Volunteers Week 2021: Shout 85258 releases new report into benefits of volunteering

Today we've released our first Shout Volunteer report, celebrating the work our volunteers do and giving an insight into their crucial roles.

It’s been two years since Shout 85258 was publicly launched, and since then we have trained a network of nearly 7,000 volunteers in the UK and across the globe in New Zealand. Every day they selflessly suppor people round the clock with issues that include suicide, depression, anxiety, loneliness, relationships and self-harm.

The report shares anonymous feedback of Shout Volunteers and insights into the impact that volunteering for Shout has on their lives and wellbeing. It contains data from our 2021 Shout Volunteer Survey as well as our Equality and Diversity benchmarking exercise.

Among our key findings, we have identified the following insights:

• Volunteering for Shout not only benefits our texters but also the volunteers too: 91% say they have been able to use their skills outside the service to help themselves, their families, friends and co-workers in their day-to-day lives.
• Whilst the Covid-19 pandemic has disrupted life as we know it in the UK, volunteering for Shout has been an opportunity to retain a sense of purpose for many, with 95% saying that volunteering for Shout gives them a sense of accomplishment and 74% agreeing that it gives them a greater sense of wellbeing.
• Many people wanted to give back and help others during the pandemic, and 50% of our volunteers joined Shout during this period.
• 84% agree that volunteering with Shout helps them to be better listeners and has increased their sense of empathy.
• Our Shout Volunteer community is largely representative of the UK population in terms of ethnicity, but we are embarking on a number of partnership initiatives.to recruit even more volunteers from diverse communities and in order to do so.
• The Shout service has a high percentage of LGBTQ+ volunteers, with one in five identifying as LGBTQ+.

To read the report in full, visit https://giveusashout.org/latest/shout-volunteer-report-2021/