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Volunteers in church: some dos and don'ts

Volunteers are a vital part of church life – without them churches would not be able to function effectively. Engaging volunteers is notoriously tricky and it is easy to inadvertently treat volunteers like staff, thus creating employment rights. This paper, written primarily for church trustees, outlines some common scenarios where care should be taken.

Topics include:

  • internships
  • payments to the organist (or similar)
  • working half a role in a paid capacity and the other half as a volunteer
  • paying fixed amounts to cover expenses
  • receiving donations for a volunteer then paying them to the volunteer along with any associated Gift Aid
  • how to avoid the pitfalls

Updated 2025

 

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Quarterly emails for trustees, treasurers and Church and Charity Leaders. Practical tools, technical resources and expert guidance to safeguard your mission and ministry.