Awards and Accreditations

Durham University Volunteering and Outreach received The Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service (QAVS). This award was created in 2002 to celebrate Queen Elizabeth II’s Golden Jubilee and was previously known as The Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service (QAVS). The Queen’s Award is the highest award given to local voluntary groups in the UK, as it celebrates organisations that show outstanding work in local volunteering.

For more information on the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Services (now the King’s Award for Voluntary Services) visit this link.

Durham University Volunteering and Outreach is proud to be an Investing in Volunteers achiever, having been awarded the quality standard in 2024 for the 4th time. It shows that we value our volunteers, both staff and student, and demonstrates our commitment to supporting volunteering within the University community.

Volunteering and Community Partnership Senior Manager, Katie Binks comments on how “achieving this re-accreditation has highlighted to us the fact that we are heading in the right direction with volunteering. We have adapted much of what we deliver since we last held the status back in 2021, and this assessment has enabled us to benchmark what we have achieved against what our development areas were back then, and it emphasises how much we have exceeded our own expectations.  As a team, we are collaborative and utilise each other’s strengths to achieve the best possible outcomes as a whole department – with one of the key focus’ being on our volunteers, so they are prepared to go out, represent the university and support our local community as best they can”.

Investing in Volunteers (IiV) is the UK quality standard for all organisations involving volunteers. IiV aims to improve the quality of the volunteering experience for all volunteers and demonstrates that organisations value the enormous contribution made by volunteers. At Durham University, we understand the importance of volunteering in the local community, and our volunteers recognise the impact on the community and personal development.

Read more about our success here. 

At the County Durham Together Awards, in December 2023, Durham University Volunteering and Outreach were awarded the title of Business of the Year for our programme, which actively promotes volunteering among students and staff within the local community. Held each year by The Northern Echo, in partnership with Durham County Council, the awards are a chance for local individuals, businesses, and community organisations to receive recognition for going the extra mile.

In the academic year 2023 alone, a total of 1,964 Durham staff and students officially contributed over 22,800 hours through the University Volunteering Scheme. This noteworthy achievement includes staff members conducting 27 beach clean-ups, resulting in the collection of over 190 bags of debris from five local beaches. Moreover, 1,300 students have dedicated 17,000 hours to various volunteer initiatives, spanning student-led projects, community partner opportunities, and local events. Annually, our dedicated staff and students surpass expectations by raising funds, organising collections, and generously contributing their time to support over 70 charities such as Foodbank, Feeding Families, and Stray Aid, as well as providing countless hours of assistance to school and children services.

Durham University Volunteering and Outreach won the 2023 International Corporate Social Responsibility and Excellence Award with the Gold in the Volunteering category. The International CSR Excellence Awards are presented to companies that have a heart: caring companies that use their privileged position to help their colleagues, communities, customers, the environment and the less fortunate.

Read more about our success here.