Mobilising Voluntary Action in the four UK jurisdictions: Learning from today, prepared for tomorrow

The overarching aim of this four nation comparative study is to critically evaluate social welfare voluntary action responses to the pandemic, to help guide the UK volunteer effort to support the national recovery and prepardeness for future crises, and indoing so inform UKRI research questions on inequality and national recovery (1). The four nation study will be delivered by a UK-wide team (academics, the four key sector infrastructure bodies for each nation), supported by a Project Partner advisory panel (from professional networks, organisations and related ESRC investments). It has been co-designed, and will be co-delivered practising the principles of co-production. The analytical framework is a theory-based evaluation technique (2) with refinements from process evaluation of complex systems (3). A desk-based collection of evidence will be undertaken across the four nations facilitated by CoIs (Q 2.2) from the infrastructure bodies and supported by Project Partners (2.3). Key evidence: national voluntary action policy documents; virtual interviews with policy makers; rapid evidence gathering via voluntary action pro-forma (CoI and Project Partner networks) and anonymised data from matching apps/ platforms. A common coding frame will be employed for data analysis, within country analysis preceding integrated analysis, linking the four nations to identify similarities and differences. Critical feedback and validation will be provided by Project Partners (second Advisory Panel meeting). Emerging findings will be shared via an interactive website; regular webinars; mid review briefings to inform recovery, end of review briefing informing future planning, presented at virtual end of award events (one per nation).