Call for tax credit to encourage volunteerism after fall in numbers

'Last year in Cork City, the Darkness into Light event for Pieta was under threat because of a dip in available volunteers, so the country will pay a price if the sector continues to decline.' File picture: Brendan Gleeson

The Government has been asked to consider introducing a tax credit to encourage volunteerism following a worrying decline post covid.

Former lord mayor and Independent councillor Mick Finn, who is familiar with the volunteering and youth sector through his professional roles, said the State needed to try something to "breathe new life" into the volunteer sector again after figures from Cork alone show the number of volunteer youth clubs has plunged by a third since covid hit.

“Cork city and county had 150 volunteer youth clubs before the onset of the covid pandemic,” Mr Finn said.

“That has dropped to 100 in the immediate aftermath and ongoing attempts are being made to support the sector, but something extra is needed.

I already know of several clubs that had to close because they just cannot get people to help out.

Mr Finn works on the development of youth services for the Cork Education and Training Board. He also sits on several boards and is involved in several charities. He has seen the impact in the fall-off in volunteering, particularly in relation to his role helping to organise the city's Darkness Into Light event last year.

“Last year in Cork City, the Darkness into Light event for Pieta was under threat because of a dip in available volunteers, so the country will pay a price if the sector continues to decline,” he said. 

Volunteerism is under pressure in every sector, in sport, in relation to community supports and youth clubs, Mr Finn said.

And while people give up their time for satisfaction over financial gain, something needed to happen to arrest a decline which threatens the fabric and vibrancy of our communities, he said.

“The spirt of volunteering is strong across Cork City and county but it has been weakened and we should try to be creative in looking at ways of encouraging more people to get involved in their communities before more organisations close their doors and that weakness becomes a fault line," he said.

He made his comments after Cork City Council voted this week to support his motion, which asks the ministers for finance and public expenditure to examine the possibility of a tax credit for volunteers, which would be validated by the organisations they give their time to, in a bid to liven up the sector and perhaps encourage those who have stepped away to re-engage, or encourage new people to get involved.

“A tax credit may or may not represent added value to the concept of volunteering, but it’s worth a shot,” he said.

Many large companies use community engagement and responsibility initiatives to reward staff who volunteer their time and this could something the tax credit idea could be built on.

He insisted this was not a way of paying volunteers for their work.

“It’s a move to tap them on the back and say thanks and well done for your efforts because you can never repay volunteers for what they do," he said.

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Arising out of Monday's council decision to support his motion, the city council will write to the relevant ministers outlining the proposal.

It could be several months before the council gets a response to the proposal.