IS THE philanthropist within you being stifled by meddling bureaucrats? Red tape and needless Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) checks are discouraging volunteers, according to a report by the Commission on the Future of Volunteering. “Time-consuming” CRB checks should apply only to volunteers working with children and vulnerable adults, Community Care (Jan 31) reports. The Commission says that the Government can best support volunteering by not interfering. And the public and voluntary sectors could play more part by providing staff with opportunities to volunteer – something they do much too rarely at the moment.