Volunteers in fieldwork

A volunteer is defined as someone who is volunteering to undertake unpaid work on a project for whatever reason, either as part of an organised scheme or as someone seeking experience.

The basic rules are:

• The volunteer must be over the age of 18
• A suitable and sufficient risk assessment must be in place for the work and the volunteer must be made aware of this, must read it and must be supervised to the extent mentioned in the assessment (bearing in mind they might not be as experienced or as well trained as employees and leaders).
• A named fieldwork leader should take the supervisory responsibility as above and should be suitably trained, experienced and competent in the work being undertaken.
• Volunteers are held to the same level of accountability as employees and students.
• We, and everyone on a trip, has a responsibility for their own health and safety and that of others (including staff, students, volunteers and members of the public).
• UoY Employer's Liability insurance will then apply
• UoY Public Liability insurance will also apply
• Failure to follow the above could render the insurance invalid, leaving the University open to criminal and civil costs in court.
• Failure to follow the above could also render the University and its agents open to criminal prosecution in a Crown Court.

We are in the process of writing a more formal document to cover the use of volunteers in longer projects and to cover multiple collaborators and project partners.

What will the policy aim to achieve

The volunteer policy will set out our approach to volunteering. It will document how we will treat volunteers and what their roles can be within the department

Why do we need a policy for volunteers

• So we can show our commitment to our volunteers
• Ensure that we treat all volunteers fairly and consistently
• Permit volunteers to see what they can expect from us
• Demonstrate a pathway for volunteers to raise issues and concerns
• So that all staff, students and volunteers understand their role in the department and its projects
• To ensure that we do not offer things to volunteers that we cannot deliver

The policy will include:

• How volunteers will be recruited
• How we apply the tenets of fairness and equity to volunteers
• To determine a volunteer induction and training process
• The supervision and support available to volunteers on projects
• Our arrangements to ensure the health and safety of our volunteers
• To convey issues of confidentiality and data protection in volunteer projects
• To ensure projects are ethically responsible towards volunteers
• How we can support problem solving and complaints procedures for volunteers