While the nation is proud of our sporting stars, we are equally proud of the people who helped to make the London 2012 Olympic Games such a success.

The event provided the perfect platform not only for the country’s athletes to shine, but also for ordinary people – the 70,000 volunteer ‘games makers’ who worked with the public and behind the scenes during the Olympics and Paralympics, and the 15,000 extra volunteers who turned out for the opening and closing ceremonies in London – to do their bit for Britain.

Lord Coe, organising committee chairman of London 2012, paid tribute to the games makers and the athletes as part of his closing speech bringing to an end the Olympics and Paralympics.

“As well as the best athletes, we had the best volunteers, our games makers, who dedicated themselves to doing something positive for the world’s athletes, for their country, and for the world,” said Lord Coe.

Now the baton is being handed over to encourage potential volunteers to participate in the CSV Make a Difference Day on October 27.

According to research commissioned by volunteering and learning charity CSV, 3.4 million people nationwide have been inspired to volunteeer following the Olympics.

“If you could bottle the enthusiasm of the Olympics and the Paralympic volunteers you could change the world,” says Lucy de Groot, chief executive of CSV.

“They have put down a major challenge to everyone who values the contribution that volunteering can make to society and the difference it can make to the lives of the volunteers. This includes the voluntary sector, the private sector and the Government.

“In particular, we need to recognise that the investment by the Olympics in recruiting, training and support for their volunteers paid off, and to ensure we replicate this in volunteer programmes in future.”

Eighteen to 24-year-olds are more inspired than any other age group to volunteer following the Olympics. Around 70,000 people have been prompted to volunteer in their area through previous CSV Make a Difference Day campaigns.

This year’s campaign focuses on sharing professional skills and experience, and aims to demonstrate how sharing your skill through volunteering with friends, family and neighbours, and being an active member of the community, can benefit local community groups, clubs and small charities to help them survive during the recession.

Lynn Leadbeatter, information and advice co-ordinator for Volunteering Bradford, a charity offering a one-stop resource for information, advice and guidance on all aspects of volunteering says: “Bradford has always had one of the highest rates of volunteering in the country.

“We have literally hundreds of opportunities on our database and we are then able to match people’s interests and skills and experience to the opportunities that are available, and also find a match for the times they are available.”

Lynn says volunteers are essential to Bradford. “Without our volunteers, Bradford would almost break down. There is such an enormous involvement in volunteering. If you look at the different sports teams, church groups and uniformed groups such as Scouts, or the people who are working in the charity shops, all of this is reliant on volunteers.”

Volunteers can commit as much time as they are able, and as well as giving something back to society, they gain valuable skills which can be useful for employment. Lynn says volunteering is ideal for confidence-building and learning new skills.

“It’s a chance to meet new people and get to know their neighbourhood better,” she says. “For a lot of people it is the pleasure of seeing the difference they are making to other people’s lives.

“If they are unemployed it can be the pathway back to work, may be not with the organisation they are with, but they will gain the skills and experience that can get them into work or, for young people who are looking for their first jobs, volunteering can give them the first step into work.

“It allows people to try out new things. Even if they are thinking of a career change, they can try something out as a volunteer to see if it suits them or not,” adds Lynn.

To find out more about CSV Make a Difference Day on October 27, visit csv.org.uk/difference or call FREEPHONE 0800 284 533 or e-mail difference@csv.org.uk. For more information about Volunteering Bradford, call (01274) 720779 or visit volunteeringbradford.

org.uk.