Student volunteering is worth £175m a year, according to a report published today by the National Union of Students.

The report, The Student Volunteering Landscape, says that 725,000 students, or 31 per cent of the student population, currently volunteer, and contributed an average of 44 hours a year.

The report says that this would be worth £175m at the minimum wage for young people of £5.03 an hour.

The report, released to mark the start of Student Volunteering week, finds that those who did not volunteer cited not having enough time as their main reason. More than two thirds say they would be interested in volunteering in the future.

Students are most likely to have been involved in organising events, raising money, or teaching others.

The figures are based on an online questionnaire with volunteering staff, telephone interviews with student volunteers, and an online survey of students with 2,000 responses.