Kia tū ao, e tū ki te ao

The SVA Service Award is a nationwide framework that recognises volunteering efforts of Year 7-13 students.

Students are awarded a pin for initial volunteering hours and log additional efforts on the SVA App or online. School, community and in-home volunteering hours all qualify and are combined into a single record of service. This programme is free to participating schools.

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Creating the next generation of community.

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  • Volunteering hours on the SVA App or at volunteer.sva.org.nz

  • SVA Service Pins for hours of volunteer time logged. Pins include member, bronze, silver, gold and top volunteer. Top volunteer is the most hours logged at your school for that volunteering year. There is also a nationally recognised top volunteer.

  • A Service Record

  • In applications (for jobs, university, tech, apprenticeships and scholarships).

  • SVA Ambassadors are leaders of the Service Award in their school community, selected based on their outstanding performance in the programme.

  • A PDF Summary of Service Record is available for free download at any time to any student who has registered their hours at volunteer.sva.org.nz.

ACG Tauranga AGE School Al-Madinah School Albany Senior High School Ao Tawhiti Unlimited Discovery Aotea College Aparima College Ashburton Christian School Ashburton College Auckland Grammar School Auckland Seventh-Day Adventist H S Avonside Girls' High School Awatapu College Bay of Islands College Bayfield High School Bethlehem College Botany Downs Secondary College Buller High School Burnside High School Cambridge High School Campion College Carmel College Cashmere High School Catholic Cathedral College Central Southland College Chanel College Chilton Saint James School Christ's College Christchurch Boys' High School Christchurch Girls' High School -Te Kura o Hine Waiora Collingwood Area School Columba College Cornerstone Christian School Craighead Diocesan School Cromwell College Cullinane College Dargaville High School De La Salle College Diocesan School For Girls Dunstan High School East Otago High School Edgecumbe College Edgewater College Ellesmere College Epsom Girls Grammar School Feilding High School Feilding Intermediate Fergusson Intermediate (Trentham) Fiordland College Forest View High School Francis Douglas Memorial College Garin College Geraldine High School Gisborne Girls' High School Glendowie College Glenfield College Green Bay High School Greymouth High School Hamilton Christian School Hamilton Girls' High School Hastings Boys' High School Hastings Girls' High School Hauraki Plains College Havelock North High School Henderson High School Heretaunga College Hillcrest High School Hillmorton High School Hobsonville Point Secondary School Horizon School Horowhenua College Howick College Huanui College Hurunui College Hutt International Boys' School Hutt Valley High School Iona College James Cook High School James Hargest College John Paul College John Paul II High School Kaikorai Valley College Kaikōura High School Kaipara College Kāpiti College Karamū High School Kelston Boys' High School Kelston Girls' College King's College Kings High School (Dunedin) KingsGate School KingsWay School Kuranui College Lincoln High School Logan Park High School Long Bay College Mackenzie College Macleans College Mairehau High School Mangakōtukutuku College Manurewa High School Marian College Māruawai College Massey High School Matamata College Menzies College Mercury Bay Area School Middleton Grange School Mission Heights Junior College Morrinsville College Motueka High School Mount Maunganui College Mountainview High School Mt Roskill Grammar Murrays Bay Intermediate Napier Girls' High School Nayland College Nelson College Nelson College For Girls Nelson Intermediate New Plymouth Girls' High School Nga Tawa Diocesan School Ngaruawahia High School Northcote College Northland College One Tree Hill College Onehunga High School Onewhero Area School Onslow College Opihi College Ōpunake High School Ormiston Junior College Ormiston Senior College Otago Boys' High School Otago Girls' High School Otaki College Ōtūmoetai College Paeroa College Palmerston North Boys' High School Palmerston North Girls' High School Papamoa College Papanui High School Papatoetoe High School Paraparaumu College Pasadena Intermediate Pompallier Catholic College Ponatahi Christian School Pukekohe High School Putāruru College Queen Margaret College Queens High School Rangi Ruru Girls' School Rangiora High School Rangiora New Life School Rangitīkei College Rangitoto College Rathkeale College Riccarton High School Rolleston College Roncalli College Rongotai College Rosehill College Rosmini College Ross Intermediate Rotorua Lakes High School Rototuna Junior High School Rototuna Senior High School Sacred Heart College (Lower Hutt) Sacred Heart Girls' College (Ham) Sacred Heart Girls' College (N Plymouth) Salisbury School (Nelson) Samuel Marsden Collegiate School Sancta Maria College Scots College Shirley Boys’ High School - Ngā Tama o Ōruapaeroa South Westland Area School Southern Cross Campus Southern Health School Southland Boys' High School Southland Girls' High School Springbank School St Andrew's College (Christchurch) St Cuthbert's College (Epsom) St Dominic's Catholic College (Henderson) St Hildas Collegiate St John's College (Hillcrest) St Kevins College (Oamaru) St Margaret's College St Mary's College (Wellington) St Peter's College (Gore) St Peter's School (Cambridge) Stratford High School Taikura Rudolf Steiner School Takapuna Grammar School Tamaki College Tamatea High School Tapawera Area School Taradale High School Tarawera High School Tauranga Girls' College Tawa College Tawa Intermediate Te Aho O Te Kura Pounamu (Central North) Te Aho O Te Kura Pounamu (Central South) Te Aho O Te Kura Pounamu (Northern) Te Aho O Te Kura Pounamu (Southern) Te Aroha College Te Kamo High School Te Kura a rohe o Waiau Te Kura Kaupapa Maori o Horouta Wananga Te Puke High School Thames High School Tikipunga High School Timaru Boys' High School Timaru Girls' High School TKKM o Te Wananga Whare Tapere o Takitimu Tokoroa High School Trident High School Trinity Catholic College Tuakau College Verdon College Villa Maria College Waiheke High School Waihi College Waikato Diocesan School For Girls Waimate High School Waimea College Waimea Intermediate Waiopehu College Wairarapa College Wairoa College Waitaki Girls' High School Wakatipu High School Wellington College Wellington East Girls' College Wellington Girls' College Western Heights High School Westlake Boys High School Westlake Girls' High School Westland High School Whakatane High School Whanganui Girls' College Whanganui High School Whangaparaoa College Whangārei Boys' High School Whangārei Girls’ High School Whitby Collegiate Woodford House Zayed College for Girls

