Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that volunteers who are providing support for isolated people can continue to provide that support throughout the recovery phase of the COVID-19 pandemic.

There has been an overwhelming response from the public with over 3 million people stepping up to volunteer to help those most in need.

Volunteers across the country are playing a vital role in the response to COVID-19, including supporting vulnerable people in the community who are isolating, and complementing the delivery of public services. There are over 589,000 approved NHS Volunteer Responders available in England to help with food delivery, transporting medicines and friendly phone calls, a staggering response to the call to action to support the NHS. The programme supports a flexible model of volunteering, with volunteers able to decide when they are on and off duty, to fit task based volunteering around other commitments and work.

The Government welcomes this support and is working closely with the Voluntary and Community Sector Emergencies Partnership to match the country’s strong base of willing volunteers with priority needs. This includes specific work examining how changing restrictions during the recovery phase may impact on volunteers and volunteering.

The Government is also working closely with the voluntary sector to ensure that volunteer mobilisation schemes are consistently rewarding, effective and safe for all those involved.