Bulletin Contents - 13 April 2010

Training Events at High Peak CVS

Future Jobs Funding Information Sharing Event and Launch

Training and Capacity Building Worker Vacancy

Digital Activist Inclusion Network (DAIN) Information Events

Charity Commission Contact Centre Open Office Hours Only

Increasing Support for Rural Chief Executives

Tackling Barriers Stopping Unemployed From Volunteering

Appropriate Campaigning in the Election Period

More Information and Influence on Local Government

Information on Volunteering for Civic Roles

Guides on Public Sector (Health) Commissioning

Sector Soap Opera Coming to a Screen near You

Voluntary Sector Research Journal in Print

Tories Will Review Third Sector Capacity-Building

Training Events at High Peak CVS

Business Planning
Wednesday 5 May 2010, 10.00 am to 1.00 pm

The thought of developing an organisational business plan fills many Trustees and paid workers with dread, this session is a step by step guide to producing an informative and useful plan.  By the end of the session you should have a draft template that you can take back and build upon, have a better understanding of why a plan is of importance not only to the organisation but to the funder and other stakeholders. Tutor Jeanette Stafford from Community Accounting Plus has over 20 years’ experience working in the voluntary sector

How to Get Money from Grants for the Arts!
Wednesday 12 May 2010, 10.00 am to 1.00 pm

Do you need money for an arts related project?  ‘Grants for the Arts’ is a competitive, open access funding scheme for individuals, arts organisations and other people who use the arts in their work.  They are for activities carried out over a set period, which engage people in arts activities, and help artists and arts organisations carry out their work.  ‘Grants for the Arts’ is funded by the National Lottery.

This short course aims to give you:

• details of what can and cannot be funded;
• a greater understanding of how ‘Grants for the Arts’ applications are processed and assessed; and
• enough knowledge to produce better quality ‘Grants for the Arts’ applications.

Tutor Nigel Caldwell is the Arts and Creative Business Manager and Development Programme Manager at High Peak CVS.  He has attended Arts Council East Midlands briefing sessions and has Arts Council training materials to share with you in this session.

New training charges effective from 1 April 2010 apply to both of these courses:

For more information on these training courses please contact Louise McNeil, Development Team Support Worker at High Peak CVS, on 01663 736431 or email louise@highpeakcvs.org.uk

All of High Peak CVS’s courses are advertised on www.highpeakcvs.org.uk/training

Future Jobs Funding Information Sharing Event and Launch

Wed 14 April 10am to 12pm
at New Mills Volunteer Centre 33 Union Road, New Mills, High Peak, SK22 3EL

Derbyshire Learning and Development Consortium and Artswork, recently submitted a joint bid to Future Jobs to create jobs for young people that would also benefit the communities of Derbyshire. This bid has been successful in bringing funding for 45 jobs into Derbyshire. 

The programme provides opportunities for young unemployed people to gain employment within the cultural sector and to develop a range of valuable and transferable employment skills. Young people will work within key organisations across Derbyshire in exciting, newly-created roles.

DLDC will also be offering support through Information, Advice and Guidance, access to Peer Mentors, training and an accredited training programme. Some of the roles already being offered include Community Learning Champions; Community Development Assistants; Project Assistants; Marketing Assistants and Youth Leaders. DLDC has already received a number of job offers and are working closely with High Peak Borough Council and North East Derbyshire District Council. 

If you would like to attend this event, please contact Jenna Shaw on 01332 265961.

If you are unable to attend the event, but would like further information on how to employ a young person, please contact Lisa Vernon at lisa.vernon@consortium.org.uk

Training and Capacity Building Worker Vacancy

21 Hours (potentially rising to 35 hours per week) to be worked flexibly
Salary NJC Scale 6/SO1 pt 26-31 starting at £22,221 (pro rata)

Can you support and motivate local residents to identify their training and learning needs?
Can you work with local residents and a range of training providers to design, develop and deliver community based, participatory learning activities?
Do you have an understanding of the NOCN accreditation procedures?
Can you recruit and support local Community Learning Champions to act as supporters, signposters and advocates for local people?

CVP is seeking to employ a self starter who can establish an exciting and innovative project as part of the Bolsover Raising Aspirations project. You will be responsible for:

• organising and facilitating engagement events and activities
• undertaking local community based training needs analyses
• working with local residents and training providers to design, develop and deliver tailor made training packages
• recruiting and supporting volunteer Community Learning Champions onto the project
• organising and facilitating the VCS Training Network
• monitoring and evaluating the effectiveness and impact of the project

CVP is the umbrella organisation (CVS) for Bolsover district and has been commissioned by Bolsover District Council and Bolsover District LSP to deliver a Working Neighbourhoods Fund funded project until 2012 with potential continuation to 2015

For further information/application pack: email cvpadmin@bolsovercvp.org.uk  or Tel: 01623 747147.

Closing date 7 May 2010.

Digital Activist Inclusion Network (DAIN) Information Events

DAIN is an ESF-funded volunteer project working across the East Midlands aiming to promote digital inclusion by encouraging people to use technology with the help of volunteers (Digital Activists).