ACG Tauranga AGE School Al-Madinah School Albany Senior High School Ao Tawhiti Unlimited Discovery Aotea College Aparima College Ashburton Christian School Ashburton College Auckland Grammar School Auckland Seventh-Day Adventist H S Avonside Girls' High School Awatapu College Bay of Islands College Bayfield High School Bethlehem College Botany Downs Secondary College Buller High School Burnside High School Cambridge High School Campion College Carmel College Cashmere High School Catholic Cathedral College Central Southland College Chanel College Chilton Saint James School Christ's College Christchurch Boys' High School Christchurch Girls' High School -Te Kura o Hine Waiora Collingwood Area School Columba College Cornerstone Christian School Craighead Diocesan School Cromwell College Cullinane College Dargaville High School De La Salle College Diocesan School For Girls Dunstan High School East Otago High School Edgecumbe College Edgewater College Ellesmere College Epsom Girls Grammar School Feilding High School Feilding Intermediate Fergusson Intermediate (Trentham) Fiordland College Forest View High School Francis Douglas Memorial College Garin College Geraldine High School Gisborne Girls' High School Glendowie College Glenfield College Green Bay High School Greymouth High School Hamilton Christian School Hamilton Girls' High School Hastings Boys' High School Hastings Girls' High School Hauraki Plains College Havelock North High School Henderson High School Heretaunga College Hillcrest High School Hillmorton High School Hobsonville Point Secondary School Horizon School Horowhenua College Howick College Huanui College Hurunui College Hutt International Boys' School Hutt Valley High School Iona College James Cook High School James Hargest College John Paul College John Paul II High School Kaikorai Valley College Kaikōura High School Kaipara College Kāpiti College Karamū High School Kelston Boys' High School Kelston Girls' College King's College Kings High School (Dunedin) KingsGate School KingsWay School Kuranui College Lincoln High School Logan Park High School Long Bay College Mackenzie College Macleans College Mairehau High School Mangakōtukutuku College Manurewa High School Marian College Māruawai College Massey High School Matamata College Menzies College Mercury Bay Area School Middleton Grange School Mission Heights Junior College Morrinsville College Motueka High School Mount Maunganui College Mountainview High School Mt Roskill Grammar Murrays Bay Intermediate Napier Girls' High School Nayland College Nelson College Nelson College For Girls Nelson Intermediate New Plymouth Girls' High School Nga Tawa Diocesan School Ngaruawahia High School Northcote College Northland College One Tree Hill College Onehunga High School Onewhero Area School Onslow College Opihi College Ōpunake High School Ormiston Junior College Ormiston Senior College Otago Boys' High School Otago Girls' High School Otaki College Ōtūmoetai College Paeroa College Palmerston North Boys' High School Palmerston North Girls' High School Papamoa College Papanui High School Papatoetoe High School Paraparaumu College Pasadena Intermediate Pompallier Catholic College Ponatahi Christian School Pukekohe High School Putāruru College Queen Margaret College Queens High School Rangi Ruru Girls' School Rangiora High School Rangiora New Life School Rangitīkei College Rangitoto College Rathkeale College Riccarton High School Rolleston College Roncalli College Rongotai College Rosehill College Rosmini College Ross Intermediate Rotorua Lakes High School Rototuna Junior High School Rototuna Senior High School Sacred Heart College (Lower Hutt) Sacred Heart Girls' College (Ham) Sacred Heart Girls' College (N Plymouth) Salisbury School (Nelson) Samuel Marsden Collegiate School Sancta Maria College Scots College Shirley Boys’ High School - Ngā Tama o Ōruapaeroa South Westland Area School Southern Cross Campus Southern Health School Southland Boys' High School Southland Girls' High School Springbank School St Andrew's College (Christchurch) St Cuthbert's College (Epsom) St Dominic's Catholic College (Henderson) St Hildas Collegiate St John's College (Hillcrest) St Kevins College (Oamaru) St Margaret's College St Mary's College (Wellington) St Peter's College (Gore) St Peter's School (Cambridge) Stratford High School Taikura Rudolf Steiner School Takapuna Grammar School Tamaki College Tamatea High School Tapawera Area School Taradale High School Tarawera High School Tauranga Girls' College Tawa College Tawa Intermediate Te Aho O Te Kura Pounamu (Central North) Te Aho O Te Kura Pounamu (Central South) Te Aho O Te Kura Pounamu (Northern) Te Aho O Te Kura Pounamu (Southern) Te Aroha College Te Kamo High School Te Kura a rohe o Waiau Te Kura Kaupapa Maori o Horouta Wananga Te Puke High School Thames High School Tikipunga High School Timaru Boys' High School Timaru Girls' High School TKKM o Te Wananga Whare Tapere o Takitimu Tokoroa High School Trident High School Trinity Catholic College Tuakau College Verdon College Villa Maria College Waiheke High School Waihi College Waikato Diocesan School For Girls Waimate High School Waimea College Waimea Intermediate Waiopehu College Wairarapa College Wairoa College Waitaki Girls' High School Wakatipu High School Wellington College Wellington East Girls' College Wellington Girls' College Western Heights High School Westlake Boys High School Westlake Girls' High School Westland High School Whakatane High School Whanganui Girls' College Whanganui High School Whangaparaoa College Whangārei Boys' High School Whangārei Girls’ High School Whitby Collegiate Woodford House Zayed College for Girls

