March 2015 - Bradford CVS

THE NEWSLETTER OF BRADFORD CVS IN PARTNERSHIP WITH BDIP (BRADFORD DISTRICT INFRASTRUCTURE PARTNERSHIP)

ISSUE No 287 | MARCH & APRIL 2015

ISSUE No 286 | FEBRUARY 2015

ANALYSING THE FUNDING DATA > 2 GOVERNMENT GRANTS FOR CHARITIES ‘PATHETICALLY SMALL’ > 3 AWARDS FOR ALL – AVOIDING THE SAME MISTAKES > 4 CHARITY COMMISSION OPERATIONAL GUIDANCE > 5-7 CVS TRAINING > 8-9 EQUITY PARTNERSHIP TRAINING > 10 FOOD DISTRIBUTION > 11 FUNDING & FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT > 12-19 GENERAL ELECTION 2015 > 20 GRANTS AND BEYOND - CONFERENCE > 21 HEALTH & SOCIAL CARE > 22-25 ICT 4 VCS > 26-27 LIBRE OFFICE > 28 PROPOSED CHANGES TO CHARITY LAW > 29 PUBLICATIONS & RESOURCES > 30-36 THE COMMISSION SPEAKS > 37 VOLUNTEERING > 38

… WELCOME TO THE RETURN > 39 WHAT’S ON > 40-42 WEST YORKSHIRE SEXUAL VIOLENCE ACTION PARTNERSHIP > 43 ZISCELLANEOUS > 44 ADVERTS & MISCELLANEOUS > 45-47 CENTRAL HALL KEIGHLEY > 45 BRADFORD GIRLS CAN > 45 BD5 FOOD BANK > 45 WELFARE REFORM REVIEW > 45 JOBS > 46-47 BRADFORD COUNCIL JOBS ONLINE > 46 HALE – RETAIL DEVELOPMENT WORKER > 46 HCC – PLAYCENTRE DEPUTY MANAGER > 46 BETTER START BRADFORD – PROGRAMME DIRECTOR > 47 BRADFORD TRIDENT – CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER > 47 BACK PAGE – DATES, RATES, CONTACTS, IMPRINT > 48

FRONT COVER PHOTO BASED ON “IVEGATE REFLECTIONS”, WITH THANKS TO JASON FEATHER | http://appertunity.tumblr.com

BRIEFING BRADFORD | MARCH & APRIL 2015

ANALYSING THE FUNDING DATA

Newly published, 3 separate analyses of funding data:  central government grants  public sector and social enterprise  NHS contracts with charities and others. examines central government grants data for the year to March 2014. Of £147 billion of grant funding, only just over 1 per cent (£1.52bn) went to voluntary and community organisations. The majority of that went to a handful of very large bodies. See more on p.3  CIVIL SOCIETY

See news item http://goo.gl/oQVTlu or dive right into the data http://data.gov.uk/dataset/grants-register. As part of Open Data Day, Social Enterprise UK and the Cabinet Office have teamed up to publish data showing the money spent by local authorities

and central government on social enterprises.

CIVIL SOCIETY NEWS has a “data blog”

http://goo.gl/1ByrzR on this, see Social Enterprise UK news release www.socialenterprise.org.uk/news/joint-open-datainitiative-game-changera-for-the-social-enterpriseindustry, or go direct to the Dashboard http://socialenterprise.org.uk/public/Dashboard/. NPC has analysed data on NHS contracts awarded by Clinical Commissioning Groups to charities and other providers in 2013-14, at http://www.thinknpc.org/publications/analysis-of-ccg-contracts-data/. Charities and social enterprises were awarded 387 (11%) of the total contracts awarded. David Kane, researcher at NCVO, tweets (from https://twitter.com/kanedr):

WITH THANKS TO: www.voluntarynews.org.uk

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Government grants for charities ‘pathetically small’ David Ainsworth | www.civilsociety.co.uk

The government gave independent charities grants totalling just £480m out of a total grants budget of £147bn in the last financial year, an analysis of figures published on the data.gov.uk website reveals. Figures for government grant-giving http://data.gov.uk/dataset/grants-register show that around £147bn was distributed in the form of a grant in the year to March 2014 – roughly a sixth of all central government spending. However a CIVIL SOCIETY NEWS analysis of these figures found that organisations in the charity and community sectors received only around £1.52bn. Of this, around £1.04bn went to charities which are also non-departmental public bodies or have other close links to government. Only £480m went to charities which are not linked to government. unsurprising. He said it was vitally important to do more to measure government data on grant-giving. “We’ve known for a long time that there’s a move away from grants,” he said. “But central government says it wants to inspire more social action. If it’s going to do that it needs to think more creatively. We’re seeing all this money being poured into social impact bonds and social investment funds and payment by results. Why not just give people grants?”

By far the largest voluntary sector grant was £461m to the Arts Council, followed by £95m to the British Library, £44m to the Natural History Museum and £43m to the British Museum. The largest grant to a wholly independent charity was £39m to the Canal and River Trust, although this was spun out of government quango British Waterways. Victim Support received a £38m grantin-aid, making it the largest recipient which has never been part of government.

Karl Wilding, director of public policy at NCVO, said that the figures suggested there was little truth to a recent narrative that the sector was too dependent on funding from government.

The government lists private sector bodies as receiving 109 grants worth a total of £14.6bn – around nine times as much as the charity sector.

“It’s a bit like the narrative about the benefits culture. People think most of the money spent on benefits goes to the unemployed. Actually it goes on pensions. In a similar way, people think charities receive a large chunk of government spending, but they make up a very small part of grant spending.

The government's own stated figure for voluntary sector grants is far higher than this analysis, at £5.78bn. However that figure includes funding for a number of organisations which are not actually part of the sector - particularly the Higher Education Funding Council for England, which received a grant worth £4.72bn.

“Corporate welfare is often a very good idea – a lot of great innovations in the private sector have been grant-funded by the State. But the same holds true for charities. If you want innovation in the way you help people, then grants are the way to do it.”

Jay Kennedy, head of policy at the Directory of Social Change, which helps charities access grants, described the level of central government grant funding to charities as “pathetically small” but also

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AWARDS FOR ALL - AVOIDING THE SAME MISTAKES

When the Big Lottery Fund announced its latest round of Awards for All grants they also highlighted some of the most common mistakes made when applying for this small grant funding. See below for what to look out for – together with some more generic ‘why applications fail’ findings: Contacts not being suitable; ensure your senior contact is able to be legally responsible for any grant we may offer. The main and senior contact being the same person. Home addresses, dates of birth and landlines not included for both contacts, which includes schools. If you are a company, the senior contact needs to be registered as one of at least three unrelated directors at Companies House www.gov.uk/government/organisa tions/companies-house. If you are a registered charity, the senior contact needs to be listed as a trustee and there should be at least three unrelated trustees registered at the Charity Commission www.gov.uk/government/organisa tions/charity-commission. The name and address of the organisation not matching what is registered at the Charity Commission or Companies House – they do check this. Bank account name not being the same as your organisation’s name. The organisation’s incomings and outgoings not being provided. And don’t forget to double check personal information - such as names and addresses - are spelled correctly. If you have a great idea for a project and think you might be eligible for funding, please see the Awards For All website for more information: www.biglotteryfund.org.uk/funding/Awards-For-All. Any arts, heritage or sports activities that do not meet one or more of the outcomes should apply for funding from another source. If you have any questions about your application, please call the Big Advice Line on 08454 10 20 30.

