HR software for charities: Why choose Breathe?

Charities often rely on volunteers to do incredible work for their particular cause. It’s a common approach, with 18% of adults in England offering their time and skills to volunteer formally at least once a month in 2025/26, according to the government's Community and Engagement Survey.

But managing these volunteers alongside your paid charity employees comes with its own unique set of HR challenges. And when you're working with a small team and limited resources, keeping on top of the admin can take up more time than you'd like.

HR software for charities can make everyday people management easier. This guide explores the typical challenges charity teams face and how Breathe’s HR software supports charities.

 

Skip to:

• Why is HR challenging in the voluntary sector?

• What’s the difference between managing employees and volunteers?

• 8 ways Breathe helps charities manage their people

• Why do charities choose Breathe?

• Make charity HR admin brilliantly simple with Breathe

• FAQs about HR software for charities

 

Why is HR challenging in the voluntary sector?

 

Managing human resources can feel daunting in any business, but there are particular things to be aware of in the voluntary or nonprofit sector.

 

The person responsible for HR wears many hats

Charities and other organisations that use volunteers often struggle with limited budgets. Instead of affording a dedicated HR team, it’s common for the person responsible for HR to manage these tasks alongside other work, like office operations or accounting.

With so many competing priorities, routine HR tasks can eat into the working day and even cause burnout when people feel overloaded. And even though systems exist to ease the workload, financial pressures in non-profit organisations can make it hard to invest. In particular, 69% of charities surveyed in the 2025 Charity Digital Skills Report cited squeezed finances as a barrier to making digital progress.

 

HR must manage a mixed team of paid staff and unpaid volunteers

Many charities rely on a combination of paid employees and volunteers to keep things running. But coordinating the two groups can make everyday HR admin more complicated.

Paid employees might work regular hours and have clearly defined responsibilities, while volunteers may contribute to occasional projects or help out when they're available. Whoever manages HR needs to keep track of everyone's responsibilities while maintaining accurate records for both groups.

 

HR must handle changing volunteer availability

Volunteers often fit their commitments around paid work or family life, which means charities can't always count on the same people being available each week.

According to the government's Community and Engagement Survey 2025/26, 51% of adults in England cited work commitments as a barrier to volunteering more often or at all.

For charities running shops or community activities, this can make organising rotas particularly tricky. Managers need to know who's available and arrange cover when plans change, often at short notice.

 

What’s the difference between managing employees and volunteers?

 

Charities have responsibilities towards both paid employees and volunteers, but the rules aren't always the same. Genuine volunteers don't usually have the same statutory employment rights as employees, so it's important to understand the differences.

 

	Paid employees	Volunteers
Contracts and agreements	Have employment contracts setting out their terms and conditions.	May have volunteer agreements outlining expectations, but these shouldn't create unintended contractual obligations.
Holiday and sick pay	Have statutory paid holiday entitlement and may qualify for Statutory Sick Pay.	Aren’t entitled to statutory holiday or sick pay.
Pay and expenses	Must receive at least the applicable National Minimum Wage and may claim work-related expenses.	Usually give their time without pay but can receive reimbursement for genuine out-of-pocket expenses, such as travel.
Safeguarding	May need pre-employment checks and safeguarding training, depending on their role.	Charities must consider safeguarding requirements for volunteers too, including whether their activities require DBS checks.*
Health and safety	Under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, charities with employees must protect their staff and anyone affected by their activities.	Charities with employees must also protect volunteers from work-related risks. Entirely volunteer-run charities still have a duty of care, although different legal rules apply.
Data protection	Personal information must be handled in accordance with UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018.	The same data protection legislation applies to volunteer information.

 

*Safeguarding rules can change, too. For example, since September 2026, volunteers in England who regularly work with children in certain roles may need a DBS check, even if someone supervises them. Read the government's guidance for details.

Remember also that calling someone a volunteer doesn't automatically decide their legal status. A person’s working arrangements can affect their rights, particularly if they receive payments or are required to work set hours.

Breathe helps you manage paid employees and volunteers in one place, with dedicated profiles that make it easy to distinguish between the two groups. You can keep their records organised while managing their different needs and responsibilities.

 

8 ways Breathe helps charities manage their people

 

When you’re running a charity with limited resources, you want to spend less time on HR admin and more time supporting your cause. Breathe helps you keep important information organised, bringing everyday people management tasks in one easy-to-use platform.

Here are eight ways Breathe can help you run things smoothly, whether you're managing a small team of paid employees or coordinating volunteers across multiple locations.

 

1. Keep employee and volunteer records in one place

 

Depending on the volume of volunteers you’re managing, on top of your paid staff, it’s useful to have a central place to store each person’s details. Of course, you can save this information on a spreadsheet or a digital form, especially if your employee and volunteer headcount is small. But you may quickly find you outgrow these methods or that it’s difficult to find the latest version of your records.

Breathe lets you keep employee and volunteer records together in one place, while clearly identifying who belongs to each group. You can store contact details and other important information in individual profiles, making it easier to keep everything up to date.

