DUSVO Volunteering

What is DUSVO?

Durham University Student Volunteering and Outreach (DUSVO) is the home of student-led volunteering at Durham University. We welcome all students into our organisation to begin or continue their volunteering journey.

We are proud to be a student-led, community-focused organisation that sits within the Volunteering and Outreach department. DUSVO was formally established in 1989 (as Student Community Action) and we continue to aim to support the local community, and offer a unique volunteering experience to all Durham students. DUSVO is overseen by an elected voluntary Executive Committee, who are supported by full time staff members.

Thinking about volunteering?

It’s easy to get involved whether you are interested in participating in a regular project, one-off session, or taking on more responsibility and standing for one of our leadership roles on the Executive Committee or as a Project Manager.

We have over 25 projects for you to chose from, you can find more information about our projects – including contacts and links to further information, here. All of our projects have developed based on the needs and requests of the local community organizations we are partnered with, or from the passions and interests of our students. Each project has a various levels of commitment and training required, so we recommend you reach out to the project managers to find out more about what it means to be a volunteer on their project.

If regular volunteering isn’t for you, we have a range of one-off sessions, events and fundraising opportunities. All of these can be found on our platform, or you can email us at [email protected] to see what we have for you.

Why volunteer with DUSVO?

At Durham University we encourage you to volunteer during your time here for various different reasons. For most of you, you are now living in an entirely new community with new people, and volunteering is the perfect way to get involved and meet a wide range of people. By actively getting involved with local people and charities, you are in a better position to give back to the community which you are now part of.

As well as integrating into the community, volunteering gives you the change to gain, develop or strengthen existing skills to add to your CV and support your career development.

Volunteering with DUSVO is an experience like no other. Our volunteering projects have been established by students for the community and are entirely student-led. This way you can meet likeminded people and make friends for life, so whether you are an environmentalist, passionate about inclusive education or a campaigner for fundamental human rights, we have something for everyone.

Training

All DUSVO volunteers have access to training that has been developed over time to ensure you are prepared to go out into the community to volunteer safely. Training includes an introduction to volunteering, adult and child safeguarding, tutor training, data protection and more. Every project requires different training, if any at all depending on the nature of the activity.

DBS Checks

We provide volunteers with DBS checks, free of charge, if their project requires it. DBS checks must be requested through project managers.

References

We provide DUSVO volunteers with references for employment. This includes your commitment to volunteering, training completed, any feedback given from PMs or community partners and any leadership role you have undertaken. We do ask that you keep your volunteer profile up to date, because this is where we get our information from to complete the references.

Recognition

As well as access to the departments annual volunteering awards, we have a recognition and certification scheme for committed volunteers. These are bronze, silver, gold, platinum and hall of fame awards, given to volunteers who have dedicated hours of their time to volunteer throughout their Durham University experience. Award winners receive a certificate and downloadable badge to display on their LinkedIn profiles.

Our staff members are keen to celebrate the good work of our student volunteers, and regularly look for external awards to nominate volunteers that have displayed excellence in volunteering.

More information on the wider benefits of volunteering can be found here.