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CHARITY COMMISSION OPERATIONAL GUIDANCE The Charity Commission's Operational Guidance, intended for Commission staff but also widely used by charity lawyers and by charity staff who know about it and need a detailed understanding of the Commission's procedures, did not migrate with the rest of the website to Gov.uk back in September. Instead, it can be found (for now!) at http://ogs.charitycommission.gov.uk/

Each of the 150-or-so listings below has its own page (see example above) which opens in an Overview / Summary tab. Any or all of the following supplementary information is accessible from the other tabs at the top of each page: OG Contents > Casework > Guidance > Charts > Case Studies > Legal / Policy Accountancy Framework > Q & A > Model Letters and Orders. accounting/reporting (SORP), UK accounting standards Glossary to the OG 15 series External scrutiny of accounts - letters of application for dispensation from requirements of s.144(2) External scrutiny - wording of grants/refusal of dispensation and consent to alteration of year end Almshouse charities

A Accounts and reports - see: Introduction Larger charities, company charities and accruals accounts & Endowed charities: Accounting for total return Accounting, reporting and audit requirements for noncompany small charities with incomes of £250,000 or less Audit and independent examination dispensations under s.154(1)(f) of the Charities Act Types of external scrutiny Annual reports - special requirements for certain CIFs and CDFs Dealing with poor practice by independent examiners and auditors in external scrutiny of accounts Whistle-blowing Statement of Recommended Practice -

Amendments to governing documents - see: Alterations to governing documents: charitable companies: Unincorporated Charities: Changes to Governing Documents and Transfer of Property (Charities Act 268, 275 and 280) Appeals - avoiding and dealing with failure Application of property cy-pres Appointment of interim managers Authorised Officer powers

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Exempt charities: connected institutions and how to identify them Expenditure and replacement of permanent endowment Expenses, trustee Ex-gratia payments by charities

B Borrowing and mortgages - see: Restrictions on Mortgages and other Borrowing

C Charities and Terrorism Charity income reserves CIOs (Charitable Incorporated Organisations) - see: CIO: Accounting and reporting by CIOs CIO: Transferring the assets of an unincorporated organisation to a CIO Commission power to relive trustees, auditors etc. from liability for breach of trust or duty Community Interest Companies (CIC's) Confidentiality - see: Sharing information with other public authorities under the Charities Act 2011 Corporate trustees Crime - see: Reporting suspected crimes to the Police Custodian trustees

F Failed appeals - see: Charitable appeals: avoiding and dealing with failure Freedom of Information Act - see: Reviews of Freedom of Information Act (FOI) requests and Data Protection Act Subject Access requests (SAR)

G Glossary of terms used in OGs Governing documents - see: Alterations to governing documents: charitable companies Orders Schemes Unincorporated Charities: Changes to Governing documents and transfer of property (Charities Act sections 268, 275 and 280)

D Data Protection Act - see: Data Protection Act 1998 Reviews of Freedom of Information Act (FOI) requests and Data Protection Act Subject Access requests (SAR) Decision Reviews Disclosure of information - see: Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998 ("Whistleblowing") Sharing information with other public authorities under the Charities Act 2011 Disposal of charity land - see: Disposal of charity land Identifying and spending Permanent endowment Expenditure and Replacement of Permanent Endowment Reverter of Sites Act 1987 Disputes in Charities Disqualification for acting as a charity trustee

H Human Rights Act 1998

I Incorporation of charity trustees Information - see: Sharing information with other public authorities under the Charities Act 2011 Interim managers - see Appointment of interim managers Investigations work - see: Our Role, Aims and Values Considering cases in a Regulatory Framework Assessing evidence in an Investigative context Pre Investigations Assessment Handling statutory Inquiry cases Using information gathering powers Using temporary protective powers in relation to individual Using temporary protective powers to protect charity assets Using permanent protective powers Other matters in relation to using section 46, 47, 52 and 76 Investments - see: Trustee Act 2000

E Education - see: Current education law and how it relates to maintained schools Exempt charities and principal regulators Historical background to the Education system Students' unions Employees as trustees ('Unitary Boards') Equity sharing by charities and individuals Exempt charities - see: Exempt charities and principal regulators

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Removal of Charities from the Register: Dissolutions and Voluntary Removals Removal of Charities from the Register: Inactive Charities Remuneration - see: Paying trustees to replace, or part replace, lost income Payment for serving as trustee Small payments to charity trustees Trustees becoming employees The statutory power to pay for services provided by a trustee Trustee Expenses Reserves - see: Charity income reserves Reverter of Sites Act 1987

L Land - see: Borrowing and mortgages - see: Restrictions on Mortgages and other Borrowing Disposal of charity land Reverter of Sites Act 1987 Land fill communities fund Linking Charities Local authorities as trustees

M Management of village halls Meetings - see: Charity Trustees: Making and Ending Appointments Mergers - see: Register of charity mergers: sections 305314 of the Charities Act 2011 Mortgages - see: Restrictions on Mortgages and Borrowing

S

N

Sale of land - see: Disposal of charity land Schemes Schools - see: Reverter of Sites Act 1987 Small payments to charity trustees Students' unions

Names of Charities Nominees - see: Trustee Act 2000

T

Payment of charity trustees - see: Employees as trustees ('Unitary Boards') Paying trustees to replace, or part replace, lost income Payment for serving as trustee Small payments to charity trustees Trustees becoming employees The statutory power to pay for services provided by a trustee Trustee Expenses Permanent endowment - see: Identifying and Spending Permanent Endowment Expenditure and Replacement of Permanent Endowment Pooling schemes and pool charities Power of the Commission to relieve trustees, auditors etc. from liability for breach of trust or duty Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998 ("Whistleblowing")

Terrorism - see: Charities and Terrorism Trustees - see: Charity Trustees: Making and Ending Appointments Charity Trustees: Disclosure and Barring service Corporate trustees Custodian trustees Disqualification from acting as a charity trustee Incorporation of charity trustees Local authorities as trustees Paying half, or more than half, of a charity's trustees for serving as trustees Payment for serving as trustee Small payments to charity trustees The statutory power to pay for services provided by a trustee Trustee Act 2000 Trustee expenses Trustee indemnity insurance Trustees becoming employees Trustees' power to compromise Waiver of disqualification from acting as a charity trustee

R

U-Z

O Orders

P

Unincorporated Charities: Changes to governing documents and transfer of property (Charities Act section 268, 275 and 280) Waiver of disqualification from acting as a charity trustee Wider powers of investment - see: Trustee Act 2000 Will cases: redirecting failed charitable gifts

Receivers and managers - see Appointment of interim managers Register of charity mergers: sections 305-314 of the Charities Act 2011 Reimbursement of expenses

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CVS Training We advertise a wide range of training courses on our website www.bsupported.org.uk. These courses are aimed at staff and volunteers from charities, community groups and social enterprises. Bookings/cost details: www.bsupported.org.uk/costs_and_booking.

