Volunteering to help gauge national wellbeing

Launched last year by federal Treasurer Jim Chalmers, the Measuring What Matters framework assesses 50 indicators designed to take the pulse of the nation.

It looks beyond traditional economic metrics such as GDP, income and employment statistics and instead focuses on areas ranging from life expectancy to air quality, mental health and job satisfaction.

Canberra revealed that a revamped framework will now include volunteering, after announcing that the Australian Bureau of Statistics will take over responsibility for the annual General Social Survey on Australian wellbeing.

Volunteering Australia CEO Mark Pearce welcomed the inclusion of volunteering as a key indicator of the state of the nation.

“The General Social Survey is a crucial source of official data on volunteering in Australia, and participation in volunteering, both formal and informal, is a key indicator of the wellbeing of our communities.”

Mr Pearce said Volunteering Australia had joined with its state-based counterparts to advocate for volunteering to be included in the Measuring What Matters framework.

“We are delighted that the federal government have recognised the importance of volunteering to social cohesion,” said Mr Pearce.

“Regular, high-quality data on volunteering is essential to the implementation of the National Strategy for Volunteering. It will help guide the design and implementation of important national initiatives to make volunteering the heart of Australian communities.”

Several other topics were also added to the revamped wellbeing survey, including:

• experience of discrimination
• the ability of a household to raise emergency funds in response to unexpected circumstances
• participation in formal study and informal learning
• attendance at cultural events and participation in cultural activities
• prevalence of serious psychological distress and chronic conditions
• trust in others and key institutions.

The government revealed it had provided a $14.8 million funding boost for the ABS to enable it to deliver more frequent data and assume responsibility for the Measuring What Matters dashboard as part of the next annual update, which is expected in August.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers and Charities Minister Andrew Leigh said in a joint statement that the ABS would deliver an enhanced and expanded annual survey on the wellbeing of Australians, helping to inform a more comprehensive statement that the government will publish every three years.

They said the cash injection would allow for the ABS to paint a bigger, more detailed and vibrant picture of Australians’ wellbeing.

“The survey will be conducted annually to deliver more timely data, the sample size will be increased to ensure that the survey provides insights into sub‑groups of the population, and it will be expanded to include new questions.”

Canberra plans to release an updated Measuring What Matters statement every three years with the insights used to inform budgets and government decision‑making.

More information

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