ANNUAL REPORT 2008 - 2009 Volunteers areVital Volunteering SA&NT Inc. - Head Office 1st Floor Torrens Building, 220 Victoria Square Adelaide SA 5000 T: 08 8221 7177 F: 08 8221 7188 E: [email protected] W: www.volunteeringsa.org.au Patron’sMessage Volunteers and their simple acts of kindness make an enormous difference to the world in which we live. During my time as Governor of South Australia, and as patron of Volunteering SA&NT (VSA&NT), I’ve seen and heard some inspiring stories of volunteering. I can’t imagine where we would be without the amazing efforts of our emergency service volunteers, the ambos, or organisations like Red Cross and ‘St Vinnies’, the Returned and Services League and Legacy. There are volunteers who care for our environment; clean up graffiti; rescue animals in need; help the disadvantaged; promote the arts, culture and sport; and advance developments in health and education. From a diversity of gender, age, ethnicity, abilities, educational and economic backgrounds, all are highly valued members of our community. Their contribution and commitment help make this State a wonderful place to live. Words can’t describe the huge impact they have in setting an example to others. The economic crisis that has swept the world, followed by the spate of tragic natural disasters in our own country, has impacted heavily on all volunteer organisations. This has placed pressure on funds and on the demand for volunteer effort. Fortunately VSA&NT, as the peak body for volunteering in South Australia and Northern Territory, plays a key role by linking volunteers to organisations and sharing knowledge and resources. We are forever indebted to Mavis Reynolds and Joy Noble, the two dynamic women whose vision resulted in the establishment of the South Australian Volunteer Centre over 26 years ago, which in turn led to the establishment of Volunteering SA Inc. in 1994 and then Volunteering SA&NT Inc. in 2007. I thank everyone associated with VSA&NT for their generous and determined efforts over the past year and wish you all an active, engaging and enjoyable year ahead. His Excellency Rear Admiral Kevin Scarce AC CSC RANR Governor of South Australia Patron of Volunteering SA&NT Volunteers are Vital 1 Chairman’sReport What a challenging year this has been for our organisations, communities and volunteers. Who would have anticipated the global financial crisis, the Queensland floods or the severe crisis caused by the Victorian bushfires? The events of the past year have highlighted the importance of a dynamic volunteering infrastructure to support volunteers and volunteer involving organisations in our community. As has been proven so many times in the past, volunteers are here to help, not only in everyday circumstances, but also in times of hardship and tragedy. In 2008-09 our community has witnessed extraordinary hardships and tragedies, not just locally, but on a national scale too. The global financial crisis has placed enormous strain on our not-for-profit organisations. It will be the volunteer workforce that sustains the sector through this greatest of challenges. We are lucky to have more than 50% of our SA population ready and willing to help in their communities. Demand is growing for volunteering services, particularly in the community services sector, as need for welfare support grows. This places increased pressures on not-for-profit organisations which not only have to cope with the growing demand for their services, but have to recruit and train volunteers. This comes at a cost for those agencies and organisations that help us recruit, train, equip, and protect volunteers in the course of their work. Through our advocacy and capacity building activities, VSA&NT has continued to support volunteer resource centres throughout SA as well as working directly with volunteer involving organisations in SA and NT to enhance volunteer management practice. This year we saw changes within our Ministerial representation in State Parliament. VSA&NT would like to thank Ministers Jennifer Rankin and Paul Caica for their passion, advocacy and support for volunteering. We welcome SA’s new Minister for Volunteers Tom Koutsantonis. As the peak body for volunteering, we look forward to working with the Minister and encouraging his involvement within our sector. We are also pleased to be part of and contribute to the Advancing Communities Together partnership through the Volunteer Ministerial Advisory Group. 