Courses in April and May 2015 (follow the links below for course and venue details) COURSE

DATE

VENUE

TIME

Emergency First Aid Making & Editing Promotional Videos Introduction to PQASSO Paediatric First Aid Bid Writing Emergency First Aid Book-keeping in Excel Allergens First Aid Requalification Full Cost Recovery Introduction to Co-operatives First Aid at Work

Wednesday 15 April Monday 27 April Monday 27 April Wednesday/Thursday 29-30 April Tuesday 28 April Wednesday 6 May Wednesday 6 May Tuesday 12 May Wednesday/Thursday 13-14 May Thursday 14 May Tuesday 19 May Tuesday to Thursday 19-21 May

UOB VB MBR UOB MBR UOB MBR MBR UOB MBR MBR UOB

9:30 - 5:00 10:00 - 1:00 1:00 - 4:00 9:30 - 5:00 10:00 - 4:00 9:30 - 5:00 10:00 - 4:00 10:00 - 1:00 9:30 - 5:00 10:00 - 1:00 10:00 - 1:00 9:30 - 5:00

HIGHLIGHTED COURSES: Allergens - a new course for all Food Handlers following new legislation, and Making

& Editing Promotional Videos - learn how to promote your community organisation in a snappy video …

Allergens

Making & Editing Promotional Videos

Date: Tuesday 12 May 2015 | Time: 10:00am – 1:00pm Venue: Mabel Booth Room, Bradford CVS Trainer: M.R Training | Cost

Date: Monday 27 April 2015 | Time: 10:00am to 1:00pm Venue: Volunteering Bradford, Sunbridge Road Trainer: Jenny Eells | Cost: FREE - max 2 places per group

Do you handle food for members of the public to eat? If so, then this applies to you. Following the introduction of the Food Information Regulations, it is a requirement for all food handlers to know Food Allergens and how to control these effectively. By doing so, this lessens the risk of crosscontamination and accidental contact by those with allergies.

Places only available to small voluntary and community groups. Do you enjoy YouTube videos? Ever wanted to promote your community organisation in a snappy video? Do you want to share your work with the community and share the film on social media?

This course will equip you with the knowledge and skills to manage Food Allergens effectively and keep people safe.

Here is your chance in this training course in making and editing promotional videos, led by BBC journalist Jenny Eells.

Course Content: What is an Allergen? What is an Allergic Reaction? Management of Allergic Reactions. Training Resources: For this course, each candidate will receive various course handouts & exercises to complete.

You do not need any experience, and the training is fun, handson, friendly and informal. By the end of the three hours you will have made a simple video, with captions, music and titles. All the equipment is provided.

Certification: On successful completion, each candidate will receive a certificate of attendance.

Your film could be shown on the BBC Big Screen in Centenary Square as part of the BBC's My Bradford project.

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Training News: We have added a number of new courses to the programme and will be adding more for June and July over the next few weeks. In order to reflect a fall in our funding levels, we have had to make a small increase to our standard prices from 1st April 2015. However, to help prioritise the organisations we support, we have introduced a discount for members of Bradford CVS, KIVCA, Shipley and Bingley Voluntary Services, CNet and Volunteering Bradford. We have reduced the number of price bands - so please check which band your organisation falls into. We have a new booking form, available to download, which reflects these new price bands and the membership discount. We will continue to run free, £10 introductory courses and special offers whenever we can. Inhouse governance training will also continue to be free for smaller organisations with a small charge for others.

How to book on CVS Training / bsupported courses: Download a booking form from our training website www.bsupported.org.uk or email Diane Fox to request one at [email protected]. Book early to guarantee your place as we may not be able to accept late bookings. Please allow 5 working days to receive your confirmation details and an invoice. If you do not receive them then please get in touch.

We do not take bookings over the phone or reserve places, but we can tell you if there are places available on a particular course. Our NEW cost bands and standard prices are: Half day Courses A: Charities under £250k turnover B: All other voluntary/community sector C: Statutory & private sectors, Individuals

Full Fee £40 £50 £80

With Membership Discount £30 £40 £80

Full Day Courses A: Charities under £250k turnover B: All other voluntary/community sector C: Statutory & private sectors, Individuals

Full Fee £60 £80 £160

With Membership Discount £50 £70 £160

Download a booking form www.bsupported.org.uk or email [email protected] to request one. Book early to guarantee your place as we may not be able to accept late bookings. Diane Fox, CVS Training, Bradford CVS, 19/25 Sunbridge Road, Bradford BD1 2AY 01274 722772 | [email protected] | Training Website www.bsupported.org.uk

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Interested in LGB&T Awareness Training in Bradford? In partnership with Yorkshire Mesmac, Bradford’s Equity Partnership is offering a series of training sessions in 2015: Tuesday 28th April, 10 am – 3 pm, Working positively with LGB People Thursday 2nd July, 9:30 am – 1 pm, Working with younger LGB People Thursday 24th September, Working with older LGB People -They will also be offering an introductory session on Thursday 11th June, 1-4 pm, Trans Awareness Training These programmes are FREE TO ALL and are held in The Equity Centre, Providence Street, BRADFORD, BD1 2PW. A MAP WILL BE PROVIDED ON REGISTRATION

Refreshments will be provided. Equity also offers in-house training for organisations in the Leeds/Bradford/Calderdale area, which can be tailored to your requirements. For further information, please contact Julia Bawden at the Equity Partnership on 01274 727759 or via email: [email protected] Places are limited and booking is essential

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 Food distribution  is the No. 1 social action activity

undertaken by churches in the UK WITH THANKS TO HUGH RADOJEV | WWW.CIVILSOCIETY.CO.UK

Just over 80% of churches took part in food distribution 2013/14, according to results of the 3rd biennial National Church and Social Action Survey for the United Kingdom. As part of the survey, churches were asked to record their involvement in 39 different social action activities. Of the 230 churches that responded, over 80% said they took part in food distribution, making it the top ranked social action area for the first time. Food distribution ranked 4th in 2012 and 16th in 2010. When the first survey was carried out in 2010, only 7.8% of churches reported being involved in food distribution, so there’s been a massive increase of 72.4% in 4 years!

Social action spending has also increased to approximately £393m per annum, an increase of 14.9% from 2012 and 36.5% from 2010.

While this is the first time that food distribution has topped the table, it doesn’t represent the biggest overall percentage increase for food distribution since the survey began. Between 2010 and 2012, the number of churches involved in food distribution rose by 53.8% as opposed to 18% between 2012 and 2014.

Despite these increases, the results also seem to show that social action involvement has reached something of a peak in the United Kingdom and will likely plateau in the next two years. 58% of churches plan to increase (or increase somewhat) their social initiatives in the next 12 months, the same figure as was recorded in 2012 and a figure 10% lower than those recorded in 2010.

