Voluntary work is sometimes praised, sometimes criticised, but was seldom the subject of objective evaluation. Given the importance of the voluntary sector in the social services at the time, the lack of systematic research into its performance was cause for concern. Originally published in 1975, the particular value of this study was twofold: first it provided a detailed and vivid picture of the work of one section of the volunteer movement – young volunteers working with the elderly; second it examined the wider issue of how voluntary work can be evaluated. The particular volunteers studied were organised through Task Force, a London based agency, but both the substantive and research issues discussed had a far wider relevance. A key part of the study explored over a period of twelve months, the development of relationships between a group of old people and the volunteers allocated to them. The authors established a new method of assessing success in these relationships. They then explored possible reasons for the successes and failures in the relationships they studied. They suggest possible changes in the organisation of the work which might help to increase the success rate of volunteer agencies.

The book will be of interest to anyone concerned about the place of voluntary work in our society. At the time it would have been of special importance to staff and members of organisations involved in voluntary social service, to social workers and social administrators, and to those who were training to join their ranks.

The book is based on an eighteen-month field study of Task Force; Roger Hadley and Adrian Webb directed the research and Christine Farrell was the research officer for the project.