Promoting Your Role & Activities

As in 1947, finding volunteers is one of the most common struggles for P&C Associations today. A great way to increase participation is by promoting your role and activities.

PROMOTE YOUR ROLE AND ACTIVITIES A common reason that people do not join a volunteer group is simply that they are not aware of it. It is thus critically important that the P&C Association promote its work, achievements, and success stories as much as possible. Such P&C work often includes operating the school canteen, uniform shop, out-of-school hours care, or band program – all these services directly benefit parents’ children, as well as various fundraising efforts to pay for things not in the school’s budget. Positively promoting this work is always important, and it could be pointed out that the P&C Association needs volunteers for this valuable work to continue.

SOCIAL MEDIA Acknowledge or thank each volunteer individually on social media, instead of just thanking “the volunteers.” Take photos to post that make volunteering look fun—seeing people having a good time can inspire others to volunteer. Talk to volunteers and potential volunteers in your community to find out the best way to reach them. Are most of them using Facebook, WhatsApp, or something else? It will be much easier to find people where they are rather than introducing them to new platforms. Once you know where you can best reach them, you can reach out to parents and carers at your school to see if they are interested in volunteering.

FLYERS Today, anyone can create attention-grabbing flyers using pre-built templates in Canva or by photocopying a handwritten flyer.

NEWSLETTERS P&C Presidents can use their President’s report in the school newsletter to promote the P&C Association’s work. Make it personal. Be sure to thank your volunteers by name and include the details of the project they worked on. Other parents and carers may see this and realise, “I could help make a flyer or bake a cake,” even if they are unable to help out during workdays or at specific events.

AWARDS Nominate your volunteers for awards in recognition of their hard work, such as the P&C Federation’s Annual Volunteer Awards, the Centre for Volunteering’s NSW Volunteer of the Year Awards, and the NSW Department of Education’s Public Education Awards. Award recognition can get your P&C noticed by a wider audience and make it more appealing to potential volunteers. It can also increase engagement among your team.

CREATE A P&C WEBSITE People may not join their P&C because they do not feel welcome. Creating a website can add a level of transparency to your P&C and encourage participation. A website can be used to show off your P&C’s accomplishments and serve as a place for people to see and sign up for volunteer opportunities.