2 Annual Report 2008 - 2009 On behalf of VSA&NT, I would like to thank our Federal and State funding partners and sponsors who have worked along side us and shared our commitment to volunteering. Personally, I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Board for their support and commitment. We have had an exceptional team this year. I particularly would like to recognise the work of Sandra Waite over the last four years, particularly her untiring efforts to help build the business of VSA&NT, her contribution to the Compliance Committee, the National Standards project and the Board. Sandra’s knowledge of local government and volunteer management has been invaluable. We wish Sandra well in her new role with the Council at Port Pirie and look forward to her continued involvement in volunteering in our regional communities. Sue Keith began volunteering for VSA&NT in 2007. Over the past two years, Sue has been chosen by her peers to represent them on the VSA&NT Board, holding the position of Volunteer Staff Representative. Sue brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to VSA&NT and although no longer able to be nominated for our Board, we are delighted that Sue’s volunteering at VSA&NT has led to employment with us. Robyn Rouvray retired earlier this year having served 20 months on the VSA&NT Board. I thank Robyn for her valued contributions and in-depth sector knowledge. This year our co-opt Board position was held, although temporarily, by Herb Mack from our Aboriginal Reference Group. Herb has been involved with VSA&NT for many years and we welcomed his community knowledge and passion. Bruce Hammond, Chair of the Aboriginal Reference Group, is the appointed replacement and we look forward to our on-going relationships and support from the Aboriginal Reference Group. In my role as Chairman of VSA&NT I have continued to represent our organisation at many events, conferences and meetings. I have been honoured to serve our Australian volunteering community in leadership roles at both State and National levels as SA Board representative and President of Volunteering Australia, during a time of policy and funding changes. These opportunities were a great privilege and I would again like to thank the Board for their support of me personally and professionally in undertaking these roles. To the staff and volunteers of VSA&NT, we thank you for your endless energy, passion and knowledge, which enable us to grow and serve our valued membership and partners. Volunteers are an incredible resource, who contribute to the ongoing wellbeing of our society, environment and economy. At VSA&NT, we will continue to lead in developing pathways to enhance the growth, management and retention of volunteers and the volunteering experience. This past year the amazing contributions that volunteers provided for our communities when faced with the direst situations has been truly evident. The success of our actions cannot be measured, but certainly have benefits for those in need and for those who provide their time and resources for no financial gain. Volunteers are the unsung heroes of our country. Janet Stone Chairman Volunteering SA&NT Volunteers are Vital 3 CEO’sReport Since joining VSA&NT just over 12 months ago, I have endeavoured to meet as many people from the sector as possible and this has reinforced my belief that I am very fortunate to be surrounded by passionate people, all wanting to make a difference to our communities. Earlier this year, as catastrophes unfolded here and interstate, volunteers stood side by side in the emergency and support services, helping the frail and elderly during heatwaves, working through recovery operations of immense proportions, and supporting charities and local organisations. Some belonged to our member organisations; some were just ordinary people who made extraordinary commitments, often sweeping others up with their overwhelming desire to help others less fortunate. Every day, volunteers are rebuilding and renewing our communities, through their work in our environment, our libraries, aged-care facilities, in sports, the arts, health and with diverse communities – and always in selfless ways that underpin our society. Volunteering goes beyond being a contribution to our economy and environment; it is a personally rewarding way of life, enhancing psychological and physical well-being. At VSA&NT, we work to enrich volunteering experiences and encourage self-reliance in volunteer management, recruitment, retention and recognition of volunteers. One of my first jobs on taking up the position of CEO was implementing our business and operational plans, based on our Strategic Plan 2008 – 2011 goals of Leading, Partnering, Building and Viability, in South Australia and the Northern Territory. Our achievements during the past 12 months, (detailed in ‘Our Measurers’ on pages 6-10), reflect the comprehensive efforts of the VSA&NT workforce, both paid and unpaid; and build on the foundations laid by Moira Deslandes and other previous visionaries at VSA&NT. 4 Annual Report 2008 - 2009 Continuous improvement and quality are key elements of our work ethic and we strive to ensure that these characteristics permeate all our projects and services. We are fortunate too, that our workforce is very stable, ensuring our substantial corporate knowledge remains within the organisation and at the service of all those we work with. We are always working at improving and promoting the interests of volunteering in South Australia and the Northern Territory, whether it be meeting with State or Federal Ministers, promoting issues at national level through Volunteering Australia, providing position papers to guide policy or working on confidential issues within volunteering organisations.