Cross-Party Group on Volunteering – Held in Committee Room 2, Scottish Parliament th Thursday 5 June 2025, 1.00 – 2.00 pm Minute Apologies Foysol Choudhury MSP Abi Clarke, TSI Moray Bev Read, First-Hand Lothian Kelsa McDonald, VoiceAbility Heather Robertson, Maidsafe Foundation Lorraine Moir, EDVA Emma Hanlon, Chas Sarah Cleary, Volunteer Edinburgh Present MSPs Jeremy Balfour MSP - Co Convenor and Meeting Chair Miles Briggs MSP Invited guests Fiona Zaparin, Scottish Government Gemma Campbell, Scottish Government Ruth Hutton, Scottish Government Non-MSP Group Members Alan Stevenson, Volunteer Scotland Bethany Sikes, Volunteer Scotland Margaret Starkie, Volunteer Scotland Julie Lonsdale, Volunteer Scotland Rosie Abernethy, Volunteer Scotland Nicola Henderson, Volunteer Scotland Jiehang Deng, Volunteer Scotland Fiona Harvey, CHAS Georgia Artus, Vintage Vibes with Volunteer Natalja Zukova & Maja Jackson 1 Sue Bowen, Dyslexia Scotland with Volunteer Autumn Gibson Rachel Farmer, RNLI, with Volunteer Sophie Cheyney Louise Henderson, Girlguiding Scotland Martha Rodger, Machan Trust with Volunteer Jim Rodger Liz Green, YouthLInk Scotland Fraser Clark, YouthLink Scotland with Volunteers Allana Williams & Gemma Hickey Rebecca McDonald, ECH Charity with Volunteer Leonor Soares Sarah Murray, Royal Voluntary Service Rob Murray, Royal Voluntary Service Susan Hunter, Befriending Networks Margarita Sweeney-Baird, Inclusive Skating with Volunteer Juliana Sweeney-Baird Ruth Zorkas, CHSS with Volunteer Georgie Crane Tony Lockey, CVS Inverclyde with Volunteer Kara Brain and Audrey and Paul Brain Beth Cowen & Ashleigh Gillespie, CVS Falkirk Ruth Hall, Scottish Cycling Bryony Hudson, Community Leisure UK Dayna MacLellan & Cate Nelson Shaw, Impact Funding Partners Sarah MacNeil, Girl Guiding Scotland David Kelly, CTA UK Gemma Mudie, Borders Pet Rescue with Volunteer Ann Southwood Judith Woodward, SLCo with Volunteer Jaque Nalwanga Gregor Muir, SSA Mhairi Bowe, Heriot Watt University James Whyte, Victim Support Scotland Kirstin Worsley, Breastfeeding Network Agenda item 1: Welcome and Introduction Jeremy Balfour MSP (JB), Co-convenor, opened the meeting and welcomed everyone to the Cross-Party Group on Volunteering.