The value of youth volunteering.

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People working together to spread and level soil or gravel in a backyard garden during a landscaping or community service project.

Employability through volunteering

Volunteering experiences directly translate into employability, leadership, and confidence.

Youth action drives community wellbeing

Collective youth action creates tangible recovery and wellbeing outcomes in communities.

Group of volunteers, some wearing orange safety vests, standing outside a house on a cloudy day. One woman is wearing a pink dress, and others are smiling at the camera. The house has a white exterior with a window and a small porch.

Shared purpose sustains civic engagement

Recognition, storytelling, and shared purpose sustain long-term civic participation.

A group of seven young women and men wearing bright orange safety vests, standing outdoors, flexing their arms and smiling at the camera, with trees and a building in the background.

Education as a seedbed for community service

Schools are fertile grounds for lifelong habits of service.

Would the SVA Service Award suit your school?

Three young people wearing orange volunteer vests and casual clothing are jumping in front of a colorful mural with flowers and a hummingbird, holding a large white chain link symbol.

  • SVA recognises and elevates that commitment. These students aren't just helping out - they're developing genuine leadership capability through sustained service. The award gives them a formal pathway, national recognition, and connection to something bigger than your school. We help you celebrate their work properly.

  • SVA gives you that system. Students register, log their hours and reflections, and work toward defined milestones - all tracked through a framework we manage. You get visibility of who's engaged, how they're progressing, and where they might need support, without building monitoring systems from scratch.

  • SVA is purpose-built for exactly this. It provides a structured, nationally recognised framework that sits beautifully within a Year 11 programme - giving students clear pathways, sustained engagement over time, and meaningful recognition. We handle the operational side, so you can focus on embedding it into your school's Year 11 vision.

