Volunteering among young people is on the rise but it is falling among older age groups, research has found.

A report by the think tank nfpResearch, which has surveyed members of the public since 2010, found that in March last year, 32 per cent of 16- to 24-year-olds said they had volunteered in the past three months.

This was up from just 21 per cent in March 2012, says the report, which is based on nfpResearch’s monthly representative survey of 1,000 people.

But for those aged over 55, volunteering has begun to decline, the research found.

For those aged between 55 and 64, just 12 per cent surveyed last year had volunteered in the past three months – down from 26 per cent in 2012.

Among people aged over 65, the proportion of people volunteering fell from 28 per cent in 2012 to 17 per cent in 2024.

The report says: “It is hard to definitively establish why these changes are taking place. The rise in youth volunteering is probably due to the increased emphasis on volunteering in schools and universities, as well as an emphasis on young people volunteering in successive governments’ policy.”

The decline in volunteering among older age groups is likely due to a combination of different factors such as worsening pension provision, an older pension age and the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on lives and long-term health, the report says.

“All these combine to mean older people have less money and may not be able to spare the time to volunteer. On top of this there has been comparatively little government policy to encourage older people to volunteer, compared to young people.”

The report also says that people from ethnic minorities have higher levels of volunteering. Despite only forming about 12 per cent of nfpResearch’s typical sample, in the 10-year period from 2014 to 2024, those from ethnic minority backgrounds had an average volunteering rate of 32 per cent, compared with 19 per cent of white people.

The report includes a number of recommendations to boost volunteering, including the creation of a volunteering infrastructure body for England and the appointment of a "volunteering czar” to champion the development of volunteering.

It pushes for the development of volunteer management training and qualifications and for the development of volunteer recruitment campaigns and strategies.

The report also urges charities to employ a director of volunteering on their senior management team and to offer support to volunteer managers within their organisation.

Technology should also be embedded in volunteer recruitment and retention, the report says, such as through apps for recruitment and management of volunteers.