The survey also shows the number of churches involved in debt counselling has risen by 22% since 2012, with over 40% of respondents saying they were involved. This rise in the last two years has taken the overall percentage involved in this metric back to the levels that were seen in the 2010 survey.

Also, the percentage of churches planning to ‘reduce’ social action has risen to 5%, following the trend of a one per cent growth across the UK in that metric since 2010. Top 10 social action activities in 2014 (2012 rank in brackets) 1. Food distribution - 80% (4) 2. Parents and toddlers - 70% (2) 3. Schools assemblies - 66% (3) 4. Festivals/fun days - 55% (4) 5. Children's clubs up to age 11 - 50% (5) 6. Caring for the elderly - 44% (6) 7. Debt counselling - 43% (11) 8. Youth work - 43% (7) 9. Public café - 39% (8) 10. Marriage counselling - 33% (14)

The percentage of those providing lunches has also risen steadily from 5% in 2010 to over 27% in 2014. Social action up across the board The report estimates that there are between 1.1 million and 1.4 million volunteers. And the average amount of time staff at churches dedicate to social action activities has increased by 19% from 1,130 hours in 2012 to 1,342 in 2014.

SURVEY RESULTS:

http://jubilee-plus.org/Articles/431253/Jubilee_Plus/Research/RESULTS_OF_THE.aspx 11


FUNDING & FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT AMBITION GIVING SMALL GRANTS 2015

This is a one-off grants scheme for 2015 from a national youth charity called Ambition. Ambition Giving is offering grants of up to £2,000 to groups or individuals to help deliver activities to young people (aged under 24) within their community. Ambition Giving will support a wide variety of projects and is open to applications from young people, youth clubs, charities, community groups, resident associations and voluntary organisations - but every application must be supported by a member of Ambition. Ambition has three overarching outcomes for all of its programmes; improved educational attainment, improved health and increased employability for the future. Any project funded must address one of these outcomes. It should also focus on at least one of the following five themes: • • • • •

Health – supporting young people to be happy and healthy in mind and body Employability & Enterprise – supporting young people to develop skills and access training that will help them to confidently enter education or employment Social Action – ensuring young people are adding value to their local community Leadership – supporting young people to develop leadership skills through practical projects that benefit their peers Media & Creative Arts – enabling young people to express themselves creatively and develop their media skills.

If you are an organisation you must also be prepared to achieve First Steps, Ambition’s free quality assurance programme, so that they can be confident that your programme is being delivered to a high standard. Ambition Giving can NOT be used to: Support individuals to complete training; fund sports equipment for individuals; fund capital projects; support religious activities. Interested? Please read the guidance notes before completing the application form - all in the application pack: www.ambitionuk.org/site/media/AmbitionGiving_Application_Form_2015.pdf.

Deadlines for applications: 30 April, 31 July and 30 October 2015. Questions? Telephone 020 7793 0787 or email [email protected].

http://www.ambitionuk.org/ WITH THANKS TO: www.bfunded.org.uk

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COMMUNITY BUILDINGS funding

The Government has launched two new building-related funds as part of its plan to give communities more power in planning local development…

PRE-FEASIBILITY GRANTS

The Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) has established the Community Buildings Pre-Feasibility Grants scheme to support community groups that have identified a possible community building project and are assessing the way forward. The funding aims to help local groups decide whether it is feasible to take on the project. Revenue grants of between £1,000 and £10,000 are available to town or parish councils, neighbourhood forums, or qualifying community groups in England to assess the feasibility of a community building project before submitting a Community Right to Build Order. The funding can be used for costs associated with assessing the viability of the project. These may include, but are not limited to:       

Understanding the potential costs of the proposal, exploring alternatives, and sources of finance. Help with putting together a project plan. Training sessions for members of the management team. Scoping and undertaking studies that would be needed to support a new development proposal. Engaging an architect and/or other professionals to advise on the design and/or land acquisition. Costs associated with public engagement and consulting on the project. Publicity materials.

PROJECT SUPPORT GRANTS

The DCLG has established the Community Buildings Project Support Grants Scheme to help eligible organisations to move their project through the planning process to the point where they are able to submit a Community Right to Build Order, or (in the case of community-led housing projects only) a traditional planning permission application. Town or parish councils, neighbourhood forums, or qualifying community groups in England can apply for revenue grants of between £5,000 and £40,000. Applicants must be able to provide a contribution of at least 10% of the estimated costs of developing the proposal. The funding can be used for, but is not limited to:  Engaging an architect and/or other professionals such as surveyors to carry out works needed to produce detailed plans.  Legal, financial or other professional input to the project.  Technical studies.  Any planning fees incurred.  Costs associated with public engagement and consulting on the project. The funding for either of the above must be spent within six months or before the end of the financial year, whichever is earliest. Applications can be made at any time.

http://mycommunity.org.uk/programme/community-buildings-housing 13


AUSTIN AND HOPE PILKINGTON TRUST

During 2015, the Trust is seeking to fund projects through small grants (c. £1k-£3k) under the categories of “community” and/or “medical” (with priority given to those relating to mental health). Applicants need to be registered charities, capital grants will NOT be supported, and small charities with a very local remit are unlikely to be considered. Deadlines are 1 June and 1 November 2015. www.austin-hope-pilkington.org.uk

ARTS IMPACT FUND

The new £7 million two-year pilot scheme has been established to demonstrate the potential for social investment in the arts. The fund is due to open for applications on 15 April 2015. Online applications can be made starting from the middle of April 2015 for unsecured loans ranging from £150,000 to £600,000. Interest rates and terms for loans will vary but applicants can broadly expect interest rates to range from 4% to 7% per annum, and the loan duration to be between three and five years. The terms and conditions will be negotiated with individual applicant organisations and can include interest and capital payment holidays.

AWARDS FOR ALL: SESSIONAL WORKERS

Applicants to Awards for All will probably be aware that payments to sessional workers are acceptable, but paying staff salaries are not. In a blog they set out how existing staff might be counted as sessional workers: "If your sessional worker receives a salary from you already you will need to consider if the service they are providing is additional to their existing role in order for it to be fundable. They will need to invoice you for the extra service they are providing."

The repayable finance will be open to arts organisations with regulated legal structures that have a charitable purpose. Arts organisations should be a registered charity, a company limited by guarantee, a community interest company (CIC) or a community interest organisation (CIO).

Full article is here: http://bigblog.org.uk/2014/10/29/big-advicesessional-workers/

To be eligible, applicants will need to demonstrate:    

Their primary activity is in the arts. Their organisation is (or could be) sustainable. They can repay the loan. Their organisation’s activities meet at least one of the priority social areas: o Citizen and Community o Youth and Educational Attainment o Health and Wellbeing.

WITH THANKS TO: www.syfab.org.uk

BIG ISSUE INVEST: CORPORATE SOCIAL VENTURING

https://artsimpactfund.org/

£50k investment funding for ten sustainable enterprises using innovative and disruptive digital technology to support and create opportunities for young people to transform their lives. The deadline for applications is 25 May 2015.

