Do You Need A Volunteer Agreement For A Charity Event?

Yes, if you're using volunteers at a charity event, you should have a written volunteer agreement in place.

It doesn't need to be a long or intimidating document. The point is to make sure everyone is clear on what the volunteer is doing, what standards you expect, what risks are involved, and how your organisation will manage things like expenses, photos, confidentiality and safety.

The slightly more nuanced part is this: a volunteer agreement should protect your event without accidentally making your volunteer look like an employee. That balance matters, especially if you're a charity, not-for-profit, school group, community organisation or business helping run a fundraising event.

Say you run a charity fun run in Melbourne. You might have volunteers checking registrations, handing out water, directing traffic near the course, taking photos and helping pack down marquees. Each of those roles carries different risks and responsibilities, so a simple written agreement can save a lot of confusion on event day.

Do You Need A Volunteer Agreement For A Charity Event?

Yes, a volunteer agreement is a practical way to set expectations and reduce risk when people are helping your event without being paid.

A volunteer agreement usually explains that the person is volunteering their time, not entering into paid employment. It also sets out the role, conduct rules, safety obligations and what happens if the arrangement needs to end.

For a charity event, this can be especially useful because volunteers are often brought in quickly, sometimes through community contacts, sponsors, schools, clubs or social media. You may not know each person well, and they may not know how your event is being run.

A written agreement helps you answer questions such as:

• What is the volunteer expected to do?
• Who supervises them?
• Can they handle cash, donations or card payments?
• Can they speak to media or post about the event online?
• What happens if they're injured or something goes wrong?
• Will you reimburse out-of-pocket expenses?
• Can you use photos or videos of them in event marketing?

Without a written agreement, you may struggle to manage difficult behaviour, protect confidential information, or show that you gave proper instructions before the event.

Templates can be a useful starting point, but volunteer documents work best when they're tailored to the actual event and any volunteer handbook you use. A weekend sausage sizzle, a gala dinner, a cycling fundraiser and a disability support community event will all have different risks.

Are Volunteers Employees In Australia?

No, genuine volunteers aren't employees, but you need to structure the arrangement carefully so it stays that way.

Under Australian workplace law, including the Fair Work Act 2009, employees have rights to minimum wages, leave, superannuation and other entitlements. Volunteers usually don't have those rights because they aren't working under an employment contract and they aren't being paid wages.

A genuine volunteer arrangement usually has these features:

• The person offers their time freely.
• There's no legal obligation for them to attend every shift.
• They aren't paid wages or a salary.
• The main purpose is community support, charitable help, experience or personal interest.
• Both sides understand that the role is unpaid.

The risk comes up when a volunteer arrangement starts to look like a job. For example, if you roster someone for fixed hours every week, require them to perform core business tasks, manage them like staff and pay them regular amounts that look like wages, the line can become blurry.

How To Keep The Arrangement Clearly Voluntary

Your volunteer agreement should make the voluntary nature of the role clear without sounding like an employment contract.

For example, it can say:

• The volunteer isn't an employee, contractor or agent of your organisation.
• The role is unpaid, except for approved reimbursements.
• The volunteer can choose whether to accept shifts or tasks.
• Your organisation can stop the volunteer arrangement if needed.
• The volunteer must still follow reasonable directions, safety procedures and conduct standards while helping at the event.

You should also be careful with words like salary, wages, probation, performance management and disciplinary action. Those terms are more suited to employment documents.

If you're unsure whether someone is really a volunteer or should be engaged under an employment contract or contractor agreement, get tailored advice before the event. Fixing the arrangement early is much easier than dealing with unpaid entitlement claims later.

What Should A Volunteer Agreement Include?

A good volunteer agreement should cover the volunteer's role, the event rules, safety responsibilities, confidentiality, expenses, media consent and how the arrangement can end.

For most charity events, your agreement should include:

• Volunteer details: The volunteer's name, contact details and emergency contact.
• Event details: The event name, date, location and expected shift times.
• Role description: The tasks they're allowed to do, and any tasks they must not do.
• Supervision: Who they report to on the day.
• Code of conduct: Expectations around respectful behaviour, discrimination, harassment, drugs, alcohol and social media.
• WHS requirements: The need to follow safety instructions, use equipment properly and report hazards or incidents.
• Confidentiality: Rules about donor lists, attendee details, internal documents, beneficiary stories and sponsor information.
• Expenses: Whether reimbursements are available, what needs approval, and what receipts are required.
• Media consent: Whether you can photograph or film the volunteer and use that content for event promotion.
• Intellectual property: Who owns photos, videos, designs or written content created for the event.
• Ending the arrangement: How either side can step away, and when you can remove a volunteer from the event.

