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Voluntary Work for an Organisation or Group

Voluntary Work for an Organisation or Group (VOLWP)

This variable records people who spent time doing unpaid voluntary work through an organisation or group, in the twelve months prior to Census Night. It excludes work done as part of paid employment, in a family business, and if the main reason for the work was to qualify for Government benefit.

Questions on unpaid work, including voluntary work for an organisation or group, were first asked for the 2006 Census. These questions were repeated for 2011. More information on the question design can be found in the Measures of Unpaid Work fact sheet.

The non-response rate for Voluntary Work for an Organisation or Group (VOLWP) was 8.2% (9.5% in 2006). More information is available from the 2011 Census non-response quality statement.

The responses to this question are captured automatically from mark box responses on the form so the risk of processing error is minimal. Sample checks are undertaken to ensure an acceptable level of quality. In a very small proportion of cases (less than 0.1%), respondents provided an incorrect combination of responses. This occurred when both the 'No' and 'Yes' responses were marked. In these cases the 'Yes' response is retained and the 'No' response rejected.

Additional sources of information regarding unpaid child care can be found in Voluntary Work, Australia, 2010 (cat. no. 4441.0.0). This provides data about participation in voluntary work through an organisation or group.

More information on VOLWP is available in the 2011 Census Dictionary (cat. no. 2901.0).

Question 51 as it appeared on the 2011 Census Household Form

Image of question 51 from the 2011 Census
A text only version of this question is also available


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