WITH THANKS TO www.bfunded.org.uk

http://bigissueinvest-csv.com/challenge

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BIG LOTTERY STRATEGY 2015-21

BIG LOTTERY FUND WEBINARS

Big Lottery Fund is holding regular webinars for people making applications. They go through a presentation, then have time for questions. The sessions are:

A new strategic framework for the next six years has been published. BIG intends to:

Introduction to Awards for All (every Tuesday) Evidencing need in your application (fortnightly) Understanding outcomes (for Reaching Communities applicants only, fortnightly).

simplify its grant-making processes (they're going to try and cut the average length of an application form from 20 pages to six). explore “new types of grant-making such as social investment and other funding instruments”. engage with new approaches and forms of organisations such as social enterprises, cooperatives and mutuals, and community interest companies. be more open and participatory in how it funds, for example through “crowd-sourcing ideas through digital and media”. consider how they might “co-curate outcomes”. pilot Accelerating Ideas, which will provide a flexible route to funding for “innovative practice that can be adopted and adapted more widely to grow its impact”. learn from “test-and-learn pilots” (some of which are already underway) how to simplify its open small grants programme. use its website to create a “digital community”, which will enable people and organisations to network, collaborate and communicate, and open up the fund to its stakeholders.

Feedback from recent attendees has shown the value of webinars and comments include:

“The webinar software is easy to use and the presentation itself gave relevant examples relating specifically to the application questions”. “Great explanation of outcomes and demonstrating need I feel confident about applying for funding now”. “Incredibly useful information on types of projects BIG funds, reasons for rejected applications, and governance information to share with new groups. “Informative, good length, easy to understand and good interaction, which answered all my questions quickly.

For information and bookings, go to: www.biglotteryfund.org.uk/englandwebinars

BIG ON SELF EVALUATION

Like many funders, the Big Lottery Fund expects that the projects that it supports will be evaluated. In most cases this can be done without buying in external evaluation – and this guide aims to help BIG-funded projects manage the evaluation process themselves.

For more detail, see CIVIL SOCIETY news article: www.civilsociety.co.uk/fundraising/news/content/ 19318/big_lottery_fund_publishes_new_peoplepowered_strategic_framework

It’s particularly worth reading if you are at the stage of even thinking of preparing a bid. There’s more than enough information here to make it useful for any group planning to evaluate its work, not just those taking the Lottery route.

Big Lottery Fund Chief Executive, Dawn Austwick’s blog: http://bigblog.org.uk/2015/03/24/people-in-the-lead

UNDERSTANDING SELF-EVALUATION - A GUIDE FOR PROJECTS

Strategic framework / vision: www.biglotteryfund.org.uk/aboutbig/strategic-framework/our-vision

SUPPORTED BY THE BIG LOTTERY FUND:

www.bradfordcvs.org.uk/sites/default/files/uploa ds/self_evaluation_guidance.pdf

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THE FIVER CHALLENGE

GIFT AID GUIDE

Young Enterprise, in partnership with Virgin Money and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS), is providing thousands of primary schoolage children in the UK with a £5 loan for the second year running through the Fiver Challenge.

Gift Aid can boost your donations by 25%, but research shows that a shocking amount is left unclaimed. How can your organisation ensure that every eligible penny goes towards your cause? Technology Trust has created a FREE comprehensive guide to Gift Aid, which will help you to:  Understand which donations are eligible for Gift Aid  Convince donors to take part in the scheme  Maximise your charity’s resources during the claiming process  Ensure that all eligible Gift Aid claims are made.

The purpose of the loan is to challenge young people to set up mini businesses to create products or services they can then sell at a profit - which they are allowed to keep - and then return the original loan to the Fiver Bank. It is designed to encourage school children to develop important entrepreneurial talents and help equip them with basic skills for later life.

www.charitydigitalnews.co.uk/resources/thecharity-guide-to-gift-aid

The Challenge is open to all UK organisations that are dedicated to young people aged 5 – 11 years. For example:  Primary schools  Brownies and Guides  Cub Scouts. Organisations will be provided with £5 for every pupil taking part. The deadline for entries is 5 June 2015.

HEALTH & SOCIAL CARE VOLUNTEERING FUND

The government’s Health and Social Care Volunteering Fund for 2015/16 is accepting applications for projects starting in September 2015 or later. Organisations are invited to submit proposals that place a high priority on supporting volunteering in health, public health and social care.

Once participants have completed the Challenge, organisations can select the top three overall participants or teams for submission to the National Competition. Each winner will receive a trophy and a trip to London to attend an award ceremony.

The eligibility form needs to be completed by midday, 8 May, full applications by 22 May. www.gov.uk/government/publications/healthand-social-care-volunteering-fund-2015-to-2016

The deadline for the national competition is 3 July 2015. www.fiverchallenge.org.uk

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The latest (ISSUE 2: MARCH 2015) covers compliance planning - including employment law changes, changes to SORP, and pensions auto-enrolment - as well as advice from the experts on matters such as how to win public contracts and information about an online giving guide to help you make the most of digital donations. The previous (first) issue has an interesting piece about when trustees should be hands on and when they should take a step back; offers an in-depth look at when you shouldn’t be paying VAT; and explores recent trends in the broader charity sector, including the frequent scrutiny of the Charity Commission.

HMRC ONLINE CHARITY REGISTRATION

Charities can now register online with HM Revenue & Customs, rather than having to use the paper form (ChA1). Charities must be registered with HMRC to claim gift aid and other tax reliefs, and the registration process is completely separate to that used by the Charity Commission.

To view the above or to painlessly subscribe yourself, go to: www.cfg.org.uk/resources/resources-and-updatesfor-small-charities/small-charities-financeupdate.aspx

The online service has in-built checks and guidance to help organisations provide the right information and supporting documentation. HMRC and the Commission have said they will move towards a joint registration process by 2016. To register (if you haven’t already done so), go to: www.gov.uk/charity-recognition-hmrc Questions? You can contact HMRC on 0300 123 1073, 8am to 5pm Monday to Friday.

SPIRIT OF ACHIEVEMENT

ARTS & CULTURE CHALLENGE FUND The Spirit of Achievement Arts and Culture Challenge Fund is looking for projects that will create opportunities for disabled people to participate in arts and cultural activities, individually and with their families. A broad definition of arts and cultural activity applies, including visual art, craft, writing and literature, music, dance and performance arts.

SMALL CHARITIES FINANCE UPDATE

The term ‘disabled people’ assumes the social model of disability, so includes those people with barriers to participation including people with learning disabilities, those with mental health 

The Charity Finance Group’s SMALL CHARITIES FINANCE UPDATE is aimed at charities with under £250k a year income and looks like it may be a useful resource to sign up for.

17


problems and those with long-term life limiting conditions.

seeking funds for their own grant disbursement, will NOT be eligible for support.

