“Don’t judge what is inside a book, by the cover” – Melissa Ryan

Unfortunately people with disabilities, especially those with severe and profound disabilities are socially devalued by our society. It is sometimes falsely assumed that people with disabilities are “burdens on society”, unable to contribute to the fabric of the community. However, although it may take a bit more effort, people with disabilities- even those with severe/profound disabilities, can contribute to their local communities.

Volunteering is one tool that can be used to reduce the social devaluation of people with disabilities within our society. Volunteering helps people with disabilities to develop positive social valued roles within our community, for example a young man who has a volunteer role doing gardening, may go from being known as “the boy with an intellectual disability” to the “young man who comes here to do the gardening on a regular basis” or simply “the gardener”.

Instead of being seen as the passive recipients of welfare or community services, by volunteering, people with disabilities can be seen as making a contribution to society–a role which is socially valued within our society. Volunteering is one way in which emphasis can be placed on a person’s abilities not disabilities.

Volunteering plays a crucial role in helping to build a society that is cohesive and connected. Volunteering involves grass-roots participation and provides a network of social relationships that connect people to their own communities –a connection that is vital to building democratic, healthy and self-sustaining communities.

In other words, volunteering helps to build social capital in its bonding, bridging and linking forms …Research studies have confirmed that high levels of associational activity (that is, bonding social capital) and also a dense network of crosscutting ties among groups (that is, bridging social capital) are needed to realize the benefits of social capital to best effect.

Volunteering presents the opportunity for individuals to create social networks, this is particularly important for people with severe and profound disabilities, as the opportunities for them to create such social networks are severely limited .Due to the severity of a person’s disability, it is also quite possible that the person has to heavily rely on other people to assist in the creation of these social networks.

Flexible arrangements within regards to volunteer roles for people with disabilities,particularly those with severe/profound disabilities are extremely important. Some people with severe/profound disabilities tired very easily, particularly if they have complex medical conditions- such as severe epilepsy. Those with complex medical needs should always be accompanied by a support worker or someone who can quickly attend to their complex medical needs in an emergency.

People with severe/profound disabilities share the same reasons to volunteer as everyone else: they want to learn new skills, want to meet new people, contribute to their community and build their self confidence. They also want to enhance their independence, feel part of their community, feel they are making a positive contribution to their community, have more choice and control over their lives and most importantly for their life to have meaning and volunteering is one way in which this can be achieved.