You don't need to overcomplicate it. The agreement should be easy for volunteers to read and sign before they start.

Match The Agreement To The Role

Not every volunteer needs the same level of detail. A volunteer handing out wristbands at the gate may not need the same clauses as someone collecting donations, driving a van, photographing children, or accessing your donor database.

For higher-risk roles, add extra detail around:

• licences or qualifications, such as a driver's licence or RSA certificate
• Working With Children Checks, where children are involved
• manual handling and setup duties
• cash handling and donation procedures
• privacy and data access
• emergency response responsibilities

This keeps the document practical and relevant rather than asking every volunteer to sign a long agreement that doesn't reflect their actual role.

Do You Need A Volunteer Waiver Form?

It depends on the event, but many charity event organisers use a volunteer waiver or risk acknowledgement alongside the volunteer agreement.

A waiver can be helpful where volunteers may face physical, outdoor or operational risks. For example, it may suit a fun run, cycling event, beach clean-up, food truck event, sports day, festival or charity working bee.

A volunteer waiver form might cover:

• the volunteer understands the nature of the activity
• the volunteer has disclosed relevant medical conditions or limitations
• the volunteer agrees to follow safety instructions
• the volunteer accepts ordinary risks connected with the role
• the volunteer authorises emergency medical assistance if needed
• the volunteer confirms they're fit to perform the tasks allocated to them

A waiver isn't a magic shield. You can't use a waiver to contract out of your work health and safety duties or excuse careless event management. If someone is injured because you ignored a known hazard, a signed waiver won't fix that problem.

Think of the waiver as one part of your risk management, not the whole system. You should still run safety briefings, train volunteers, allocate suitable tasks and keep incident records.

Example: The Charity Fun Run

Maya organises a charity fun run to raise funds for a local health charity. Her volunteers include course marshals, water station helpers and registration desk volunteers.

For the registration desk, Maya uses a volunteer agreement with confidentiality, conduct and privacy clauses because volunteers can see participant details. For course marshals, she adds a risk acknowledgement covering outdoor conditions, standing near roads, sun exposure and the need to follow the traffic management plan.

That's a sensible approach because the documents match the real risks in each role.

What WHS Duties Apply To Charity Event Volunteers?

You usually have work health and safety duties towards volunteers if you're running the event through an organisation or business.

Across most Australian states and territories, work health and safety laws are based on the model Work Health and Safety Act. Victoria has its own Occupational Health and Safety Act 2004, but the practical message is similar: you need to manage health and safety risks so far as reasonably practicable.

Under the model WHS laws, a person conducting a business or undertaking, often called a PCBU, has duties to workers. Workers can include volunteers. This means your charity, not-for-profit or event business may need to take reasonable steps to protect volunteers while they help at the event.

Your WHS steps might include:

• risk assessing the event site before volunteers arrive
• giving volunteers a safety briefing
• providing safe equipment, gloves, high-vis vests or other protective gear where needed
• checking weather, heat, crowd and traffic risks
• having clear emergency and evacuation procedures
• making sure volunteers know who to contact if something goes wrong
• recording incidents, hazards and near misses

Some volunteer associations have special treatment under WHS laws, particularly where they don't employ anyone. The details can vary depending on your state or territory and how your organisation is structured, so check your position if you're relying entirely on volunteers.

Even where the strict legal duty is limited, good safety systems are still worth having. They help protect your people, your reputation and the event itself.

How Should You Handle Expenses, Confidentiality And Media Consent?

You should deal with expenses, confidentiality and media consent clearly in writing before the volunteer starts.

These are the areas that often feel informal at charity events, but they can cause real issues if they're left vague.

Volunteer Expenses

It's fine to reimburse volunteers for approved out-of-pocket expenses, such as parking, public transport, fuel, meals during a long shift, or supplies they were asked to buy.

Your agreement should explain:

• which expenses you'll reimburse
• whether expenses need pre-approval
• what receipts or records are required
• the deadline for submitting claims
• who approves payment

Try not to describe reimbursements as pay. If you want to give an honorarium or gift card, get advice first, especially if it's regular or linked to hours worked. Payments that look like wages can muddy the volunteer status.

Confidentiality And Privacy

Volunteers may see sensitive information, even at a one-day event. This can include donor names, attendee contact details, payment records, sponsor arrangements, medical information or personal stories from beneficiaries.

