Irish people top the charts for giving up their time for free, and organisations can benefit from the new trend towards skilled volunteering, says Nina Arwitz

Helen O’Callaghan on a teen’s early start in volunteering   

A father-of-eight has scooped the top prize at this year’s Volunteer Ireland Awards for his work with a Chernobyl children’s charity.

If you ever doubted that the best of things comes in pairs, perhaps Darryl and Declan Barry will make you think again.

Volunteer Ireland is calling on people across the country to make a positive difference in their community by getting involved in National Volunteering Week.

A Limerick nun who helps bereaved children look forward to their future again was among 11 volunteer heroes honoured in Dublin last night for their contribution to communities.

Volunteers save the Government millions of euro every year, and should be recognised for their efforts, Volunteer Ireland said today.

The search has begun to find this year’s outstanding volunteers.

Volunteers carried out over 420,000 hours of work last year, equating to more than €9m worth of free work.

Volunteering Ireland tells us that a range of people worked for more than 420,000 hours of work last year — worth nearly €10m — for various causes.

There was an almost 25% surge in the numbers of people volunteering last year, with about 11,000 people registering at centres across the country.

New research by Volunteer Ireland shows that 98% of people involved in volunteering claims it makes them "a happier person".

More than 425,000 hours were clocked up by volunteers in Ireland last year, the group Volunteer Ireland has revealed.

PEOPLE whose job situation has been affected by the recession are becoming increasingly likely to volunteer, according to research.