For example, if a volunteer moves to another charity shop or takes on a different role, you can update their profile rather than maintaining separate records across multiple files. And with the right access permissions, managers can find the information they need without asking whoever handles HR to dig it out for them.

 

2. Protect sensitive information and documents

 

Charities hold plenty of personal information about the people who work and volunteer for them. Some records, such as medical information or details relating to safeguarding, are particularly sensitive. You need to be confident that these documents are stored securely and that only authorised people can access them.

Under the UK’s General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) and Data Protection Act 2018, charities must have a lawful reason for collecting personal information and shouldn't keep it longer than necessary. These responsibilities apply to volunteer records as well as employee information. You can learn more about data protection compliance inside Breathe Learn where we offer GDPR training.

With Breathe's document management features, you can keep important paperwork in one place, including policies, employment contracts and volunteer agreements. You can control who has access to different records and use e-signatures to collect signatures without printing or emailing documents back and forth.

 

3. Make onboarding easier for new starters

Whether someone is joining your charity as a paid employee or giving up a few hours a week to volunteer, you'll want them to feel welcome and confident in their new role. But the onboarding process won't necessarily look the same for everyone.

For example, a new charity shop volunteer might need an introduction to handling donations and using the till, while someone volunteering with vulnerable adults may need safeguarding training. Paid employees may have additional paperwork to complete before their first day.

Breathe helps you keep track of important onboarding documents and requirements, so everyone knows what needs to happen before a new starter gets going. Breathe's onboarding features let you create checklists for new employees and keep track of their progress. You can also share important policies and documents for people to read and acknowledge, giving your charity a record of who's completed the necessary steps.

4. Manage employee leave and sickness absence

When you're running a small charity team, even one person's absence can make a big difference. If your charity shop manager is off sick or two employees book the same week of annual leave, you need to work out who's available to cover their responsibilities. And if you're relying on spreadsheets to track absences, it's easy to lose sight of who's off and when.

Remember that although volunteers don't have statutory holiday or sick pay entitlements, they may still let your charity know they’ll be taking time away from volunteering. Be careful not to confuse these arrangements with employees' legal rights.

For example, there are legal responsibilities attached to employee absence and attendance. Changes under the Employment Rights Act 2025 mean that, as of 6 April 2026, eligible employees must receive Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) from their first full day of sickness absence, with the previous three waiting days removed. The lower earnings limit for SSP has also been removed.

Breathe's absence tracking features help you record sickness absence and spot patterns that might need a conversation. And the holiday management software lets employees request time off online, while managers can review requests and check who's already booked leave before approving them.

5. Keep learning and training on track

From safeguarding to health and safety, there are plenty of training requirements to keep track of across your charity. Having a clear record of who's completed their training and when refresher courses are due makes it easier to plan ahead, especially when you're managing different categories of workers across different locations.

Breathe makes it easy to record employee training and qualifications, so you can quickly check who's completed what. If your charity also wants to deliver courses online, Breathe Learn offers additional functionality to assign learning and track progress.

We also offer completely free training. All Breathe core HR customers get access to eight free courses, covering topics such as manual handling, cultural awareness and setting goals. You can also explore free line manager essentials courses through Breathe's Growth Academy, giving your managers extra support without adding to your charity's training costs.

6. Manage health and safety responsibilities

Your charity might need risk assessments for volunteers handling heavy donations in a charity shop or employees working alone during home visits. You'll also need a way to record accidents and near misses, including identifying incidents that must be reported to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) under the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations (RIDDOR).

Breathe's Health and Safety software helps you keep risk assessments and incident records in one place, rather than relying on separate spreadsheets or paper files. You can also assign follow-up actions and track their progress, giving your charity a clearer record of the steps you've taken to protect people.

For more guidance, read our health and safety guide for charities and voluntary organisations.

7. Coordinate staff rotas and volunteer roles

Charity shops need enough people to keep their doors open, while fundraising events often depend on volunteers being available at certain times. When you're coordinating several locations or dealing with last-minute changes, a digital rota can make planning much easier.

Breathe’s Rota, Time & Attendance module lets you create shifts, assign people to them and update schedules when plans change. Its time and attendance functionality also helps you keep track of employee working hours.

Gorse Hill City Farm in Leicester is one charity putting these features to good use. Along with using Breathe's rota software to run the charity’s employees and volunteers, Gorse Hill City Farm's director explains that the platform's "clock in/clock out [feature] is also helpful and makes life so much easier for payroll when we run the report off for time logged."

8. Manage volunteer expenses and reimbursements

Keeping accurate records of any expenses you pay to volunteers helps your charity stay on top of its spending. Staying organised also makes it easier to check which claims have been submitted, approved or paid.

Breathe's expense management software lets employees submit claims and managers review them for approval, giving your charity a clearer record of what it’s spent. If you also want to process volunteer reimbursements, check how these can be accommodated within your Breathe setup.

Why do charities choose Breathe?

