Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessments they have made of the value of creating a legal status for those participating in full-time, long-term volunteering programmes, such as those run by City Year UK, vInspired and Volunteering Matters, under the proposed National Citizen Service Bill<i>.</i>

The National Citizen Service Bill will place the NCS programme on permanent statutory footing. It is estimated that NCS participants have dedicated over 8 million hours of volunteering to their local communities to date. Other opportunities for young people to participate in social action, such as those run by City Year UK, vInspired and Volunteering Matters, have contributed to the success of NCS and made sure that young people have opportunities to develop new skills that extend and transform their life chances. The government is committed to increasing volunteering and social action, and to providing support for different opportunities and programmes that encourage volunteering.