  • SVA captures that invisible service. Students can bring their existing community volunteering into the programme - whether it's sports coaching, cultural leadership, or family support and have it recognised formally. You'll finally see the breadth of service your students are doing, and they'll get the acknowledgment they deserve.

A logo featuring a stylized 'S' and 'X' with stars above, enclosed in a circle, on a black background.

How can our school register?

Group of young volunteers participating in a cleanup walk on a dirt trail in a natural outdoor setting with trees and hills in the background. They are wearing matching volunteer shirts and carrying backpacks, with one girl holding a trash picker.
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The SVA Service Award is completely free of charge but can only be awarded to students by a participating New Zealand secondary school. The school’s role is to award pins and celebrate student success and contribution to community. There is little or no staff admin required as students register themselves online and then return to log volunteering hours over their secondary school career.

To register, a school must nominate a key staff contact who is happy to receive notifications and award pins as students achieve a new volunteering milestone.

Book a call
Visit the SVA Service Award website

Already taking part in SVA?

Admin Log In
Volunteer Log In

Interested in registering your school?

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  1. We discuss activities at your school that might qualify students for service award hours.

  2. Your school chooses to register as an SVA Service Award School.

  3. We send you an initial supply of membership pins.

  4. Students sign up to the SVA platform and self manage logging their hours through the app or website.

  5. Teachers involved are invited to a free online community with resources, updates and support.

  6. We notify you at the start of each month regarding any student whose logged hours qualify them for the next level of pin.

  7. You receive a monthly pin send out to distribute to students who have earned them.

Want to discuss how the SVA Service Award might work in your school?

Are you a SVA Service

Award key contact?

A collage of digital devices and printed documents showcasing the SVA Service Award program, including a desktop monitor, smartphone screens displaying app interfaces, a tablet with a volunteer activity photo, and printed awards with logos and text about service achievements.

Dedicated teacher dashboard & support

The SVA platform gives teachers access to student records. The Teams feature allows students to be grouped via house, year level, classroom, project or club. Students can be nominated as team leaders and organise volunteering activities.

Access your teacher dashboard here

Participating schools choose a model that suits them.

  • School Emblem

    We have a student-led model.

    Our SVA Ambassadors lead, run and plan the programme and keep things energised. My job is to open the monthly pin package that arrives at the office and make a fuss of those that have earned a badge that month.

  • Logo with a shield, mountain, water, and boat, and the word 'LACADIPRES' at the bottom.

    Our SVA Club is at the centre.

    We organise 3 big projects each year, students work to identify, plan and carry out high impact projects in our community. It’s become a hugely positive thing at our school and turn out continues to increase.

  • A crest featuring an owl with crossed keys behind it on a red shield, with a blue scroll beneath bearing the Latin words 'Structa Saxo'.

    Service as part of our in-class learning focus

    We work hard to make serving our community a part of who we are here. We’ve used the SVA framework to support a culture of service into assessments and our learning programme.

  • Graphic logo with red decorative swirl design and a crest with four quadrants featuring symbols, and a banner with text, on a black background.

    A focus on students living with a disability

    We wanted a way to track and reward the efforts of our special needs students during their work experience. SVA Service has provided us with a way to reward the our students within a nationally recognised framework.

  • A shield emblem with a blue cross at the top, a red background with seven silver stars inside, and the words "Charity," "The Law," and "Fulfils" displayed in red boxes below.

    A teacher-led approach

    I choose to have close control over the SVA Service Award at my school and monitor all student submissions. I use the teacher dashboard as a central point for administration and monitoring.

    I support and monitor the majority of my students to log and manage their hours.

  • School logo

    Linking a range of existing programmes

    Our William Pyke and our Duke of Ed students know they can log their volunteering hours from those programmes on the SVA system. It’s a great way to consolidate and track all volunteering efforts in one place.

  • School logo for John Paul II High School with a red and black emblem and text on a black background.

    We use the platform to award house points

    We love how the platform relies on students to self manage the logging of hours. To encourage students to log hours on a consistent basis we’ve incorporated it into our house system and award house points every term.

  • A blue circular sign with yellow border featuring the Letterman Digital Arts Center logo, with a stylized 'R' and 'R' intertwined in the center.

    All our new Year 9s sign up

    We sign up all our Year 9s as they arrive at school. The expectation is set that they will self manage logging of hours as they progress through school. It means that at the conclusion of the 5 years most students have a summary of service documenting efforts they would otherwise have forgotten.

