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How do applications work?

Effective communication is important to getting the most out of the Reach platform. Here we will discuss how organisations and volunteers can use the platform to communicate, how applications work and what each application status means.

The Reach community includes three different groups of people:

  • People who work for social purpose organisations and use the site to look for volunteers
  • People who want to volunteer their professional skills
  • The Reach staff team

People who work at organisations, and volunteers looking for roles can use the Reach platform to communicate with each other. From time to time, Reach will get in touch to ask you how your application is progressing. 

If someone starts a conversation with you, we'll send you an email to let you know. You'll be able to access it and reply through your dashboard.

When you receive a new message or application, you will receive an email notification from Reach, which will provide a copy of the message and a direct link to the conversation online.

Organisations can...
  1. Suggest their opportunities to volunteers
  2. Reply to volunteers that have applied to their roles.
  3. Communicate with volunteers during the application process. Organisations should take the lead on this, and always let the volunteer know what is expected of them and key timelines and dates.
  4. Record the final outcome. Even if you have already discussed this with the volunteer offline, we ask that organisations update and close off all applications. As a small charity ourselves, Reach remains active through recording placements and the impact that these have on the wider voluntary community, so updating applications will also support us to keep fulfilling our mission.
Volunteers can...
  1. Apply and ask a question about roles they are interested in.
  2. Reply to an organisation who has approached them
  3. Let the organisation know if they are no longer able to continue with the application and need to withdraw.

What do the statuses mean?

Once a conversation has been started, it will be given a status. The status changes as you go through the application process.

Status

Definition

Opportunity Suggested

An Organisation has sent their opportunity to a volunteer asking them to consider applying for their role. 

Application made

A Volunteer has applied for a role.

Clicking on Apply means that the charity can now see the volunteer’s full profile and work history.

Not Interested

The Volunteer has replied to say they have decided not to apply. 

Enquiry 

The Volunteer has contacted an organisation with a question, but has not yet made an application.

Replied to Enquiry 

The organisation has replied to the volunteers' question. 

Application acknowledged 

The Organisation has seen the volunteer’s application and replied.

Volunteer Withdrew

The Volunteer has decided not to continue with their application

Opportunity withdrawn 

The Organisation has decided to close the role and can not consider applications.

Placed

Great news! The Volunteer has been placed in the role.

Placed in other role 

The Volunteer has been placed in a different role in the organisation.

Not Placed

The Volunteer has not been placed in the role

Application not sent 

Reach has not been able to approve the volunteer’s application. 

Tips and advice on effective communication 

For organisations 

  • Reply to volunteer applications as promptly as possible. If volunteers do not hear back from their applications promptly, they may become disheartened, assume that you are not interested in their application, and withdraw their interest.
  • Give volunteers as much information as possible, for example, what the application process entails, important dates, and when to expect a decision on their application.

For volunteers 

  • Your volunteer profile and work history are not fully revealed until the “Apply” button has been selected, so make sure you do hit “Apply” if you want to be considered.
  • Be as honest as possible as to what you are looking for and how much time you can realistically commit. Use the application stage as an opportunity to explore more about the role, and how yourself and the organisation might be able to work together
  • If you can no longer continue with your application, always let the organisation know as soon as possible so that they can continue in their search for volunteers.

Recruiting skills-based volunteers

Ready to start recruiting volunteers? Have a look at the guidance below to get you started. 

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Our criteria for organisations

We review all organisations who join Reach to make sure they are not-for-profit organisations with a demonstrable public benefit. Here, you can find out our organisation criteria and what you can do...
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How to recruit volunteers with skills

Whether you're new to recruiting volunteers with skills, or want to make sure you're making a good start with your latest opportunity, we have tips and advice for you.
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Our criteria for opportunities

We review all opportunities to make sure that they meet our criteria. Here, you can find out more about our criteria for opportunities, and what you can do if Reach is not the right fit for your role.
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