What have we learned so far about COVID-19 volunteering in the UK? A rapid review of the literature

Abstract

BackgroundCommunity engagement and volunteering are essential for the public response to COVID-19. Since March 2020 a large number of people in the UK have been regularly doing unpaid activities to benefit others besides their close relatives. Although most mutual aid groups emerged from local neighbourhoods and communities, official public institutions also fostered community volunteering, namely through the community champions scheme. By considering a broad definition of COVID-19 volunteering, this article describes a systematic review of the literature focused on two broad questions: What have we learned so far from COVID-19 volunteering both at the UK national level and the more local community level? What have we learned from engagement with local communities and community champions during the COVID-19 period?MethodsA rapid review of the literature in peer-reviewed databases and grey literature was applied in our search, following the PRISMA principles. The search was conducted from 10 to 16 of October 2020, and sources were included on the basis of having been published between January and October 2020, focusing on COVID-19 and addressing community groups, volunteering groups, volunteers, or community champions in the UK.ResultsAfter initial screening, a total of 40 relevant sources were identified. From these, 28 were considered eligible. Findings suggest that food shopping and emotional support were the most common activities, but there were diverse models of organisation and coordination in COVID-19 volunteering. Additionally, community support groups seem to be adjusting their activities and scope of action to current needs and challenges. Volunteers were mostly women, middle-class, highly educated, and working-age people. Social networks and connections, local knowledge, and social trust were key dimensions associated with community organising and volunteering. Furthermore, despite the efforts of a few official public institutions and councils, there has been limited community engagement and collaboration with volunteering groups and other community-based organisations.ConclusionsWe identified important factors for fostering community engagement and COVID volunteering as well as gaps in the current literature. We suggest that future research should be directed towards deepening knowledge on sustaining community engagement, collaboration and community participation over time, during and beyond this pandemic.

Doing it for us: Community identification predicts willingness to receive aCOVID‐19 vaccination via perceived sense of duty to the community

“…These observations suggest that, to a significant extent, the pandemic has been understood and addressed by people at a local community level: a conclusion that has been reinforced further by the rise of COVID‐19 mutual aid groups (Bowe et al, 2021; Tiratelli & Kaye, 2020; Wakefield, Bowe, & Kellezi, 2021). These groups involve volunteers working together to support the most vulnerable in their community (e.g., the elderly, those with chronic illness, and others who were advised to shield themselves fully from the virus) by delivering food and medicine, sharing information and providing practical and emotional support (Mao, Fernandes‐Jesus, Ntontis, & Drury, 2020). A range of work which has explored the collective provision of support in the aftermath of disasters has concluded that this behaviour tends to emerge from a shared sense of social identity (for a review, see Drury, 2018).…”

School and Employment-Related Barriers for Youth and Young Adults with and without a Disability during the COVID-19 Pandemic in the Greater Toronto Area

“…Youth who volunteer often have higher levels of educational aspirations and self-esteem and are more likely to earn post-graduate degrees [18]. A recent review of volunteering during the COVID-19 pandemic found that volunteers were mostly women, middle-class, highly educated, and working-aged [19]. Strong social networks, local knowledge, and social trust were associated with volunteering during the pandemic [19].…”

“…A recent review of volunteering during the COVID-19 pandemic found that volunteers were mostly women, middle-class, highly educated, and working-aged [19]. Strong social networks, local knowledge, and social trust were associated with volunteering during the pandemic [19]. For example, a recent study exploring the experiences of healthcare students volunteering during the pandemic reported many benefits, including a high degree of satisfaction and attaining professional skills [20].…”

“…The researchers took notes during and shortly following the interview. Our interview guide (Supplementary File S1) was informed by the recent literature on schoolwork transitions [37] and employment, volunteering, and schooling during pandemics and similar disruptive events [12,19,20,[38][39][40][41]. Questions were asked about school and employment status, career plans before the pandemic, and how COVID-19 affected them, including psychosocial issues (see Supplemental File).…”

Волонтерское Участие Молодежи В Период Пандемии: Портрет Героя Сложного Времени

“…Координация добровольцев в чрезвычайных ситуациях играет важную роль в обеспечении безопасности самих волонтеров и тех людей, кому они помогают [Kulik, Arnon, Dolev, 2016 [Trautwein et al, 2020], поддерживали некоммерческие органи зации, например, в сфере досуга изолированных благополучателей [Lachance, 2021]. Покупка продуктов питания и эмоциональная поддержка были и остаются наиболее распространенными видами волонтерства в период распространения COVID19 [Mao et al, 2020].…”