Is volunteering for everyone? Volunteering opportunities for young ex-offenders
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore volunteering opportunities for young adults with criminal records (“young ex-offenders”).
Design/methodology/approach
The study was conducted primarily in one London borough. It involved mapping volunteering opportunities for young ex-offenders and conducting in-depth interviews with young ex-offenders and practitioners from volunteer-involving organisations (VIOs) and resettlement organisations.
Findings
Several perceived benefits of volunteering for young ex-offenders were identified; particularly in relation to “softer” outcomes such as building confidence, learning new skills and developing a routine. Perceived challenges focused on whether or not organisations were able to provide volunteers with adequate levels of support; concerns about levels of engagement among volunteers and confusion over safeguarding procedures, particularly in relation to the obtaining of Disclosure and Barring Checks.
Originality/value
This paper offers practical insight into the scope of volunteering for young ex-offenders which may be of use to VIOs and resettlement organisations interested in providing such opportunities to young ex-offenders.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
This project was made possible by funding from the Paul Hamlyn Foundation and the Barrow Cadbury Trust. Thanks must go to Dr Jessica Jacobson and Dr Andrew Curtis for their comments upon earlier drafts of this paper and to Dr Nina Burrowes, Joanna Stuart and Oonagh Skrine for their contributions to the wider study.
Citation
Kirby, A. (2016), "Is volunteering for everyone? Volunteering opportunities for young ex-offenders", Safer Communities, Vol. 15 No. 2, pp. 82-93. https://doi.org/10.1108/SC-09-2015-0032
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2016, Emerald Group Publishing Limited