Tuesday 16-11-2021 - 15:24

 

Don’t worry this isn’t a blanket statement – we know that some men do volunteer and do great things for the local communities. However, our numbers show that less male identifying students at MMU use our volunteering portal.

 

 

What is ‘Men Don’t Volunteer’?

 

It’s not news to us that the number of male identifying students who volunteer is drastically lower than those who identify as female. Recently, however, these statistics have been decreasing. This is a campaign that the volunteering team has created to gain a better understanding of the way MMU students engage with our volunteering services.

 

 

What are the statistics?

 

Until 2019/2020, there was an upward trend in the number of volunteers that identify as male, with 20% of all applications made from male students. However, this declined last year with only 12% of volunteering applications from male identifying students.

This could be due to other commitments, restrictions due to health or access or even that none of the volunteering opportunities advertised have ever appealed to you before.

We want to hear from our students to find out why this is and how we can get men into volunteering!

 

 

What’s going on during the campaign?

 

The campaign is taking place 17-19 November.

Self-care bag giveaways – We will be handing out bags across campus and here in The Union across the next three days. The bags feature some self-care surprises, as we want students who identify as male to look after themselves and their wellbeing during this time of year. So come pick one up, or if you don’t identify as male pick one up for a friend as a small act of kindness.

Visiting charities – This “Feel-Good Friday” will host the charities OddBalls, Movember and Survivors Manchester. Come and have a chat, find out what they do and how you can be involved, take part in our fun activities and pick up some free giveaways.

Transformation of our Yellow Wall – There’s a chance you clicked on our web banner because you don’t agree that “Men Don’t Volunteer”. So, come along this Friday and show that by picking a post-it note with a volunteering opportunity you're interested in and stick it up on the wall to prove us wrong!