Here at Durham we actively encourage and support our staff and students to volunteer. Students can choose to volunteer within any of the 26 student led projects on offer by DUSVO (Durham University Student Volunteer and Outreach). Students can also volunteer within their College outreach programme, it is even possible to complete volunteering as part of their degree programme, sports team or society. There are a multitude of benefits that can be gained through volunteering at university including giving back to the local community, boosting your self-esteem and confidence, and meetings. University staff have allocated work time in which they can volunteer, whether this be as part of an organised team challenge or something they do individually.

Across the board we are working with nearly 200 charities and community organisations in addition to offering services to North East schools and hundreds of individuals. In 2020, we received the prestigious Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service in the Community since 1989. In 2023, Durham University and Outreach won gold at the International Corporate Social Responsibility Awards and were winners of the Business of the Year category at the County Durham Together Awards. Due to the efforts of volunteering at Durham University, we held the Investing in Volunteers accreditation for nine consecutive years from 2012-2021, and we have now regained the accreditation for 2024-2027.