Grants of £100,000 to £250,000 are available for two or three year projects that:

Apply in writing with a project outline and a detailed budget breakdown. There is no fixed cut-off date but generally any applications received up to the 10th day in the month of a meeting (June, September, December and March) will be able to be considered; later arrivals will be rolled over into the following quarter.

 increase opportunities for disabled people to participate regularly in arts & cultural activities  provide opportunities for disabled and non-disabled people (particularly families) to participate in activities together  provide regularly and sustained opportunities for participation (not one off activities)  provide opportunities for disabled and non-disabled people to volunteer together to deliver those activities  provide disabled and non-disabled volunteers with training and skills that both ensure a high quality volunteering experience and boost employability  address a clearly identified and evidenced need, reflecting current public health priorities and including the views of potential beneficiaries  articulate a clear vision of how the project will impact beyond the life of Spirit’s funding.

Contact: The Administrator, Split Infinitive Trust, PO Box 409, Scarborough, YO11 9AJ. Email [email protected]. Website: www.splitinfinitivetrust.co.uk WITH THANKS TO: www.fit4funding.org.uk

SUMMER PLAYSCHEME FUNDING

Grants from £500 to £1,500 are available from the HILDEN CHARITABLE FUND for summer playschemes for children aged five to 18.

The next deadline for applications is 20 April 2015 (9am). Questions? Telephone 020 3701 7440 or email [email protected]. www.spiritof2012trust.org.uk/challenge-fund WITH THANKS TO: www.bfunded.org.uk

The Fund has allocated a small budget to help community groups run summer playschemes for disadvantaged communities. Some priority will be given to projects which show they are inclusive of children from refugee families, and show BME involvement. Applications are accepted from voluntary agencies with an income of less than £150,000. Playschemes should have "strong volunteer support" and last from two to six weeks.

SPLIT INFINITIVE TRUST

The Trust's main area of interest is in supporting the arts (in general and in education). Applications with a Yorkshire or regional focus are favoured. Split Infinitive is a small trust with limited funds to distribute annually.

The deadline for applications is 14 May 2015. Questions? Telephone the Hilden Charitable Fund on 0207 603 1525. For guidance, application form and more, visit www.hildencharitablefund.org.uk.

Average grants fall between £250 and £750, and may be awarded to individuals or to organisations for specific projects. Grants for general running costs, for projects outside the UK, and charities

WITH THANKS TO: www.bfunded.org.uk

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The threshold for audit for charities with assets of more than £3.26m will also change. These charities will now be subject to audit if their income is more than £500,000. The government received 56 responses to the consultation from a “broad range” of individuals and organisations, including charities, accountancy professionals and umbrella bodies.

TESCO COMMUNITY AWARDS

The Tesco Charity Trust Community Awards Scheme provides one-off donations of between £500 and £2,500 for projects that directly benefit health, environmental sustainability or opportunities for young people. Your project should be able to demonstrate that it can lead to tangible benefits. Deadline for applications is Sunday 24 April 2015.

Changes will come into effect on 31 March, 2015. WITH THANKS TO: Emily Corfe | www.civilsociety.co.uk

www.tescoplc.com/index.asp?pageid=754

TRUE COLOURS TRUST

The True Colours Trust provides grants to small, UKbased organisations to carry out projects that provide help for disabled children and their families. The grants programme is open to small UK-based community and voluntary groups that operate on a local level. The Trust does NOT provide grants for individuals.

THRESHOLD SHIFT

See, they can do things quickly when they want to! The government has announced that it will go ahead with plans to double the audit threshold for most charities from £500,000 to £1m, making up to 4,000 charities exempt from audit requirements.

Grants are available for one-off purposes, such as: • • • • • •

The decision follows a consultation that ran for seven weeks from December to January 2015. The significant majority of respondents appreciated the effect the proposals would have in decreasing the regulatory burden on charities and, not surprisingly, tended to be in favour.

Hydrotherapy pools Multi-sensory rooms Minibuses Young carers' projects Sibling projects Bereavement support.

See: http://www.truecolourstrust.org.uk/

Want more?

For more funding opportunities in the Bradford district, you can search the bfunded website: www.bfunded.org.uk. This service is free and you can do as many searches as you like. Not sure where to start? Contact the voluntary organisation support officer for your area: www.bfunded.org.uk/get-help.

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GENERAL ELECTION 2015 ALL THE LATEST NEWS, OPINION AND ANALYSIS

A round-up of policy suggestions and specific proposals that charities and other voluntary organisations put forward to the politicians, plus examinations of party platforms, in the run up to the May 2015 general election. This will be updated as new material and activity emerges. Also see: Politician Profiles, for links to those responsible for voluntary issues in the major parties.

Sector manifestos    



Consultancy and think tank NPC. Charity chief executives body ACEVO. NCVO, England’s generalist umbrella. (Direct link to Manifesto pdf, 1.6MB) Big Society Capital proposes a new regulator for social enterprise and social investment, in Better Finance, Better Society. ACRE the network of rural community councils, is calling for a fair deal for rural areas.

KINGS FUND ELECTION TRACKER

The Kings Fund tracker is a way to keep up to date with the health debate. The resource aims to make sense of how health and social care issues are shaping the political landscape in the run-up to the election. It has a timeline of different political announcements around health and social care, giving an independent assessment of the issues raised. http://election.kingsfund.org.uk/

Sector policy analysis

Examination of policies and pledges from the various political parties.  Joseph Rowntree Foundation’s General Election Hub – issues including living standards, work and housing.

Commentary 

Chief execs of sector bodies comment on party policies on the voluntary sector – Civil Society News, 24 Feb 2015 (Politicians lack a clear vision for charities and the sector must provide its own).

SEE ALSO: the Joseph Rowntree Foundation’s General Election Hub www.jrf.org.uk/generalelection-hub. This is the place for those seeking information about the policies underneath the politics ahead of the polls. On the site you’ll find rolling analysis of the parties’ pre-election pledges and useful facts about the Government’s performance around several major policy issues including living standards, work and housing. Get involved in the discussion on Twitter by following the JRF on @jrf_uk or by using the hashtag #ge2015

Policy proposals

Various proposals put forward by different organisations, not all labelled as specific to the General Election (but with related timing). Also see: general news items tagged Public Policy.  Locality to launch Keep it Local campaign, 24th March.  NEF suggests a new social settlement, and EIF puts forward the benefits of Early Intervention – a VoluntaryNews public policy news item.  The Stitch in Time campaign for investment in early support for children, young people and their families to stop them reaching crisis point, and Labour Party policy on the voluntary sector in this VoluntaryNews election item.  Mind’s manifesto and election pages on putting mental health at the heart of the election.  Christian Aid’s campaign for a Tax Dodging law.  British Legion: Building a better future for our Armed Forces community.

http://voluntarynews.org.uk/news/election-2015/

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If you have any questions, please contact [email protected]

BOOKINGS: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/grants-and-beyond-yorkshire-fundersforum-conference-2015-hosted-by-sheffield-business-school-tickets-15709363128

21


HEALTH & SOCIAL CARE

COMMUNITY-CENTRED HEALTH

Local government and the NHS have important roles in building confident and connected communities as part of efforts to improve health and reduce inequalities. The project Working with communities: empowerment evidence and learning was initiated jointly by PHE and NHS England to draw together and disseminate research and learning on community-centred approaches for health and wellbeing. This report presents the work undertaken in phase 1 of the project and provides a guide to the case for change, the key concepts, the varieties of approach that have been tried and tested and sources of evidence.