  • A red shield emblem featuring a stylized swan with wings, the swan's beak forming a curved line. A small crown is positioned above the swan's head.

    Service as part of our Level 1

    As we’ve worked to develop our own Level 1 curriculum we’ve included a 5 hour service component. Students must log their hours in the SVA system before we consider this component of their year complete.

  • A crest with a crown at the top, a central shield with intertwined letters, and a banner at the bottom reading 'A E QUOD GIS'.

    Making space for young carers

    I like how the programme acknowledges volunteering efforts at home. Several of our students log hours where they care for a sibling living with a disability or a parent with complex mental health needs. Traditionally this type of student can’t always participate in out of school activities. SVA acknowledges their important contribution alongside that of their peers.

  • A heraldic coat of arms with a yellow shield featuring a silver lamp, an open book, and a red die. The shield is topped with a silver lamp with a flame, and is surrounded by black and yellow decorative elements. A silver helmet with a red band is above the shield, with a silver tower emitting a rainbow-colored light or energy.

    Our Year 10 service day is where it starts

    We’ve always had a junior school community service day in Term 4 (after the seniors leave). Being able to award the 5 hour member pin to all our students who turn up and contribute in a meaningful way has been a great motivator. They love wearing their pin on their uniform.

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A black and white logo with the intertwined letters 'S' and 'V' inside a circle, topped with five stars.
A black background with a logo in the center featuring a stylized 'S' and 'X' inside a circle, with three stars above the circle.
Black and white logo with a stylized 'S' or 'X' in the center, surrounded by five stars and a dark blue circle.

A five level pin system

Member

5 hours

Bronze

32 hours

Silver

250 hours

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Gold

500 hours

Top Volunteer

Awarded per school

Students are awarded a pin for initial volunteering hours and log additional efforts on the SVA App or online. School, community and in-home volunteering hours all qualify and are combined into a single record of service. This programme is free to participating schools.

National Top Volunteers

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2024

  • 2024’s Student Volunteer Army (SVA) Service Award Top Volunteer completed an incredible 2,313 hours of volunteering.

    Louie has spent the vast majority of his volunteering hours with Fire & Emergency New Zealand. Since being selected out of 40 candidates at a rigorous recruitment day last year, he has attended two trainings a week as well as regular call-outs – from ducks stuck down a drain to medical emergencies, motor incidents and house fires – and graduated as a fully-fledged firefighter in August 2024.

    “I really like helping people,” said Louie, “I couldn’t see myself not working in an emergency service.”

    18-year-old Louie Miller, who finished his final year at Green Bay High School in West Auckland at the end of 2024, said it felt “pretty special” to be named Top Volunteer for logging the most hours out of 18,000 student volunteers across Aotearoa New Zealand. As well as the coveted Top Volunteer pin, Louie will also receive the inaugural Next Steps Grant.

    Thanks to SVA’s partner AA Insurance, the Next Steps Grant is a contribution of $1,000 to support the charity’s top volunteer in the next phase of their journey into adulthood.

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A stylized abstract geometric logo design with purple, dark blue, and light blue lines forming a symmetrical shape.

2023

  • Donia volunteered an amazing 1,449 hours between January and October this year - the highest out of 18,000 registered SVA Service Award students.

    Donia signed up to the SVA Service Award in Year 12 after a couple of years where she felt she was heading in the wrong direction and isolating herself from her peers. Showing that giving back can come in all different shapes and sizes, she has earned her badges in a range of ways, from helping at school events to putting together hampers for the homeless with her church. Through volunteering, she’s learned new ways to communicate and connect with her community - and there’s no doubt she’ll be leaving an awesome legacy behind when she heads to University of Otago next year.

    “Volunteering opens your eyes to a lot of different opportunities. You discover yourself through those little things. You also discover new people, new experiences, new things that people have gone through, and you become more humble too.”

A young woman with blonde hair in a messy bun is smiling while hugging a black fluffy puppy outside near a car.
A crest featuring a mountain with snow, palm trees, a black bird with a yellow beak, and a red, white, and blue checkered stripe. It has the text '1885' at the top, 'NPGHS' in the middle, and a banner at the bottom with the Latin words 'ET COMITATE,' 'ET SAPIENTIA,' and 'ET VIRTUTE.'

2022

  • Allow us to introduce Eliza Thomson and her furry friend Darby!

