James Bannon (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the delegates from the voluntary sector. The work of volunteers the length and breadth of this country is priceless and contributes greatly to building a better society. Senator Landy spoke about sport, the number of people involved in it and the number of volunteers who run sporting events throughout the country each weekend and during the week. Their work is invaluable. Indeed it is at the heart of our sense of community. Does Volunteer Ireland sell itself short in this area - the value of volunteering to communities and society in monetary terms? Around 100 people are registered with the Longford Volunteer Centre - Longford being the county I come from. I see that 300, 400 or 500 people are volunteering weekend after weekend. This area needs to be looked at because I believe there are more people contributing in a voluntary capacity to the development of society and this is not recognised even by Volunteer Ireland.
Volunteering is acknowledged in our action plan for jobs. Has there been an increase or decrease in young people's participation in volunteering in the past years? What are the main barriers to volunteering among the unemployed? Perhaps a volunteering award scheme is in situin most counties. Could it be set up in every county to celebrate the great work of volunteers, to let them know they make a difference in their local communities, to raise awareness and to recognise the important work carried out in their respective communities?
Longford has the best result in the national Tidy Towns competition. All this has been achieved through the volunteers who come in day after day and night after night and in the morning before they go to work to contribute to its development. They have this great sense of pride in their community. This is not recognised by the general public and we could do more to promote the great work of volunteers that is not measured in numbers. A total of 100 people registered with the Longford Volunteer Centre. This number is ridiculously low when one looks at the number of people involved in volunteering. I would say that over 1,000 people would be involved on a weekly basis.