ASBESTOS, THE HIDDEN KILLER

View A GUIDE TO COMMUNITY-CENTRED APPROACHES FOR

The next free BAOHSF event, ASBESTOS, THE HIDDEN KILLER, will take place on Monday 27 April 2015, from 9:30 to 12:30 in the Banqueting Suite at Bradford City Hall.

HEALTH AND WELLBEING

www.ukhealthforum.org.uk/prevention/pie/?entr yid43=40357

DISTRICT’S NHS IN THE VANGUARD

For bookings and a bit more detail, go to: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/asbestos-the-hiddenkiller-tickets-15889045563

Airedale NHS Foundation is one of only 29 sites nationally to be given the go-ahead to implement its new care model (one of just six under the category of enhanced health in care homes – offering older people better, joined up health, care and rehabilitation services). www.england.nhs.uk/ourwork/futurenhs/5yfvch3/new-care-models/care-homessites/#twentynine Elsewhere on the ever-shifting landscape of the NHS, the first wave of GP-led CCGs is gearing up to take on responsibility for commissioning the majority of GP services from April this year.

CCGs AND ENGAGEMENT

Nationally, sixty-four CCGs (including Bradford’s City and Districts CCGs) have been approved to take on greater ‘delegated’ commissioning responsibility for GP services, with the possibility that others may follow. This follows plans set out by NHS England Chief Executive Simon Stevens, early last year, to give patients, communities and clinicians more scope in deciding how local services are developed. www.england.nhs.uk/2015/02/18/commissioningof-gp

Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs) have been operational since April 2013. Responsible for around 80% of the healthcare budget, CCGs and the organisations that they commission support services from - especially commissioning support units (CSUs) –are vital partners for the voluntary sector. This Compact Voice/Regional Voices guide aims to help voluntary organisations to engage with CCGs. www.compactvoice.org.uk/sites/default/files/eng aging_with_clinical_commissioning_groups.pdf

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ENTITLEMENT TO CARE How do our health care services deal with people newly arrived in the UK – and how do these new arrivals navigate the services available? Meeting the medical needs of immigrants makes for heated political discussion, but in many parts of the country GP's quietly get on with the job… Bradford GP, Dr Alastair Bavington, sees first hand at his Girlington Surgery the struggles of those newly arrived to this country and the part health plays in the process as they gradually assimilate. He was born in Pakistan and has helped several waves of immigrants arriving in the city, starting with those from the Mirpur region of the country and more recently the large numbers coming from Eastern Europe. With such vastly different experiences of healthcare in their home countries, there's a lot to be done in terms of teaching them how and when to access the NHS. Stepping away from the national debate over whether and what GPs should be charging foreigners, Dr Bavington explores the experiences of those new to the country seeking health care. Starting with the basics of how you educate those with no real experience of free health care about how and when should they access the surgery? It takes time to sort out existing conditions and get them on the right treatment programmes. And this takes place against a backdrop of language barriers and when social issues, like poor housing and isolation, come into play. He is keen for the NHS to recognise the extra work required to sort out the sometimes very complex health needs of those coming to this country: “At one level it's a problem because of the resource drain on the NHS of helping people who come from very different cultures and health care systems and bringing with them unsorted ill health problems and with the barriers of language and culture to navigate.” “It's happening in parts of the country where immigrants first arrive and probably in parts of the country where it’s not happening they probably don't know it's a problem. It's also a problem for the individuals - do they get the sort of service that they need or are there a lot of people whose needs aren't met and who might even suffer unnecessarily.” “I would like policy makers to be a little bit more aware of the complexity of providing good health care in the inner city. It would be great for me and many other practises dealing with lots of immigrants, that the amount of work they're having to do would be recognised and it would make it easier for them to attract and recruit and retain the kind of staff members they need to provide good primary care services.”

LISTEN ON BBC IPLAYER: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b051vyx5

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INTEGRATED CARE

NHS BRADFORD CITY CCG www.england.nhs.uk/wpcontent/uploads/2014/11/cfv-bradford-city.pdf

NHS England has published the latest bespoke COMMISSIONING FOR VALUE packs- INTEGRATED CARE PATHWAYS. The new packs focus on integrated care pathways and complex patients.

NHS BRADFORD DISTRICTS CCG www.england.nhs.uk/wpcontent/uploads/2014/11/cfv-bradfrd-dist.pdf

These packs are designed to support commissioners with local discussions around commissioning decisions. www.england.nhs.uk/2015/03/02/integratedpathways/

MENTAL HEALTH NEW FIRST RESPONSE SERVICE First Response is a new 24/7 mental health service covering Bradford, Airedale, Wharfedale and Craven. It provides urgent help to all people experiencing a mental health crisis.

SEE ALSO: PATHWAYS ON A PAGE

There is one phone number being the single point of access– 01274 221181 to access this new service. This is for ALL age groups, whether the person is or is not already receiving a mental health service.

The 'PATHWAY ON A PAGE' data packs published for Clinical Commissioning Groups in November 2014 offer a wealth of local information to inform discussions about local care as it relates to:             

First Response will work closely with other agencies to allow quick access to the right care for people who are experiencing a mental health crisis. This includes the City of Bradford MDC, West Yorkshire Police, West Yorkshire Ambulance service, GP practices and voluntary sector organisations.

Asthma Breast cancer Common mental health disorder COPD Diabetes Heart disease Lower gastrointestinal cancer Lung cancer Musculoskeletal Psychosis Renal pathways. Stroke Trauma and injury.

This is the first service of its type in the region and it will help us care for those within our community experiencing a mental health crisis when they need it most. This service will limit the people being cared for poorly in inappropriate settings such as police cells or in A&E. This new service will bridge a gap in the care provided to Bradford and surrounding areas.

NHS AIREDALE, WHARFDALE & CRAVEN CCG www.england.nhs.uk/wpcontent/uploads/2014/11/cfv-airedl-wharfdl-cravn.pdf

For more details, email [email protected].

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NHS ENGLAND: GUIDE TO GRANTS

See Compact Voice news item at www.compactvoice.org.uk/news/2015/03/13/prac tical-guides-published.

We all know that grants are a fundamentally important part of the funding mix for voluntary sector organisations. A new publication from NHS England is a great new tool to make the case to commissioners.


SOCIAL PRESCRIBING SUMMIT: COMMUNITY AVENUES TO WELLBEING

Social prescribing is the term used by healthcare providers and the voluntary sector to define community based services to help improve health and wellbeing. A recent summit, hosted by Voluntary Action Sheffield, shared information about best practice at a national and local level and raised awareness of the vital role the voluntary, community and faith sector can play.

BITE-SIZE GUIDE TO GRANTS aims to support clinical

commissioners to better understand grants and support VCS work with CCGs. It outlines the benefits and principles of providing grant funding for the voluntary sector and suggests practical steps for commissioners on using grants to support priorities.

