8 October 2025

Working with Volunteers? Don’t Overlook Copyright

Volunteers are vital to charities and cultural heritage organisations. They write blog posts, take photos, record interviews, run social media, and digitise archives. But alongside the goodwill comes a challenge that’s often overlooked: who owns the work produced, and what permissions are needed?

Why copyright matters

Whenever a volunteer creates an original work, including text, photo, video, recordings, they automatically own the copyright. Unlike employees, volunteers don’t fall under the legal rules that assign copyright to employers. Unless an agreement is signed, the volunteer remains the copyright holder, not the organisation.

That means without proper permissions, organisations working with volunteers may be restricted in how they use, adapt, or share the work later. A volunteer could even request removal or object to how their work is presented. In the digital age, where content is shared and reused constantly, this creates real risk.

Agreements and permissions

The Digital Guide: Working with Volunteers – Copyright Considerations from Heritage Digital and Naomi Korn Associates helps organisations navigate this. It explains copyright basics, provides a template Deed of Assignment of Copyright, and includes a practical checklist for volunteer managers.

The guide recommends introducing a copyright assignment or licence agreement at the onboarding stage. This ensures clarity about:

How rights can be transferred or licensed
How volunteers are credited

Clear, written agreements avoid disputes and protect both the volunteer and the organisation. You can download the template deed via Charity Digital.

Third-party material

Another common issue is volunteers using third-party materials—images, music, or archival content. Organisations must check these are properly licensed (e.g. Creative Commons) or obtain permissions. Volunteers should be guided to avoid inadvertently infringing others’ rights.

The copyright checklist

The guide’s checklist helps managers cover all bases:

Identify what volunteers will create
Secure signed agreements before work begins
Keep records of who created what
Confirm rights for any third-party content
Provide credit where agreed
Clarify how content can be reused across channels

Using a checklist makes copyright management part of everyday practice rather than an afterthought.

Best practice tips

To make this process work smoothly:

Start early – introduce copyright agreements during induction.
Keep it clear – use plain English, not just legal jargon.
Be transparent – explain how the organisation will use the work.
Tailor rights – you may only need certain rights, not everything.
Give credit – volunteers value acknowledgment.
Archive records – agreements and permissions should be stored centrally.

For further advice on managing volunteers, NCVO has a range of resources.

In summary

Volunteers bring huge value to digital projects, but copyright should never be an afterthought. By using simple agreements and checklists, organisations can ensure they have the rights they need, avoid legal risks, and respect the contributions of their volunteers.

Find more about our Copyright and Volunteer Management Training Course, and other relevant training, or contact our Information Services and Training Manager at info@naomikorn.com.