Volunteering and community involvement are described in the handbook as part of being a good citizen. The exam tests your understanding of the practical ways you can take part.
Common forms of volunteering
- Helping at a local school as a parent volunteer or governor.
- Coaching a local sports team or running a youth group.
- Volunteering at a charity shop, food bank, or homeless shelter.
- Becoming a magistrate (an unpaid judicial role).
- Standing as a school governor or a local councillor.
- Joining the Special Constabulary as a volunteer police officer.
Charitable giving
Around three-quarters of UK adults give to charity each year. Major nationwide events include Comic Relief, Children in Need and Sport Relief. The Gift Aid scheme allows charities to reclaim 25p of tax for every £1 donated by a UK taxpayer.
Further reading: a related editorial guide on this topic opens in a new window for additional context.
Jury service
Jury service is a civic responsibility, not a volunteer role. Anyone aged 18 to 75 on the electoral register can be summoned to serve on a jury in a Crown Court trial. You can be excused only in limited circumstances. Employers must allow you time off, although they do not have to pay you.
Standing for office
You can stand for election as a local councillor at age 18, as an MP at age 18 (lowered from 21 in 2006) and as a Member of the Scottish Parliament or Welsh Senedd at the same age. You usually have to be a British, qualifying Commonwealth or Republic of Ireland citizen.
How this comes up
A typical exam question lists four activities and asks which is "an example of how you can take part in community life". The correct answer is almost always the most everyday option — volunteering, being a school governor, helping at a polling station — rather than something dramatic.
Keep going
- Read the full study notes for Values & Principles.
- Try a practice test on this chapter.
- Sit a full 24-question timed mock.
- Browse our complete topic explainer library.