Tassie Volunteers Ageing 'Dramatically' - Report

The State of Volunteering Report Tasmania is available now.

A new report has revealed that while the number of volunteers in Tasmania is on the increase, the average age of volunteers will also increase due to the ageing population.

The State of Volunteering Report Tasmania 2012, released by Volunteering Tasmania (VT) to coincide with International Volunteer Day, showed that over the next 38 years, volunteers will age “dramatically”.

Volunteering Tasmania chief executive Adrienne Picone said the report revealed that volunteer numbers were projected to increase across the state from now until 2050, to sit just below 233,000.

“By 2032, Tasmanian volunteers are projected to age considerably as our Baby Boomer numbers continue to boom, but Gen Y begins to overtake as a ‘generation’,” Picone said.

“Currently Tasmanians aged 65 and over account for 1 in 5 of the State’s volunteers, but in 20 years this will increase to 1 in 3 of our volunteers, or one third of Tasmania’s volunteer population.

“Population ageing is an unparalleled global trend in human history and in line with this trend, Tasmania’s population is ageing at a faster rate than anywhere else in Australia.”

VT says that the report aims to explore the impact that Tasmania’s ageing population will have on volunteering and offer ways forward for volunteer-involving organisations (VIOs), business and government.

Picone said that the unprecedented demographic shift presented both challenges and opportunities for the volunteer community in Tasmania and that understanding the potential impacts was essential in planning for the future.

She said that the report outlines eight recommendations to future-proof Tasmania’s volunteer sector including the importance of engaging and working with all generations and age groups to ensure a sustainable and viable volunteer community.

“Volunteer management practices are also key to the report’s recommendation, with a focus on building an organisation’s capacity to recruit volunteers and provide meaningful roles, as well as providing professional and effective volunteer management programs,” Picone said.

“The SOVR 2012 is just the beginning of planning ahead for our ageing population volunteerism, with VT’s focus now turning to the development of a strategy to turn the report’s recommendations into action.”