Bulletin Contents - 8 April 2008

Health is for Life Community Grant Scheme – HPCVS ‘Meet the Funder’ Event

Volunteers Needed for Fun Dog Show

Salary Scales for 2008/09

New Vetting Authority from October 2009

National Support Services Start Work

Improving Open Spaces

New Media Technologies That Touch Lives

Involving Volunteers on a Budget

Trends in Local Authority Grants

Are You Involved in Running a Membership Scheme?

WRG Challenge

UKVillages Community Kitty

Health is for Life Community Grant Scheme – High Peak CVS ‘Meet the Funder’ Event

From April 2008 the Tameside and Glossop PCT are introducing a new scheme 'Health is for Life Community Grants' that will fund new projects that have a health focus in Tameside and Glossop. Grants up to £5,000 are available for a range of activities that have a clear link to health.

If your group works in the Glossopdale area and you would like to find out more about the grant scheme come along to our ‘Meet the Funder’ Event on Tuesday 15 th April 2008, 2.00 – 4 .00 pm at Bradbury Community House, Glossop.

For more information contact Sandy at 01663 736426 or Nancy on 01663 736427.

Be warned, this could seriously improve your fundraising success!

Volunteers Needed for Fun Dog Show

There is to be a PDSA Fun Dog Show and other activities in Memorial Park, Whaley Bridge, on Sunday 1st June. Help is needed with all aspects, including signing in entrants, organising parking and so on. If you can help, please contact Sally Curly at HPBC on 0845 129 7777 extension 2205, or e-mail sallyc@highpeak.gov.uk

Salary Scales for 2008/09

The local government NJC pay scales, widely used across the voluntary sector in England , Wales and Northern Ireland , have not yet been uprated for 2008/09. The unions recently rejected a 2.2% offer (increased slightly while the newsletter was being written), having lodged a pay claim for an increase of 6% or 50p an hour (whichever is the greater).

It is likely to be some time before the revised scales are agreed. Unison news item at www.unison.org.uk/pay/news_view.asp?did=4142, existing NJC scales available from various places, including NAVCA's website: www.navca.org.uk/localvs/scales/

New Vetting Authority from October 2009

The Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA) is to operate as the single vetting authority maintaining a list of people who are not allowed to work with children or vulnerable adults from 12th October 2009. It will incorporate all existing barring lists, work alongside the Criminal Records Bureau and cover England , Wales and Northern Ireland (although arrangements for application and appeals may differ slightly in Northern Ireland ).

There will be no charge for volunteers but the standard fee will become payable if they later take up paid work. The one-off fee has two parts – a CRB enhanced disclosure which currently costs £36 and the actual ISA registration of £28. Home Office news item, press.homeoffice.gov.uk/press-releases/independent-authority-go-live, ISA at www.isa-gov.org.uk

National Support Services Start Work

All nine of the 'National Support Services', which are replacing the six hubs of expertise in providing a lead in ChangeUp sector support across England , started running from 1 st April. Capacitybuilders news item. The nine have one common website at www.improvingsupport.org.uk.

Third Sector quotes Capacitybuilders: "All the workstreams have contributed to a joint web presence that will act as a gateway to the national support service programme.” This however isn't a repository of material generated by the hubs and we await further information on where this ends up (the old hub websites are currently still operational).

There are still some refinements taking place on the business plans. Third Sector again: A spokeswoman for Capacitybuilders said that further work to link up the local, regional and national aspects of ChangeUp would be an important part of the planning process, and that it would continue ‘refreshing’ all nine business plans until the end of July. www.thirdsector.co.uk/News/798604/ (registration required).

Improving Open Spaces

The £50 million Community Spaces grants programme managed by Groundwork UK , for the Big Lottery Fund, helps community groups create or improve green and open spaces across England . It opened for applications on 19 th March – details at www.community-spaces.org.uk

New Media Technologies That Touch Lives

The tenth year of the New Media Awards, from the New Statesman, is open for entries. Categories include Community activism (providing tools for their community to join together, communicate and find information), Innovation (recognises social technologies, people or organisations that make an impact and improve society through the use of new media technology), democracy in action. Nominations close 1st June. Comment on entries or make your own at www.newstatesman.com/nma/nma2008/nominate

Involving Volunteers on a Budget

Volunteering on a shoestring (not another toolkit!) is The Consortium's guide for smaller organisations on how to involve volunteers on a budget. Although written for and by LGBT organisations it will have wider use. The main document (pdf, 1.3MB) along with supporting material can be downloaded from www.lgbtconsortium.org.uk/shoestring (Source: UKVPM)

Trends in Local Authority Grants

One of the last items to be published by the Finance Hub is 'The Decline of Local Authority Grants for the Third Sector: Fact of Fiction'. Despite local authority data of sufficient detail and quality being largely non-existent at present, evidence suggests a trend of declining funds.

For more, follow links from www.financehub.org.uk/local_authority_grants.aspa

Are You Involved in Running a Membership Scheme?

22nd April, London – come along to the NCVO Membership Schemes Conference where experts will share their knowledge and experience on how to get, engage with and keep members. Interactive and practical workshops will equip you with top-tips and there are plenty of opportunities to share and learn from fellow delegates. For more information and to book, visit www.ncvo-vol.org.uk/membershipconf08 or call 020 7520 2447.

WRG Challenge

This year's WRG Communities Challenge will provide £2 million of funding to support community regenerational projects that will breathe new life into tired and rundown facilities or provide much needed new amenities. Organisations are invited to bid for funding of between £75,000 and £250,000 for capital projects which will make a real difference to their community.

To qualify projects must be site-based and located within 10 miles of any landfill site in one of the following areas: Bedfordshire; Buckinghamshire and Milton Keynes; Cambridgeshire; Cheshire; Conwy; Cumbria; Derbyshire; Edinburgh and Midlothian; Glasgow and North Lanarkshire; Halton and Warrington; Humber (includes North East Lincolnshire and North Lincolnshire); Kent; Lancashire; Lincolnshire; Norfolk; North and West Yorkshire; Northamptonshire; Nottinghamshire; Oxfordshire and Berkshire; South Yorkshire; Suffolk; Warwickshire and West Midlands; Wrexham; West Glamorgan.

For further information please download the WRG Communities Challenge guidance notes. Deadlines in 2008 for application submission are 4 th April, 18 th July and 26 th September.

Waste Recycling Environmental Limited, Wren House, Manor Farm, Bridgham, Norwich NR16 2RX Telephone: 01953 717165. Fax: 01953 718202. Email: wren@wren.org.uk Website: www.wren.org.uk/how-to-apply

UKVillages Community Kitty

The UKVillages Community Kitty was launched in April 2001 to celebrate the increasing success of UKVillages.co.uk across the whole of the United Kingdom . In the past we have supported some wonderful projects across the UK – from a knitting circle, to a playgroup needing toys, a music day and support for a village hall.

The UKVillages Community Kitty is a fund from which a number of grants from between £50 – £300 are allocated to community projects. These grants will be awarded twice a year. There are two rounds of the Community Kitty annually with deadlines on 10 th April 2008 and 10 th October 2008 – and recipients notified no sooner than six weeks later).

To apply for a grant from the Community Kitty your group, society or club must be registered on UKVillages and the funds must go towards a clearly identifiable project. Applications to the kitty must be made through their website. You will find more information about the Kitty, the rules and an application at: www.CommunityKitty.co.uk