They will be holding a series of information events around the region during April for those interested in volunteering with the project or for anyone just interested in finding out more about what the project does.   

8 April in Chesterfield
13 April in Lincoln
15 April in Chesterfield

For more details please contact dain@wea.org.uk or ring 0115 933 9022.

www.dainproject.org.uk

Charity Commission Contact Centre Open Office Hours Only

The Charity Commission has reverted opening hours for its Contact Centre to 8.00 am until 6.00 pm, Monday to Friday.  It had been operating extended hours since 2007, but the press release says that there were only a very small number of calls outside of normal office hours and this move will also save costs.  – www.charitycommission.gov.uk/RSS/News/pr_contact_opening.asp

Increasing Support for Rural Chief Executives

Chief Executives body ACEVO is looking at how it can extend its support to CEOs whose work has a more rural focus.  Such CEOs who want to get more involved in ACEVO or have relevant ideas should contact Jenny Berry, email: Jenny.Berry@acevo.org.uk

Tackling Barriers Stopping Unemployed From Volunteering

Volunteering England and Jobcentre Plus have signed an agreement to promote the value of volunteering to jobseekers in England and tackle any barriers they might face if they want to do voluntary work.  Based on recommendations from the Commission on the Future of Volunteering, both organisations will draw up an Action Plan and meet regularly to review progress.  See VE news release.

Appropriate Campaigning in the Election Period

The general election has now been called for 6 May, so here's a link to NCVO's round-up of advice on 'Charities Campaigning and Elections' which includes a useful Frequently Asked Questions section.  The Charity Commission site redesign has moved the 'Campaigning and political activity' starting page.

Local sector support umbrella body NAVCA asked the three main political parties to outline how they would support voluntary and community action if they won the election.  Responses can be found online, www.navca.org.uk/news/electionarticles.htm

Many parts of the country also have local elections on 6 May.  Community Matters has created a 'Local Election Campaign Pack' for community organisations.  In pdf, 636KB.  (Source: Voluntary Arts England newsletter)

More Information and Influence on Local Government

The Government's Communities Secretary has outlined new legal requirements for councils (in England) to respond to petitions and address local people's concerns.  Rules for dealing with paper petitions will come into force on 15 June, with e-petitions requirements following in December.  Official news release at www.communities.gov.uk/news/corporate/1524301 or go to the guidance.

There is also a new website which makes it easier to discover official spending in any area of England.  Accessing information through maps will display what money has been spent locally and by which public bodies. 

News item www.communities.gov.uk/news/corporate/1525198 or go direct to www.localspending.communities.gov.uk

Information on Volunteering for Civic Roles

A campaign to encourage more companies to give staff time off to undertake public duties has been launched by the Government along with Business in the Community.  An employer information pack will help employers understand the benefits of volunteering for civic roles and how it can help their businesses, plus case studies and more on what is involved. 

Office of the Third Sector news item or get 'Volunteering for Civic Roles: Information for employers and employees' at
www.communities.gov.uk/publications/communities/volunteeringcivicroles

Guides on Public Sector (Health) Commissioning

ACEVO, the charity chief executives body, has published a number of guides on public sector commissioning:

'Getting Round The Table' aims to help you organise roundtable meetings with public sector commissioners, based on their experience of running a number of such events around the country, www.acevo.org.uk/commissionerroundtables

As part of the In Better Health programme, guides to 'The NHS Standard Contract for Community Services', 'The NHS Standard Contract for Mental Health and Learning Disability Services' and 'The Care Quality Commission', www.acevo.org.uk/Page.aspx?pid=1782

Sector Soap Opera Coming to a Screen near You

A third sector 'soap opera' created by the KnowHow NonProfit information site has made the leap from text to an animated video version, joining up with Society Guardian in the process.  'Millcaster Tales' tells the story of a small town's organisations, the people who work there and the issues they face.  It aims to provoke debate and can be found at www.knowhownonprofit.org/millcaster (with full transcript) or www.guardian.co.uk/charity-effectiveness

Voluntary Sector Research Journal in Print

The first issue of 'Voluntary Sector Review', the new journal on third sector research, policy and practice produced by the Voluntary Sector Studies Network, has been published.  The contents list can be seen at www.ingentaconnect.com/content/tpp/vsr and institutions can get an online trial for 2010 at no charge, see www.policypress.co.uk/journals_vsr_trial.asp

Tories Will Review Third Sector Capacity-Building

Government-funded Capacitybuilders is doing better after a poor start, leading Tories believe. The Conservatives would review the work of Capacitybuilders and other infrastructure organisations if they won the forthcoming election.

Capacitybuilders was scolded in the National Audit Office report that also criticised the Futurebuilders fund, the income from which the Tories pledged last week to divert to neighbourhood renewal.

But it is understood the Conservatives believe that capacity-building is still needed and that Capacitybuilders has been performing better after a poor start. It has a budget of £90m in the 2008-11 spending round.

The party is concerned that current capacity-building efforts are uncoordinated and inefficient, and the review would examine how to get more help to front-line organisations.