Once the pursuit of students eager for a break before starting university, gap years are now increasingly attracting older generations. People in their 40s and 50s are being tempted by the chance to take time out from a high-pressured job, propel their career in a new direction or just try something new. And often, this involves offering charities their services as volunteers.
Paul Moulton had spent 28 years working in the IT industry when he decided it was time to finally realise his dream of becoming a volunteer. The 51-year-old had grown tired of the corporate daily grind and was keen to try something altruistic and new. So last autumn he took a sabbatical, and jetted off to Costa Rica to lead a team of young people as a volunteer manager for a project – run by sustainable development charity Raleigh International – aimed at protecting the country’s La Cangreja national park.
“It was that time of life when I wanted to try something different and see if I enjoyed it or not,” he explains. “I returned from my sabbatical in January, went back to my job and decided that, actually, that office working environment isn’t really what I want to do anymore..” Moulton has since resigned, started volunteering to help young people pursuing their Duke of Edinburgh award, and is set to work again with young people in Cambodia this summer. “It has really spawned a change of life for me,” he explains.
And when it comes to taking a break from the rat race later in life, Moulton is in good company. High-profile senior volunteers include the former Bank of England governor Sir Mervyn King, Peter Voser, former head of Royal Dutch Shell, and Paul Walsh of drinks-maker Diageo.
Why older gap year volunteers are good news
According to Leonie Martin, marketing manager for Raleigh International, 43% of the charity’s volunteer managers are aged between 25 and 29, more than 32% are aged between 30 and 39, while 9% are aged between 40 and 49. Although only 3% are aged over 50, she claims they are trying to encourage more people from that age group to consider volunteering.
Several factors make older volunteers particularly useful, as Martin explains, they often have specialist skills developed during their career and softer skills, such as flexibility, good communication, and a positive attitude. These are critical for leading a team of inexperienced young people.
Sallie Grayson, programme director at People and Places, an organisation which matches volunteers with projects abroad, agrees that older volunteers can bring huge value to a charity’s operations. Grayson, who founded People and Places 10 years ago, claims they are generally more patient and better prepared for voluntary work, not only professionally but also culturally. Other benefits for a charity or NGO abroad, she notes, are that they know how to work to deadlines, are self motivated, and are “less likely to have broken hearts or be homesick”.
Making the most of older volunteer’s skills
Grayson warns, however, that while an organisation doesn’t have to invest so much in the pastoral care and management of older volunteers compared to other age groups, they do have to invest a lot of time in thinking about how they will use these people meaningfully. The temptation for charities is to take anyone who is willing to volunteer, but it needs to be the right opportunity for both the individual and the organisation.
“To see older volunteers simply as a source of income or an extra pair of hands, will not, in most instances, work,” Grayson adds. “That road only leads to sorrow because there will be unmet, unspoken expectation on both sides.”The first thing that a charity should do is a needs analysis. In other words, what do you need from the volunteers? That will ensure you are hiring the right team for the jobs at hand and it will also be worthwhile for the volunteer.
Fordhall Farm, Britain’s first community owned farm, in Market Drayton in North Shropshire, has learned the importance of tailoring its volunteer opportunities to the skills set of the individual offering their time and services.
One tenant farmer, Charlotte Hollins, has noticed an increasing number of experienced professionals coming to their site. Many, she explains, are looking to give back to the community while they seek out a new direction for their career and generally stay for around six months to a year.
One example of how they’ve successfully harnessed a volunteer’s professional skills is a project to catalogue and make accessible the archives of the farm’s founder, Arthur Hollins. They were transformed by the work of a volunteer with editorial skills. What was initially going to be a simply printed booklet available in-house was eventually published as a book available to buy externally.
“When a volunteer comes forward you don’t necessarily know who they are or their background,” says Hollins. “The first thing you should therefore do as a volunteer manager is to find out about that person – their interests, their skills, why they want to volunteer – to both satisfy their needs as a volunteer and to get more out of it as a charity and organisation.”
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