AQW 75/22-27

Ms Claire Sugden
Independent
East Londonderry

Tabled Date: 17/05/2022
Answered On Date: 01/06/2022
Priority Written: No

Question:
To ask the Minister for Communities to detail (i) the number of volunteers in Northern Ireland, broken down by constituency; and (ii) the support she is giving, and plans to give, to assist these volunteers.

Answer:

Using the data gathered in the continuous Household Survey 2019/20, my Department has concluded that approximately 28% of the population aged sixteen and over regularly volunteer. In addition a further survey completed in 2019 showed that 49% young people had volunteered with clubs, campaigns or organisations.

While unable to provide a breakdown of volunteers at a constituency level the table below provides a percentage of the adult population aged sixteen and over who volunteered within each council area during the year 2019/20.

District Council Area	Carried out any voluntary work - 12 months 2019/20
	%
Antrim and Newtownabbey	32
Ards and North Down	39
Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon	27
Belfast City	24
Causeway Coast and Glens	20
Derry City and Strabane	36
Fermanagh and Omagh	27
Lisburn and Castlereagh City	31
Mid and East Antrim	32
Mid Ulster	28
Newry, Mourne and Down	21

The Department provides funding to six local Volunteer Centres and to Volunteer Now under the Volunteering Infrastructure Support Programme.

The Department also provides funding to three sporting bodies – Ulster Gaelic Athletic Association, Irish Rugby Football Union, Ulster Branch, and the Irish Football Association to work in partnership to support volunteering through sport.