Policy
Submissions

Maintaining a strong volunteering sector in Victoria is a broad remit and responsibility. Volunteering Victoria has finite resources to react and act proactively to ensure there is a thriving volunteering workforce. Our advocacy framework outlines the approach Volunteering Victoria uses to undertake our advocacy role.
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2023 Submissions

Submission to ‘A stronger more diverse community sector’

November 2023
In response to the Australian Government Department of Social Services’ Issues Paper on the approach to grant funding for the community sector, Volunteering Victoria has published a submission calling for:
  1. longer-term grants
  2. investment into local place-based infrastructure
  3. appropriate resourcing for volunteering, given its essential role in the delivery of funded services
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Submission to Multicultural Framework Review

October 2023

Volunteering Victoria welcomes the Multicultural Framework Review and the opportunity to highlight the importance of multicultural volunteering in building inclusive, cohesive, and resilient societies.

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Submission to Inquiry into the 2022 Flooding Event in Victoria

June 2023

The Legislative Council Environment and Planning Committee is currently investigating Victoria’s preparedness for, and response to, Victoria’s major flooding event. This submission draws attention to the need for appropriate planning and co-ordination for the role of spontaneous volunteers

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Submission to Productivity Commission Philanthropy Inquiry

May 2023

This submission outlines how volunteering is a critical and distinct form of philanthropic giving that requires consideration, planning and investment to sustain and grow voluntary contribution.

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Submission to ANZSCO Comprehensive Review – Consultation Round 1

May 2023

Volunteering Victoria has provided a survey response to the Australian and New Zealand Standards Classification of Occupations (ANZSCO) review, highlighting the critical role of Volunteer Managers.

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Response to Building a Stronger Kindergarten Workforce

April 2023

Following the announcement of a $159 million training and development package for Victoria’s Kindergarten Workforce, Volunteering Victoria recommends an investment to uplift supports for volunteering activity in the sector that will lift the capacity and capability of early childhood services and workforce development.

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2022 Submissions

Briefing to Incoming Minister Blandthorn and Parliamentary Secretary Watts

December 2022

On behalf of the team and members of Volunteering Victoria, we congratulate Hon Lizzie Blandthorn MP and Ms Sheen Watt MLC on their respective nomination as Minister for Disability, Ageing and Carers and Parliamentary Secretary for Volunteers.

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Response to Victorian Volunteer Strategy

May 2022

Volunteering Victoria welcomes the launch of the long-awaited Victorian Volunteer Strategy 2022-2027 and is fully supportive of its vision of harnessing the power of volunteering to “build strong, resilient and inclusive communities and better lives for all Victorians”. 

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Submission to the Emergency Management Victoria Operating Model Review

January 2022

This submission conveys strong support for the proposals listed, provided there are the resourced means for change. That is, EMV needs to be explicit in its resource commitment to volunteering, whereby there is increased visibility and investment in volunteer-involving strategies, roles and delegations.

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2021 Submissions

Submission to the Consultation for Senior Secondary Reform

The Senior Secondary Reform presents our state with an important opportunity to improve educational outcomes for students. Furthermore, it provides us with the chance to strengthen our communities by encouraging and normalising active community participation in the formative years of development and learning.

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Submission to the Victoria Early Childhood Workforce Strategy

Working Together to Build Victoria’s Early Childhood Education Workforce

This submission to the Strategy highlights the need for a greater understanding of the role volunteers play in the sector, the value of their current involvement, and the potential contribution that volunteering can make to meeting the Strategy’s aims of attracting and retaining a quality Early Childhood education workforce.

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Submission to Active Victoria: A Framework for Sport and Recreation in Victoria

Volunteering is critical to sport and recreation, and its partner sectors. Sport and recreation organisations and services would not be viable without the contribution of volunteers. Victorians volunteer for sports and recreation more than for any other activity, making it the largest volunteer base across all sectors.

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Submission to the Victorian Government: Disability Plan 2021-2025 Consultation

The Current State Disability Plan for 2017-2020 titled “Absolutely Everyone”, apart from one point, does not specifically reference volunteering. This is despite the significant and critical role that volunteering plays in the disability sector, in the workforce that supports disability services and indeed in the lives of people with disability across all sectors of the community.

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Submission to the Royal Commission into Victoria's Mental Health System

This Position Paper seeks to bring into focus the elements of the Final Report of the Royal Commission into Victoria’s Mental Health System which relates to volunteering, so that the Victorian Government can incorporate the following ideas in its response to the Commission.

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Strengthening Victorian Volunteer Support Services

We have written to the Hon Luke Donnellan (Minister for Child Protection, Disability, Ageing and Carers) and Anthony Carbines (Parliamentary Secretary for Carers and Volunteers) with our proposal for the Victorian Government to invest in a sophisticated place-based partnership model to reinvigorate and sustain this important infrastructure into the future.

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Volunteer Management Activity (VMA)

We have been working with Volunteering Australia and other S/T peak bodies and volunteer resource centres to plan the re-design of the VMA.

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Victorian LGBTIQ+ Strategy 2021

We believe there is an opportunity through the development of the Victorian LGBTIQ+ Strategy to take a further systemic and strategic approach to improve LGBTIQ+ inclusion in our communities, by building greater capacity for inclusive volunteering in our sector.

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2020 Submissions

Worker Screening Regulations 2020

We call on the Government to exempt volunteers in the disability sector from the costs of screening checks as is currently, and will continue to be, the case with volunteers who work with children.

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Victorian Government COVID submission 2020

We welcome the opportunity to submit to the Public Accounts and Estimates Committee (PAEC) on the Victorian Government’s management of the COVID-19 pandemic.

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