    Eliza was the SVA Service Award Top Volunteer for 2022, recording a mammoth 3,530 hours of volunteering in her final year at New Plymouth Girls’ High School. Eliza volunteered with Hearing Dogs NZ, raising and training Darby as a service pup–a cause very dear to her heart due to her late grandfather, who would have greatly benefited from a dog just like Darby.

    Eliza never felt particularly academic or sporty at school, so the SVA Service Award badges were a really special way to be acknowledged for her incredible hard work.

    Now studying at Victoria University of Wellington, Eliza still thinks lots about how she can give back to the community, and has made long lasting connections with Darby (now in his official placement) and the extraordinary team at Hearing Dogs NZ.

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Green circular logo with an intertwined white stylized 'S' and 'X' and four stars above the design.

2021

Orange and white circular logo with stylized waves or mountain peaks in the center.

  • Shuari Naidoo is the CEO and founder of Moraka Menstrual Cups, which aims to counteract period poverty by creating affordable and sustainable period products. 

    “The SVA app is a great way to gain recognition for hours spent volunteering (at home, school or community). Having these hours recorded could come in handy for applications for jobs, uni, tech and scholarships.”

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Volunteering builds employability, confidence, leadership and social mobility.

The SVA Story

On the 22nd of February 2011, a 6.3 magnitude earthquake devastated Christchurch. For the next month the Student Volunteer Army organised 11,000 students to clean tens of thousands of tonnes of liquefaction over 75,000 volunteer working hours.

Continuing their volunteering spirit is what the SVA Service Award is all about.

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A logo with intertwined letters 'S' and 'X' inside a black circle, with three stars above.

  • “We discovered that everybody had to have the experience of digging for a day before they could lead”

    Sam Johnson - SVA Founder

  • “What you can do, even on a small scale, is incredibly valuable"

    Jade Young - SVA Founding Crew

  • “You’re always going to get more out than you put in"

    Alex Cheesebrough - SVA President 2016

  • “If you put yourself out there and make an effort, you’ll always find people who are keen to help”

    Kohan McNab - SVA Founding Crew

  • “You have to trust that everyone will get their job done. If everyone does their job, contributes their piece of the puzzle then massive things can be achieved”

    Alex Cheeseborough - SVA President 2016

Harnessing the collective energy and individual adaptiveness of young people.

Three children in blue jackets with 'Cystic Fibrosis NZ' logos, standing outside in front of a tree, holding donation buckets, smiling.

SVA Values

    • Be a better person

    • Become a better team

    • Never stop

    • Be humble

    • Be hungry to learn

    • Care for others

    • Care for yourself

    • Share the aroha

    • Choose to give

    • What you (we) do matters

    • Serve selflessly

    • Improve the future at an inspiring scale

    • Ignite positive change

    • Work together

    • Elevate others

Group of nine students wearing yellow safety vests and school uniforms, standing outdoors in front of a building with trees and shrubs.

SVA Behaviours

    • Put your hand up first

    • Respond to the call to help

    • We engage with those around us

    • We focus as a team on what’s required

    • We purposefully forge genuine connections

    • We bring compassion and empathy to every situation

    • We elevate others

    • We arrive ready to throw our energy into improving each situation

    • We embody a culture of unwavering support

    • We do the mahi

A group of young girls outdoors in a field, some wearing pink hats, holding buckets, and appearing to collect something from the ground.
Two women wearing masks and gloves organizing paper bags and food containers at an outdoor event under a white canopy.
Visit the SVA Service Award Website

Without hesitation

The most powerful thing anyone can do in the face of need or crisis is to show up.

The SVA Service Award aims to develop individual capability and empathy for those in our own communities. In a time of crisis we want Service Award recipients to be prepared to creatively respond to community need.

UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

A colorful grid of icons representing the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, numbered 1 to 17, with a diverse range of colors and symbols depicting global priorities like no poverty, zero hunger, good health, quality education, gender equality, clean water, and climate action, among others.

The UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are 17 Global Goals to transform our world. Adopted by all United Nations members in 2015, the goals are a call for action by all countries – poor, rich and middle-income – to promote prosperity while protecting the planet.

They recognize that ending poverty must go hand-in-hand with strategies that build economic growth and address a range of social needs including education, health, social protection, and job opportunities, while tackling climate change and environmental protection.

The. SVA Service Award connects all volunteering to the UN SDGs. This helps us understand that we’re not alone, there’s a global network of volunteers trying to make things better, and that every action we take is connected to that effort. We keep track of how our volunteers contribute towards the goals through the hours they log.