In the biggest post-war volunteer recruitment campaign in the UK’s history, LOCOG will be looking for dedicated and inspirational people representative of the diversity of London and the UK to apply for a wide variety of volunteer roles.
 
Sebastian COE, Chair of LOCOG, said: "London 2012 needs brilliant volunteers to help us deliver a great Olympic and Paralympic Games. Our volunteers will be called Games Makers to reflect the important role they will play in staging the 2012 Games. The programme to find our Games Makers will launch on 27 July 2010 and I urge anyone that is interested to come to our website from the day onwards to find out everything they need to know about volunteering in 2012."
 
There are two types of Games Maker roles, specialists in areas such as medical services, sport or press operations and generalists, with roles ranging from spectator assistants, uniform distributors and ticket checking.
 
In addition to these volunteer roles being recruited by LOCOG, the Mayor of London will shortly announce plans for the recruitment of London Volunteers, stationed at key transport hubs, at visitor attractions, and on the streets of the capital to make sure all visitors to London get the best possible welcome during the Games. 
 
With recruitment starting exactly two years before the London 2012 Games, key dates for the application process are:
 
27 July 2010: applications open for pre-identified applicants for specialist sport, press operations, anti-doping and medical roles and members of a wide range of disability specialist organisations. This is also an opportunity for those interested in the generalist roles to find out if they have what it takes to be a Games Maker via a dedicated section on the London 2012 website. Recruitment also starts on this date for the Mayor’s London Volunteers scheme.
 
15 September 2010: applications open to the public for generalist roles and continue for specialist roles.
 
LOCOG today also confirmed that up to 1,500 of the Games Maker roles will be made available for those under the age of 18 through the 'Young Games Maker' programme that will be unveiled in July 2011.
 
For information on volunteering roles and the application process, please visit www.london2012.com/volunteering