Volunteers play a significant role in Australia, but numbers are dropping

National Volunteers Week runs from 19th to 25th May each year. It celebrates the important contributions volunteers make to Australian society. However, the number of volunteers in Australia has been in decline in recent years, prompting calls for the government to provide more support for those offering their time and skills for free.

Source: Getty / Getty Images

Key Points

• Nearly 6 million Australians volunteer annually.
• This year’s theme is Connecting Communities, highlighting volunteers’ role in building stronger connections.
• Volunteering Australia’s CEO, Mark Pearce, says numbers of volunteers have been dropping and points to barriers like out-of-pocket costs and insufficient training as reasons for the decline.

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Volunteers play a significant role in Australia, but numbers are dropping

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