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On Volunteers
Volunteers and voluntary organisations have always made important contributions to
communities and the public sector. In the past the voluntary sector has even been
the catalyst for the creation of new public services. However, reliance on volunteering
in a climate of cuts creates a real threat to the delivery of important public services.
As governments move to privatise, commercialise and eliminate services, the impacts are
felt on families and communities. The use of volunteers has become an alternative service
delivery model to deliver public services like contracting out or privatisation. Stitching
together the huge gaps in services by relying on volunteers just won’t work.