What is a suitable Volunteer Advert?

Advertising your volunteer opportunity on Can Do - What is suitable?

• Among other functions, Can Do Bristol enables groups and organisations to recruit Bristol based volunteers. 
• Can Do Bristol is not responsible for the precise content of organisations’ adverts but our admin team do ensure each opportunity meets a minimum criteria. 

We aim for one of the following 3 actions below to be undertaken within 3-5 working days of receiving your opportunity:- 

1. Approved: Your opportunity will be made 'live' and members will be able to pledge to it.
2. Deleted: Your opportunity will be deleted and we will contact you to explain why. 
3. Pending: Your opportunity will be saved but kept hidden. We will contact you for more information. 

1. Approved opportunities 

The following criteria guide our admin team to approve volunteer adverts for the benefit of Bristol residents and communities: - 

Organisation: 

• The recruiting organisation must be based in Bristol or within 5 miles of the Bristol boundary / Bristol city centre. See map. 

Volunteer Opportunities (Activities): 

• Must be based in Bristol, take place within 5 miles of the Bristol boundary or specify that they are an “International Project” 
• Community benefit – the opportunity should have some benefit to a community (i.e. geographic area or people group). 
• Must not be paid (this does not include reimbursement of expenses) 
• Anyone with the required skills and availability should be able to take part 

2. Unapproved opportunities (deleted)

Can Do Bristol retains the right to reject or delete any opportunities which contravene the above criteria or contain material which:- 

• Is defamatory of any other person. 
• Is obscene or offensive 
• Promotes discrimination based on race, sex, religion, nationality, disability, sexual orientation or age. 
• Promotes religious or political beliefs. 
• Contains unsolicited or unauthorised advertising or promotional material. 

Can Do Bristol will not promote any of the following: paid roles, unpaid internships and unpaid roles which assist in a for-profit organisation raising revenue. We do encourage for-profit organisations recruiting volunteers for their charitable purposes. 

3. Pending opportunities 

We may contact you to edit your opportunity before approval if the opportunity:- 

1. lacks important/relevant information (e.g. time commitment) 
2. lacks an accompanying image
3. isn’t clear about its objectives or there are concerns that it doesn’t fall under a voluntary role

We may also ask for clarification if there is uncertainty regarding the organisation/individual posting the opportunity. 

North Somerset and South Gloucestershire  

As the name suggests, Can Do has been created to serve communities and organisations in Bristol. We do recognise, however, that there are areas in North Somerset and South Gloucestershire which fall into the Greater Bristol area.  With that in mind, your opportunity must meet the following criteria: 

• Place based activities: must take place within 5 miles of Bristol City boundary 
• Homebased opportunities: the majority of project beneficiaries must be based within the same boundary. 

National volunteering: 

We welcome national and Bristol based organisations promoting their volunteering via Can Do, however, opportunities must meet one of the following criteria: 

• Place based activities: must be accessible from home or based in Bristol. 
• A significant proportion of beneficiaries must be based in Bristol. 

Your responsibilities 

Can Do Bristol will promote your volunteering opportunity, it is your organisations responsibility to:- 

• Follow up with volunteers who pledge to your opportunity. 
• Carry out appropriate background checks on prospective volunteers. 
• Risk assess your volunteer activity (with appropriate action taken). 
• Ensure your organisation has the appropriate standard of insurance and public liability for your activities. 

• Give an appropriate level of support and guidance for the role being undertaken. 
• Update your activity if there are significant changes. 

Individuals offering help 

We request that individuals offering their time and skills refrain from uploading this as a volunteering opportunity; this is in order to ensure that members pledging to opportunities can be assured of a high standard of safety. 

If you are an individual and seeking to make a positive difference, you may wish to:- 

1. Find a pre-existing volunteering opportunity 

1. Share an idea and get others involved via the conversations function 

Support 

Can Do Bristol is currently licenced and managed by Bristol City Council. If you have a query, concern or would like to raise a complaint, please direct these to the Community Resources team by either:- 

1. Emailing neighbourhoodsandcommunities@bristol.gov.uk  

1. Or messaging the Community Resources profile on Can Do Bristol 

Last updated: Sept 2022