The first meeting of the Volunteering Policy Advisory Group was held on 23 October 2009.  The Advisory Group, appointed and chaired by Parliamentary Secretary for Social Inclusion and the Voluntary Sector, Senator Ursula Stephens, will be a key source of expertise and advice to guide Australia’s vision for volunteering to 2021.

Senator Stephens also chaired a video-conference with State and Territory Ministers on 23 October 2009 to work collaboratively towards a National Volunteering Strategy. The Strategy will formally recognise the importance of volunteering in Australia and outline the Australian Government’s commitments to supporting and encouraging Australia’s diverse volunteers.

The Strategy will be released in 2011 in time to mark the 10th anniversary of the United Nations Year of Volunteering.

Senator Stephens said volunteers are crucial to the wellbeing of our society.

“Volunteering delivers a number of key social and economic benefits including creating supporting community resilience, enriching our cultural life and protecting out natural environment.”

Ministers agreed to meet again to progress their collaborative work on a National Volunteering Strategy.

To learn more about the National Volunteering Strategy, or read the communiqué from the first meeting of the Volunteering Policy Advisory Group, you can access them below.

• National Volunteering Strategy Backgound Paper ( PDF 48KB | RTF 55KB)
• Communiqué from the first meeting of the Volunteering Policy Advisory Group
  ( PDF 26KB | RTF 32KB)

To read the full media releases, please visit the Ministers Media Centre.