Volunteering

Volunteering is a great way to feel connected and to contribute to your community. It provides a variety of benefits for you and for your community, including sharing skills, building confidence, making new friends, getting job-ready, strengthening connections and enabling community wellbeing.

We fund Volunteering Queensland to promote volunteering across Queensland and provide a volunteer referral service, training and sector support for volunteers and volunteer-involving organisations. Volunteering Queensland also provides registration services for emergency volunteers during disasters when activated by the Queensland State Disaster Coordination Centre.

Inquiry into volunteering in Queensland

Volunteering Queensland’s state of the sector report in 2024 showed that volunteering rates in Queensland had dropped 10% over the past 3 years.

The Queensland Parliament’s Local Government, Small Business and Customer Service Committee (the Committee) held an inquiry into the barriers and challenges preventing more Queenslanders from volunteering.

The Inquiry into volunteering in Queensland (the Inquiry) examined:

the current state of volunteering in Queensland
the value volunteering contributes
obstacles to volunteering,
current government support for the sector
the unique challenges experienced by people from diverse backgrounds, genders, age groups, abilities and locations
opportunities for improvement.

The Inquiry received more than 570 written submissions from individuals, volunteer organisations, community groups and government. The Inquiry also held 15 public hearings across Queensland. Full information about the regarding public hearings is on the Inquiry's Parliamentary website page.

The Committee delivered the Inquiry into Volunteering report (PDF, 4.7MB) with findings and recommendations on 18 September 2025. The Committee’s report is on the Inquiry's Parliamentary website page.

Volunteering opportunities

Volunteering Queensland provides information for many volunteering opportunities in Queensland. Visit their website to find volunteering opportunities or search their database by location or work/skill type.

You can also contact your nearest volunteer resource centre to find out about volunteering opportunities in your region:

Far North Queensland Volunteers, phone (07) 4041 7400
Volunteering Gold Coast, phone (07) 5526 0688
Gympie Region Volunteer Centre, email to management@chsn.org.au
Not for Profit House in the Gladstone region, phone 0460 792 812
Volunteering North Queensland, phone 0439 043 939
Volunteering Redlands, phone (07) 3086 0000
Volunteering Sunshine Coast, phone (07) 5443 8256

Volunteer-involving organisations can view Volunteering Queensland’s website to:

advertise volunteering opportunities
access resources for volunteer managers
find training programs
find volunteering dates and events.

Volunteers do great things across a wide range of sectors. To get an idea of the broad range of programs in Queensland, check out the options below.

Community services

Become a Justice of the Peace and act as an objective witness of official or legal documents.
Volunteer with Homeless Connect, a one-day event linking homeless people with vital services.
Community First Development volunteers assist Aboriginal peoples and Torres Strait Islander peoples in their communities by providing specific skills such as financial management, business development, IT and graphic design.
Australian Youth Mentoring Network links mentors with mentoring programs that work with young people.
Aged Care Volunteer Visitors Scheme is a national program that provides companionship to socially isolated people living in aged care homes.
Care Army volunteers support volunteer involving organisations that deliver services to vulnerable community members.
Community Recovery Ready Reserve (registrations for Queensland Government staff only).

Conservation

Become a Volunteer for Parks to let your love of nature contribute to conserving our environment.
Clean Up Australia Day to do your bit for the environment by cleaning up your local area with friends and family.
Roma Street Parkland volunteers play an important role in maintaining the beautiful park gardens to world class standards.
Become a conservation volunteer to help with environmental and wildlife conservation projects.
Discover opportunities to help our threatened species including volunteer projects that include helping to care and rehabilitate injured and sick marine animals and wildlife, koala management and monitoring flying foxes.

Keeping the community safe

Volunteer with the State Emergency Service (SES) to support Queensland communities before, during and after an emergency.
Volunteer with the Rural Fire Service Queensland to protect people, property and the environment to keep communities safe.
Volunteer with Neighbourhood Watch Queensland, an informal group that meets to identify and address local issues.
Work with police through Volunteers in Policing to address customer service, community safety and crime prevention needs in the community.
Volunteer with Safer Schoolies and work alongside community organisations and government agencies keeping school leavers safe.

Online volunteering

Online volunteering allows you to make a difference from the comfort of your own home at a time that suits you. Some interesting opportunities include:

United Nations Online Volunteering connects volunteers with organisations working for sustainable human development.
State Library of Queensland Digital Volunteers assist the State Library to collect digitised photographs, newspapers and documents online.

Legal information for volunteers in Queensland

Workplace Health and Safety

Volunteers and organisations that use the services of volunteers have obligations under the Work Health and Safety Act 2011. Further information is available on the Workplace Health and Safety Queensland website or call 1300 362 128.

Safe Work Australia has developed a range of workplace health and safety resources for volunteers and organisations that engage volunteers.

Publications and research

Last updated:: 19 September 2025