A huge thank you to all the volunteers across the Netball Family without whom our game simply wouldn’t exist.
2023 marks the 39th year of Volunteers’ Week, when England Netball will join thousands of charities and voluntary organisations recognising the contribution volunteers make across the UK.
With this year’s theme of ‘Celebrate and Inspire,’ we hope to encourage people to be the change that we want to see and get involved in volunteering in whatever way works for them.
The contribution of volunteers is often unseen and unrecognised by many, visible only through the incredible impact of their volunteering, so taking the time during Volunteers’ Week to celebrate their efforts and all they contribute to our local communities, the voluntary sector and society as a whole has never been more important.
Volunteers are the life blood of the Netball Family. Whether responsible for opening up the netball court gates at 8am on a Saturday, sitting on a county league committee, selling programmes at a Netball Super League event or acting as a primary carer, their support, in all its forms, is invaluable at all levels of our game.
Imogen Greatbatch, Head of Volunteering at England Netball, said: “All year round we want to celebrate and recognise the fantastic contribution our volunteers make with Volunteers’ Week a time to give an extra special thank you.
“An estimated 30,000+ people volunteer across a variety of different disciplines at every level of the game, and their time, energy and expertise truly does help enrich lives on and beyond the court each year.
“The ongoing engagement, support and promotion of 1,000 young volunteers in local clubs and leagues on the Pass on Your Passion scheme is particularly exciting for me.
“Over the last 12 months, it’s also been fantastic to see the relationships between England Netball colleagues and volunteers become stronger through our Working as One initiative as we work to make netball experiences the best they can be for all involved.
“I feel extremely privileged to be in this role raising awareness about and providing support to an incredible network of people, who mean a lot to me and who I learn from every day.”
During Volunteers’ Week, the first of the nine regional ONE Awards for 2023 will take place in the North East. The regional winners will then be invited to the National ONE Awards celebration taking place on Saturday 14th October 2023. Catch a glimpse of last year’s star-studded event here.
To help shine a light on volunteers all year round, we’ve created a bespoke set of assets for the Netball Family to use which includes editable templates to share a sentence about, and show your appreciation for, a volunteer (or volunteers) or empower you to share and inspire others, why you volunteer.
Feeling inspired? Whether you know exactly what you want as a volunteer or are keen to learn more, learning a bit about you will help us signpost you to opportunities we hope you will love! You can also listen to the stories of some volunteers who all volunteer in different ways here.
