Volunteering Matters celebrates 10 years of support from players of People’s Postcode Lottery, reaching £8 million milestone
Volunteering Matters is celebrating ten years of support from players of People’s Postcode Lottery, marking a significant milestone of £8 million in funding to support communities across the UK.
This long-standing support has helped Volunteering Matters strengthen communities through the power of volunteering, improving the experience for thousands of volunteers and the people they support.
Support from People’s Postcode Lottery has been instrumental in transforming our reach and impact. Since 2016, more than 137,000 volunteer opportunities have been delivered, supporting over 435,000 instances of people benefiting from our work across the UK, including more than 100,000 people reached in a single year at our peak.
Over the past decade, this funding has enabled the organisation to invest in safer, more inclusive and more effective volunteering. This includes strengthening safeguarding practices, improving volunteer support and creating better experiences for people taking part in projects across the country.
The impact can be seen in communities nationwide. Through projects like Match and Mentor in Norfolk, volunteers support people with learning disabilities to build confidence, independence and a sense of belonging. In Brighton and Hove, the Lifelines project helps older people stay connected, reducing loneliness and improving wellbeing through social groups and shared activities.
In Milton Keynes, volunteer drivers provide vital transport for people facing barriers to travel, helping them attend medical appointments, school and family contact sessions. Meanwhile, youth-led programmes such as Youth Social Action in Suffolk are creating opportunities for young people to lead change in their communities, building skills, confidence and stronger local connections.
This funding has also supported Volunteering Matters to adapt and innovate, ensuring volunteering remains accessible, relevant and impactful in a changing world.
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Reaching £8 million of support from players of People’s Postcode Lottery is an incredible milestone for us. This long-term funding has given us the confidence to innovate, to test new approaches and to keep improving how we support volunteers and communities.
It allows us to move forward, strengthen our safeguarding and support systems, and transform what volunteering can look like in the future. Most importantly, it helps ensure that more people, in more places, have the opportunity to take part and shape their communities through volunteering.
– Amanda Naylor OBE, Chief Executive of Volunteering Matters
Volunteering Matters works with thousands of volunteers every year, supporting people of all ages to connect, build skills and lead change in their communities.
This ten-year partnership with People’s Postcode Lottery players has played a vital role in enabling that work to grow and evolve, ensuring volunteering continues to be a powerful force for stronger, more connected communities across the UK.
