In Ireland, volunteering – particularly in sport – is very much part of what we do and who we are. The 2017 Irish Sports Monitor annual report (Ipsos MRBI and Sport Ireland, 2018) identified that 10.8% of the population regularly volunteer in sport. There is a population in Ireland of 3,693,670 (Census 2016) aged 16 and over, meaning that throughout the year almost 370,000 adults regularly volunteer in sport. The census also showed that 12.2% (535,475) of the total population identified as non-Irish nationals, the majority (67%) coming from European countries.
Data from the Irish Sports Monitor – covering 2015 to 2017 – indicates that 5.9% of respondents identifying as non-Irish volunteer in sport. This is higher than the European average of 4.1% (Nichols and James, 2017) reported for the same period. Overall the message is clear that while migrants are volunteering in sport in Ireland it is at levels significantly lower than other groups.
Volunteering in sport has been proven to be a good tool for social inclusion and by extension an effective way for migrants to integrate into their community. In order to effectively identify interventions that support accessibility and participation in sports volunteering among migrants, it is vital to understand how the migrant community themselves view volunteering in sport. At Volunteer Ireland, we hear anecdotally about the experience of migrants who are currently volunteering or interested in volunteering in sport. In order to increase the evidence base and our knowledge and understanding, we carried out the following research. Between October and December 2018 we engaged with the migrant community to explore the following:……………………………..
For the full Document please see Follow the link: VI-Report_Migrant-Participation-in-Sports-Volunteering
