Improving community wellbeing
We’re proud to deliver volunteering programs to our employees, members and customers who want to help improve the wellbeing of people in their communities.
Does volunteering make us happier?
Community connection and engagement is important to our sense of wellbeing.
According to the Australian Unity Wellbeing Index, volunteers consistently demonstrate higher levels of wellbeing when it comes to employment status.
When we feel good, we’re more likely to contribute to society in a positive way. A combination of the interaction that volunteer work provides and the personal satisfaction achieved helps explain the positive impact on our own sense of wellbeing.
Australian Unity acknowledges at its core, volunteering is about people doing things for others and for their community. Volunteering is simultaneously a deeply personal and collective pursuit. It involves an intentional choice to contribute time and energy to activities and causes that make a difference and add value to the world. Participating in volunteering enables people to turn their aspirations for their community into practical acts of generosity that have a profound influence on the ability of residents, Australian Unity and communities to connect and flourish. Volunteers will be valued, considered in policy settings, service design, our strategic investment and the diversity of our volunteers will be recognised, celebrated and supported.
How can volunteering help me?
Volunteer work often counts as work experience which can help develop and expand the skills required for certain full-time paid roles. It can also contribute to the building of many personal attributes and traits.
Some of the impacts volunteering can have on a person might include:
- Increased self-confidence
- Networking and community connections
- Development of professional skills
- Sense of accomplishment
- Better overall wellbeing
