or more responsible roles tend to derive greater satisfaction from their voluntary positions, remain for a longer period, and feel that the organisation perceive them as more of a

‘professional’ (Bullock and Leeney, 2014; Wolf et al., 2016). Failing to utilise volunteers effectively can lead to lack of motivation and commitment of both volunteer and police service, poor co-ordination and acceptance of volunteers, and reputational risk for the police service (Bullock, 2017).

2.6.7. Volunteer Programme Infrastructures: Realising Benefits and Avoiding Pitfalls

An adequate infrastructure and careful programme design enable organisations – both police services and other sectors – to “realise the benefits and avoid the pitfalls of using volunteers” (Brudney, 2000: 219). Indeed, Brudney (2000) goes on to argue that programmes that are not allocated adequate resources cannot be expected to accomplish their goals and may bring additional strain to the paid workforce. Perhaps unsurprisingly, agencies with developed and properly resourced volunteering programmes are the most likely to reap benefits (Brudney and Kellough, 2000).

Grossman and Furano (1999: 199) posit that:

“the effectiveness of volunteers depends critically on the support they receive from the programs in which they work… they cannot simply be turned loose and left to their own devices without training or supervision…

Unless there is an infrastructure in place to support and direct their efforts,

they will remain at best ineffective or, worse, become disenchanted and withdraw, potentially damaging recipients of services in the process”.

Indeed, failing to allocate adequate resources can be the downfall of volunteer programmes, leaving only ‘fervour’ – not just insufficient but ‘potentially treacherous’

according to Freedman (1992 in Grossman and Furano, 1999: 218).

These themes have been reflected across the more limited pool of police volunteer literature. In their study of Special Constables, Gaston and Alexander (2001: 60) assert that “failing to manage this resource effectively not only constitutes a missed opportunity but may also lead to inefficiencies, increased costs and dysfunctional relationships between volunteers and members of the paid workforce”. Lack of adequate support, development, and integration of volunteers holds implications for how they are involved in policing. Creating an infrastructure that incorporates each of these elements demands resources and poses challenges in terms of balancing the required costs alongside the part time, possibly short-term, infrequent, or sporadic nature of volunteering. However, Bullock and Leeney (2014: 501) suggest that such a challenge is worthy of consideration, arguing that striking such a balance may hold the key to effective deployment of volunteers.