Abstract
Voluntary work travel is a niche market, dominated by gap year travellers and students, with an estimated volume of 63,000 trips and value of £77.2 million in 2006. However, Mintel' s research suggests that around 4 million adults are interested in taking such a trip, with strongest growth potential amongst older career breakers and third agers.
However, underlying tensions between traditional non-profit-making volunteering organisations and fast-growing commercial operators are creating a media controversy, which threatens to curtail public confidence and hold back growth.
The report analyses the current make-up and dynamics of the voluntary work holiday sector, investigating the core market factors, supply and consumer trends and likely future developments.
Table of Contents
- Issues in the Market
- Main issues:
- Definitions
- Abbreviations
- Market in Brief
- Poised for take-off
- Internal affairs
- Blurring boundaries
- Keeping it real
- Mind the gap
- Young urban professional seeks meaningful encounters
- Doubting Thomases
- Windows of opportunity
- Sexing up the anorak
- Internal Market Environment
- Key points
- Overseas still ahead
- Figure 1: Domestic and overseas holidays volume, 2002-07
- Value surge
- Figure 2: Domestic and overseas holidays expenditure, 2002-07
- Varied travel diet
- Figure 3: Percentage of adults booking UK and overseas holidays, 2002-06
- DIY voluntourism
- Figure 4: Independent holidays and expenditure abroad, 2002-11
- Heated debate
- Commercial expansion
- Conflicts of interest
- Ethical questions
- Risks and regulation
- Raising standards
- Broader Market Environment
- Key points
- Economics of volunteering
- Troubled waters
- Figure 5: Trends in personal disposable income and consumer expenditure, 2002-12
- Culture of debt
- Ageing of voluntourism
- Figure 6: Trends in the age structure of the UK population, by gender, 2002-12
- Proactive Boomers
- Figure 7: Forecast adult population trends, by lifestage, 2002-12
- ABC1 growth
- Figure 8: Forecast adult population trends, by socio-economic group, 2002-12
- Virtual volunteering
- Figure 9: British Internet penetration at home/work/place of study or elsewhere, 2002-07
- Political prominence
- State of volunteering
- Landscape of giving
- From hippies to hip-hop
- Figure 10: Ethical consumerism in the UK, 2001-05
- Students no longer revolting
- Competitive Context
- Key points:
- Overlapping markets
- Figure 11: Voluntary work holidays, gap year holidays, adventure holidays, ethical holidays and total holidays estimated market sizes, by volume and value, 2006
- Gap year travel
- Adventure travel
- Ethical travel
- Small but valuable
- Strengths and Weaknesses in the Market
- Strengths
- Weaknesses
- Market Size and Forecast
- Key points
- Past and present
- Figure 12: Total voluntary work holidays estimated volume and value, 2006 and 2007
- Drivers of growth
- The future
- Scenario-based forecast
- Scenario 1: Market goes premium
- Figure 13: Scenario 1 forecast for working and experience holidays, 2007-12
- Scenario 2: A two-tiered system maintains steady growth
- Figure 14: Scenario 2 forecast for working and experience holidays, 2007-12
- Scenario 3: Disillusionment leads to downturn
- Figure 15: Scenario 3 forecast for working and experience holidays, 2007-12
- Segment Performance
- Key points:
- Overseas orientation
- Figure 16: Overseas vs domestic voluntary work holidays estimated volume and value, 2006
- Domestic lacks dynamism
- Destinations
- Africa and Asia in demand
- Figure 17: Most popular destinations for overseas voluntary work holidays, 2006/07
- Customer segmentation
- Youth still dominant
- Companies and Products
- Key points
- Overall context
- Commercialisation
- Non-profit-making at home
- Overseas
- VSO
- Year Out Group
- i-to-i
- Madventurer
- Raleigh International
- Real Gap Experience
- Gapyear.com
- Projects Abroad
- Other companies
- Domestic
- BTCV
- National Trust
- Community Service Volunteers
- Other providers
- Consumer Interest in Working and Experience Holidays
- Key points
- Figure 18: Interest in working and experience holidays, September 2007
- Building critical mass
- Mature potential
- Interest by demographics
- Figure 19: Interest in working and experience holidays, by gender, age, socio-economic group, marital status, lifestage, presence of children, Mintel' s Special Groups, working status, household income, tenure, region, ACORN category, media usage, supermarket usage, household size, car usage, detailed lifestage groups, age/socio-economic group and terminal education age, September 2007
- Appealing to men
- Guardian angels
- Thirtysomethings in crisis
- CSR PR for UK PLC
- Disaster relief army
- How to Put Consumer Interest into Practice?
- Key points
- Figure 20: Organising working and experience holidays, September 2007
- Charitable trust
- Networking
- Domestic demand
- Figure 21: Organising working and experience holidays, by gender, working status, age, socio-economic group, lifestage, household income, tenure, ACORN category and commercial TV viewing, September 2007
- Figure 22: Further organising working and experience holidays, by gender, working status, age, socio-economic group, lifestage, household income, tenure, ACORN category and commercial TV viewing, September 2007
- Commercial sceptics
- Research dangers
- Budget UK volunteers
- DIY impulse
- Attitudes Towards Working and Experience Holidays
- Key points
- Figure 23: Attitudes towards working and experience holidays, September 2007
- Voluntary work travel broadens the mind
- Attitudes by demographics
- Figure 24: Attitudes towards working and experience holidays, by gender, age, socio-economic group, marital status, lifestage, presence of children, Mintel' s Special Groups, working status, household income, tenure, region, ACORN category, media usage, supermarket usage, household size, car usage, detailed lifestage groups, age/socio-economic group and terminal education age, September 2007
- Finding yourself
- Part of the tribe
- Pre-retirement gappers
- Alpha male egos
- Figure 25: Attitudes towards working and experience holidays, by gender, age, socio-economic group, marital status, lifestage, presence of children, Mintel' s Special Groups, working status, household income, tenure, region, ACORN category, media usage, supermarket usage, household size, car usage, detailed lifestage groups, age/socio-economic group and terminal education age, September 2007
- Exposure to criticism
- Cost concerns
- Attitudes by interest
- Figure 26: Attitudes towards working and experience holidays, by interest in taking working and experience holidays, September 2007
- Mature worries
- Figure 27: Further attitudes towards working and experience holidays, by interest in taking working and experience holidays, September 2007
- Organisation by interest
- Figure 28: Organisation, by interest in taking experience and working holidays, September 2007
- Figure 29: Organisation, by interest in taking experience and working holidays, September 2007
