Business in the Community Anniversary Celebration – 26 March 2009

Good evening Ladies and Gentlemen.

I would like to thank John McGregor for the invitation to join you here tonight.  I am especially pleased to be here as tonight’s event forms part of the 20th anniversary celebrations of Business in the Community, an organisation that has done more than anyone else to get corporate bodies to engage positively with the community and to release their employees to work as volunteers.

As the Minister for Social Development, I have responsibility for volunteering policy. Volunteering is a cornerstone of our society.  It is of huge value to our communities.  It is often a lifeline to the vulnerable and the disadvantaged.  I want to encourage the growth of volunteering and to create the conditions that enable volunteering to flourish.  

I am taking forward the development of the first ever Volunteering Strategy for Northern Ireland.  

It will convey a strong message about the value of volunteering and how it can strengthen us as a region - connecting citizens and communities.

Today’s economic climate certainly presents challenges for business, for government and for the community.  The credit crunch and difficult times generally bring challenges for us all.  For my part, I continue to press for proper funding for social housing to bring improved living conditions for families and much needed jobs to the construction industry.  Unemployment levels are rising and extra staff are being recruited in the Social Security Agency to ensure people who become unemployed receive the best possible service.

But the difficult circumstances also provide us with opportunities.  

Opportunities to grow together as a society. Opportunities to unite the Government, business and voluntary sectors in tackling disadvantage in all its forms.

The public sector is a large employer in Northern Ireland.  In addition to the impact staff have in their daily work, there is a tremendous opportunity for the even greater impact they can have through volunteering.  Volunteering provides the opportunity for staff to go above and beyond their day job and we as employers must encourage this and enable it to happen.

Late last year my department made the commitment to join the Business in the Community Cares Scheme. We will use the opportunity that Employer Supported Volunteering offers our staff to engage with local people, to contribute to their community and to develop themselves as individuals.

We have much to look forward to.  We have much to aim for.  Employer Supported Volunteering is a key element of Corporate Social Responsibility.  I know that many of you are leading in this area and that Business in the Community has made a substantial impact in advancing CSR in Northern Ireland.  We want to take Employer Supported Volunteering to the next level. It will form a key element of the forthcoming volunteering strategy.  

Business in the Community have been actively engaged in developing the volunteering strategy.  They are developing proposals to explore how Employer Supported Volunteering can be progressed further in Northern Ireland, particularly with small and medium sized employers.  

It is important that we all work together on this. I hope there will be opportunities to work with Business in the Community and with employers of all sizes to encourage, develop and strengthen volunteering.

I believe government and employers must do four things to support volunteering:

I hope that the next time we meet to celebrate Employer Supported Volunteering that our Strategy will be in full swing and thousands more of our citizens are engaged in the worthwhile and rewarding work of volunteering.