A confidentiality clause should tell volunteers not to use or share that information except for event purposes.

You should also think about privacy. The Privacy Act 1988 applies to many organisations, including businesses with annual turnover over $3 million and some smaller organisations depending on what they do. Health information and other sensitive information need extra care. Charities can also have privacy obligations depending on their activities and structure.

If volunteers will collect names, emails, donation details or medical information, give them clear scripts and processes. For example, don't let volunteers take photos of forms on their personal phones or store attendee lists in personal email accounts.

Media Consent

Charity events often rely on photos and videos for fundraising, sponsor reports and future promotions. If you want to use a volunteer's image, voice or story, get consent in writing.

Your media consent clause can cover:

• photos and videos taken at the event
• use on social media, websites, newsletters and sponsor materials
• whether the volunteer can withdraw consent for future use
• any limits, such as not using images in paid advertising

If children or vulnerable people are involved, use extra care. You may need parent or guardian consent, and you should have rules around who can take photos and where images can be published.

What Charity Event Legal Requirements Should You Check?

You should check the legal requirements that apply to your event type, location, fundraising activities and attendees.

Volunteer agreements are only one part of running a safe and compliant charity event. Depending on what you're organising, and what your event planning agreement covers, you may also need to look at:

• Fundraising rules: Fundraising licences and approvals are state and territory based. Registration with the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission doesn't automatically cover every fundraising activity.
• Local council permits: You may need approval for public spaces, road closures, signage, amplified music, temporary structures or waste management.
• Food safety: Food stalls, sausage sizzles and catering may need to follow local council and state food safety rules.
• Alcohol: If alcohol is sold or supplied, liquor licensing rules may apply. Volunteers serving alcohol may need responsible service of alcohol training.
• Children and vulnerable people: Working With Children Checks and child safety policies may be required, depending on your state or territory and the nature of the role.
• Insurance: Public liability, volunteer personal accident cover and event cancellation insurance are worth discussing with your broker or insurer.
• Contracts: Venue hire, supplier agreements, auspice agreements, sponsorship agreements, grant funding agreements and performer agreements should line up with your event obligations.
• Australian Consumer Law: If you're selling tickets, merchandise or packages, your advertising, refunds and promotional claims need to comply with the Australian Consumer Law.

If you're a registered charity, you should also keep your ACNC governance obligations and charity charter in mind. This includes managing conflicts of interest, keeping proper records and making sure charity resources are used for charitable purposes.

None of this needs to be overwhelming. Start with the event plan, then map the legal documents and approvals around the actual risks.

Common Mistakes To Avoid

The main mistake is treating volunteer paperwork as a formality rather than a tool for running the event well.

Here are some common traps to watch for:

• Using one generic form for every role: A photographer, cash handler and parking marshal shouldn't necessarily sign the exact same document.
• Forgetting safety briefings: A signed agreement won't help much if volunteers don't know what to do on the day.
• Paying volunteers like casual staff: Regular payments tied to hours can create confusion about whether they're really volunteers.
• Letting volunteers use personal devices for event data: This can create privacy and confidentiality issues.
• Missing media consent: It's awkward to pull down a whole campaign because someone didn't agree to their image being used.
• Skipping checks for children or vulnerable people: These rules are state-based and can be strict, so don't leave them until the week of the event.
• Assuming ACNC registration covers all fundraising: Fundraising approvals can still be required in different states and territories.

A simple pre-event checklist can help. Before volunteers start, make sure you've given them the agreement, role description, safety briefing, emergency contact process and any event-specific instructions.

Key Takeaways

• A volunteer agreement is a smart way to set expectations for charity event volunteers and reduce confusion on the day.
• Genuine volunteers aren't employees, but the arrangement should be clearly unpaid and voluntary so you don't create employment risks.
• Your agreement should cover the role, conduct, WHS, confidentiality, expenses, media consent and when the arrangement can end.
• A volunteer waiver can help with risk acknowledgement, but it doesn't replace proper safety planning or your WHS duties.
• Charity event legal requirements can include fundraising approvals, council permits, food safety, liquor licensing, child safety checks, insurance and Australian Consumer Law compliance.
• The best documents are tailored to the actual event and volunteer roles, rather than relying on a one-size-fits-all form.

If you'd like help with your volunteer agreements, waiver forms, charity event contracts or privacy and media consent wording, you can reach us at 1800 730 617 or team@sprintlaw.com.au for a free, no-obligations chat.