De Regenboog Groep has once again achieved the Quality Mark for Volunteering Well-Regulated. This confirms Vereniging VrijwilligerswerkNL that we have our volunteer policy in good order.
"The quality mark is valid for four years and shows that we are willing to keep looking critically at ourselves," said Jesse Romein, who supervised the process from De Regenboog. She is project leader of volunteer support and an employee of Quality Informal Care and knows how important such a hallmark is for the organization. After all, De Regenboog Groep floats largely on volunteers.
Along the yardstick
Acquiring the seal of approval didn't happen by itself, Jesse says. The process consisted of several interviews, meetings and a thorough assessment of the volunteer policy. "As an organization, you are really put against the yardstick. Someone walks with you and takes a critical look at how you work with volunteers: from supervision and safety to appreciation and information provision. In practice we score strongly. Our volunteers are enthusiastic and really feel part of De Regenboog. Some have been active at the same location for more than a decade. They say they feel the passion of the organization and want to belong. I'm proud of that."
Communicating better
There are also areas of concern. For example, the provision of information to volunteers could be better. "We could show more clearly what we offer volunteers," says Jesse. "For example, that they can take unlimited training courses through the Volunteer Academy. Or that there are meetings and activities where they can meet each other, such as taking courses like woodworking at our day care centers. That provides connection and extra motivation."
Continue to monitor
Together with three colleagues and the manager, Jesse continues to monitor volunteerism within the organization. So that we can only do even better in the coming years.
Text: Nicolline van der Spek | Photography: Anne-Roos 't Hart