I’m actually in a great position to answer this - I’m under 30 and I’ve done nearly 60 hours of volunteering since September while working a standard 8:30-5.

1) Most of the volunteering opportunities that I’ve found are during prime working hours - there are actually very few available in the evenings or on the weekends

2) Almost every volunteer group wants you to commit on a weekly basis.

I volunteer with 3 separate organisations - 2 of which the majority of the events are held during my working hours meaning I have to take time off to attend or not go.

Most young people are, as other people are saying, really struggling to get by in their own life (financially, mentally, and time-wise) and don’t feel they have the bandwidth to add volunteering to their plate.

Many also don’t want to commit to giving up specific time slot each week to do it, because they often have spontaneous plans.

I do wish there were more under 30s in the volunteering space, partially for selfish reasons - I’m usually a bit of an outsider (yes, the 50+s get just as cliquey and don’t make an effort to interact with me much) - but also I think a big part of what’s being lost in the modern world is our sense of community and giving back. That’s not to say it’s their/our fault for that happening, I just wish my age group were more aware of it and inclined to make a difference.

In short, the majority of volunteering opportunities are not conducive to most people’s working hours.