Welcome to the Scotland section of the Investing in Volunteers website, which is for organisations which are based in Scotland, or are registered as a charity in Scotland.
Investing in Volunteers in Scotland is managed by Volunteer Scotland [VS]. For more information about Volunteer Scotland, please visit www.volunteerscotland.org.uk For all Investing in Volunteers enquiries, please email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
VS considers Investing in Volunteers to be a very effective tool to aid development to help ensure that your volunteers’ management is as good as it can be.
First Step
When you decide to find out more about IiV, your first step will be to register interest. You are making no committment by registering, it's a helpful way for us to gather the information we need to calculate the correct assessment fee for you. Please complete the registration process giving as much information as possible; the fee you will pay is based on the number of volunteers you have, taking into account the number of roles and the number of sites/bases you have. The Investing in Volunteers Manager at Volunteer Scotland will then contact you to discuss the price and process for your organisation to achieve Investing in Volunteers.
The IiV fee and Payment Plans
If you are ready to go ahead we will also discuss how you would prefer to pay, or example, you can pay in full, or in up to 6 installments which can be spread over 2 financial years if this makes it easier for you. The balance of the fee is payable before the final assessment. The IiV Manager will discuss this to find the best arrangement for you. Volunteer Scotland will issue an IiV agreement for you to sign and return, then your invoice will be sent to you.
Payment will last for one year from the date of receipt by VS, in which time we would expect your organisation to complete the assessment process. Organisations which do not do this may be asked to pay a further fee, but extensions can be agreed where circumstances have changed e.g key staff changes - please discuss this with your assigned assessor or the IiV Manager at Volunteer Scotland as soon as possible if you think you will need an extension. If you decide to withdraw from the process before completion no refund can be given.
Step In to IiV
If you are not quite ready for the whole process, but would like to check out how your organisation's practice matches against the IiV standard we now offer another approach. Step In to IiV has been designed to encourage organisations to develop their practice - at their own pace and with support. This is an opportunity to make a start and pay only £300 at this stage.
Payment of this initial fee will allow you to have the services of an IiV approved Advisor who will
- Deliver the Introductory workshop at your premises and,
- Give you feedback on your Self-Assessment and suggestions on how to fill gaps in your practice.
By working through the self assessment you will identify the development required in order to meet the IiV standard. If you decide to complete the process and go for full accreditation, within 12 months of your workshop, the £300 you have already paid will be deducted from your total fee. You will then be invoiced for the balance, and can arrange a suitable plan for payments as above. As before, the final part of the fee is payable before your final assessment. Volunteer Scotland hopes that offering this staged approach will enable organisations to engage with Investing in Volunteers, develop their practice and progress to full accreditation.
Connections with IiV Achievers
We are excited to launch this new initiative "Connections with IiV Achievers", which has been designed in partnership with achievers to assist individuals and organisations with the development of volunteer participation. Connections aims to create a space where individuals and organisations can explore their understanding of volunteering, its current trends, changes in climate, best practice and how it connects to the wider community locally and nationally.
This FREE programme to IiV achievers offers 3 different types of connections; all meetings will be held at Volunteer Scotland's office in Stirling, and followed by a networking lunch from 12.30pm until 1.30pm:
Connections Workshops with Guest Speakers
Each connections workshop will have a guest speaker who will talk about a topic and how it will affect and benefit your volunteer programme, these workshops will also allow you to explore each topic and have a round table discussion with other IiV achiever organisation.
Connections Best Practice Group Meetings
This group will be exploring the IiV quality standard framework, looking at the IiV process and how we can develop IiV in Scotland.
Buddy Mentoring
The buddy mentoring programme is for IiV achievers to buddy and mentor new organisations going through IiV, using your own experience from achieving IiV to provide support, give advice, guidance and share best practice.
For more information on any of the above phone 01786 479593, or go to the website