Breathe helps small organisations take care of their people with less HR admin. We also give back to the charities using our software by making quarterly donations to eligible UK charity customers, equivalent to approximately 25% of their subscription payments from the previous quarter, excluding VAT. These donations help charities put more money towards their causes, and it’s easy to set up.

1. Head to the account settings in Breathe. Go to Configure → Settings → Account → Details → Edit.

2. Add essential charity details. Enter your registered UK charity number and bank details. To qualify, please note that you’ll need to include this information alongside selecting “charity” as your sector when signing up, and we can’t process your donation without it.

3. Keep your details up to date. You only need to complete this process once, unless your charity details change.

Case study: Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust’s Mission Wild campaign

Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust has been protecting the county's wildlife since 1961 and now manages 46 nature reserves. But with nature under increasing pressure, the charity has ambitious plans to help local habitats and wildlife recover.

In May 2026, the Trust launched its Mission Wild campaign, aiming to raise £3 million to support nature recovery across Gloucestershire. It's a major fundraising effort, and every contribution helps the charity work towards its goal.

Breathe is proud to support Mission Wild through its charity donation scheme, helping Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust put more resources towards protecting the natural environment for future generations.

Case study: Gorse Hill City Farm’s alpaca adoption

Gorse Hill City Farm is a small charity in Leicester that’s home to a variety of animals and supported by 17 employees alongside its volunteers. The farm has been a Breathe customer since January 2021.

Like many small charities, Gorse Hill City Farm needs to make every penny count. Caring for its animals comes with ongoing costs, so every bit of financial support makes a welcome difference.

Thanks to Breathe's quarterly charity donation scheme, Gorse Hill City Farm has arranged a one-year alpaca adoption in the Breathe HR Team's name. The adoption contributes towards the cost of caring for the farm's animals.

The charity’s farm director explains:

"The charity relief we receive from Breathe is very helpful, as charity finance is always a struggle, especially in the current political and economic climate."

It's a lovely example of how Breathe's support can help charity customers put more of their resources towards the causes they care about.

Make charity HR admin brilliantly simple with Breathe

When your charity team is already stretched, the last thing you need is hours of HR paperwork taking time away from the people and causes you support.

Breathe brings your everyday HR tasks together in one easy-to-use platform, designed with smaller organisations in mind. You can manage employee and volunteer records, holiday requests and important documents without relying on endless spreadsheets. And now, with Breathe's AI Assistant, employees can easily find answers in selected company policies and documents without needing to contact the person responsible for HR.

International Cat Care, a small UK charity supporting cat welfare, has seen the benefits of HR software firsthand. After switching from spreadsheets to Breathe, the charity saves hours of HR admin each week. Its administrator, Tracey Sullivan, particularly values the holiday calendar and the support available whenever the team needs help:

"Breathe is a great system - it's quick and easy to use, very intuitive and the online support is phenomenal."

Dorset Wildlife Trust has had a similar experience. Previously, staff submitted paper holiday requests, which were then manually entered into spreadsheets. Since switching to Breathe, the charity has found it much easier to manage holiday requests and sickness absence. Steve Davis, Head of HR & Volunteering, explains:

“I can't imagine not using Breathe now - it's just become part of what we do."

Want to see how Breathe could help your charity? Find out more about our HR software for charities and voluntary organisations, or try Breathe for free and see how much easier charity people management can be.

FAQs about HR software for charities

How does Breathe keep charity data secure?

Breathe is independently certified to ISO 27001 for information security and ISO 42001 for responsible AI management. Your data is stored securely in the UK and backed up automatically.

Do charities need HR software?

No, charities aren't legally required to use dedicated HR software, but they must meet their employment law and data protection responsibilities. HR software can make these tasks easier by keeping important records organised and reducing the time spent on everyday admin.

Can Breathe’s HR software solution manage volunteers?

Yes, Breathe’s HR platform lets charities manage volunteer information alongside employee records. Its dedicated volunteer profiles make it easier to identify different people within your charity. If you’re exploring different HR solutions for charities, always check which features are available for volunteers and whether their profiles count towards your subscription costs.

Do charity volunteers have the same rights as employees?

No, volunteers don't have the same statutory employment rights as paid employees, such as entitlement to the National Minimum Wage or paid annual leave. Bear in mind, though, that someone's legal status depends on their working arrangements, not simply whether your charity calls them a volunteer.

What records should charities keep for volunteers?

Charities should keep relevant volunteer contact details, emergency contacts and any volunteer agreements. Depending on the role, you may also need training records, safeguarding information and details of DBS checks. Keep records of expense reimbursements, too. Under UK GDPR, personal information must be stored securely and kept only for as long as necessary.

Is Breathe affordable for small charities?

Yes, absolutely. Breathe offers HR software designed for smaller organisations, with subscription plans based on team size. Eligible UK charity customers can also benefit from Breathe's quarterly donation scheme, which returns approximately 25% of their subscription payments from the previous quarter, excluding VAT. Remember to enter your registered charity number in your Breathe account settings to qualify.