VAS is sharing the presentations from the speakers to help keep the conversation going: www.vas.org.uk/news2/363

NHS England worked with some of the strategic partners, including NAVCA, to produce the guide. It has been published alongside a non-mandatory grant agreement which CCGs are able to use and adapt. NHS England has said that they are committed to working with voluntary sector partners to develop this agreement over the coming year and to publish other resources to support commissioners to work with the sector. www.england.nhs.uk/nhs-standardcontract/grant-agreement

SEE ALSO: THIRD SECTOR article on Voluntary Action Rotherham’s successful social prescribing pilot scheme. www.thirdsector.co.uk/rotherham-cvs-stepsrelieve-burden-nhs/local-action/article/1334875

PARTNERSHIPS IN HEALTH

The first two of a series of briefings designed to help voluntary organisations to build strong partnerships with local commissioning bodies have been published by Compact Voice, in partnership with Regional Voices.

WE LOVE EATING

Campaign Event on Thursday, 23 April, 9:30-12 HALE, Healthy Living Project, Shipley BD18 3QX

One of the briefings focuses on engaging with Health and Wellbeing Boards www.compactvoice.org.uk/resources/briefingsand-responses/engagingwithhwbs.

The We Love Eating campaign focuses on promoting healthy diets and exercise for three key target groups: older people, pregnant women and new mums and children. You are invited to attend this special themed meeting to discuss health promotion for children (from 6 months to 16 years).

The other one on Clinical Commissioning Groups www.compactvoice.org.uk/resour ces/briefings-and-responses/engagingwithccgs.

For the invitation and more information, visit www.we-love-eating.eu/en. To book a place, call Laura Lamming on 01274 383952 or email [email protected].

25


ICT 4 VCS

job is not the procurement or implementation of new databases" and that you do not have to be technical to understand it. http://blog.itforcharities.co.uk/2015/02/whatsmall-charities-need-to-know-about.html

CYBERSECURITY

You have a right to exist safely in digital spaces. Although we have to rely on outside parties for technology to access these spaces, there are tons of helpful tools and strategies that allow you to take greater control of your digital life and mitigate the risk of malicious threats. Check out A DIY GUIDE TO FEMINIST CYBERSECURITY (regardless of your gender, this is an excellent resource – Ed.) https://tech.safehubcollective.org/cybersecurity

36 VISUAL CONTENT TOOLS

In the past two years alone, the choice of tools, apps and programs for creating and editing visual content has increased dramatically. Check out this great slide deck for a quick overview and links: www.slideshare.net/donnamoritz/36-visualcontent-creation-tools-the-pros-cant-live-without

DIGITAL COMMUNITIES FUND

BCB + BRADLUG = IT STUFF

Affinity Sutton has launched a new Digital Communities Fund to help its residents to access the internet. This is a national fund managed by the London Community Foundation.

If you missed the most recent live broadcast of IT Stuff on BCB Radio, you can listen to it here (podcasts are posted a week after broadcast): http://itstuff.org.uk/blog/ITStuff110315

Grants of between £1,000 and £5,000 are available for charities and community organisations working across the UK to support Affinity Sutton residents of all ages to get online and to build the skills, motivation and confidence to use the internet safely as an everyday tool.

PODCAST CONTENTS: Apple Watch & gold Macbook; Lenovo Superfish; µTorrent EpicScale; internet toolbars; bluray discs infecting bluray players; Microsoft Bob is 20 & YouTube is 10; Android 5.1; new versions of Raspbian and NOOBS; Steam VR; Swanky Paint Alpha+8b; Bradford CoderDojo; Badonkadonk Game Makers Meetup; GAMAYO (Game Makers, Yorkshire) #8 on the 30th April.

Although the Fund is primarily for Affinity Sutton residents, projects can work to benefit the wider community too. The deadlines for applications in 2015 are 24 April and 11 September 2015 (5pm). www.londoncf.org.uk/grants/availablegrants/overview.aspx

CRM = DATABASE

Sector fundraising/CRM database systems expert Ivan Wainewright has published a FREE ebook WHAT SMALL CHARITIES NEED TO KNOW ABOUT CRM SYSTEMS. He says that it is produced for "people whose day

WITH THANKS TO: www.bfunded.org.uk

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GOOD USE OF TECH

If you’re a teacher at a UK school and you’d like to opt-in to their list for sending out extra copies, fill in the form at the link below. If you’re not a teacher but know someone who might benefit, ask them to sign up. www.raspberrypi.org/education/linux-voice

This year’s Tech4Good Awards are open to charities, social enterprises, schools, individuals, and others based in the UK that are using technology for good. Award categories are:       

Accessibility Award BT Ingenious Award Community Impact Award Digital Health Award Digital Skills Award IT Volunteer of the Year Award Youth Award.

MyScriptFont

Online tool to create a font from your own handwriting! Yes, but…? Copyright policies for the produced fonts: The service is FREE. All produced fonts belong to you. MSF do not claim any rights to your font(s). You are free to do whatever you want with your font, this includes any kind of commercial use and/or selling the font. You do not have to mention that your font was produced with this tool. http://www.myscriptfont.com/

Nominate your local community project, a volunteer with your organisation that goes above and beyond their duties to support service users, a new start-up that’s using digital technology to help disabled people, or a charity that’s found an innovative way to help people of all ages to acquire the digital skills they need.

VIDEO SKILLS WEBINARS FOR CHARITIES

Technology Trust, Google and Media Trust have been working together to run a programme helping smaller charities achieve more online: Grow Your Charity Online www.growyourcharityonline.com.

Entry by 8 May, details at www.tech4goodawards.com/enter-now. WITH THANKS TO: www.voluntarynews.org.uk

Two new webinars teaching digital skills have been added to the resources: An introduction to video editing explains the relationship between shooting and editing video, and more www.growyourcharityonline.com/uk/anintroduction-to-video-editing

LINUX GIVEAWAY FOR SCHOOLS

The guys at LINUX VOICE magazine have kindly offered to send out FREE copies to UK schools!

YouTube for Non Profits Webinar explores all the special features available for charities www.growyourcharityonline.com/uk/youtube-fornon-profits-webinar

LINUX VOICE is a great magazine all about free and

open source software and Raspberry Pi news & projects have a strong presence in their contents each month.

WITH THANKS TO: Technology Trust | www.technology-trust.org

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LibreOffice:

the successor to OpenOffice

Just over four years ago, a group of developers who had become fed up with the slow pace of development of OpenOffice started an alternative project now managed by a German charitable foundation, the Document Foundation, to create a modern, and superior, alternative to Microsoft Office. They were gratified to receive support from major computer companies and many other developers who had become disillusioned with the slow pace of development of OpenOffice. many extensions for LibreOffice or you may have to take a different approach; equally, if there are some things you wish you could do in MS Office but cannot, like importing vector graphics from a wider range of programs rather than just MS Visio, you may find that LibreOffice will better meet your needs. For some users, the most difficult difference will be that LibreOffice does not support the VBA macros which have long been part of MS Office, offering instead the option to use a number of other languages, including its own version of Basic. There is a comparison of features maintained by those who are most interested in these issues at https://wiki.documentfoundation.org/Feature_Compar ison:_LibreOffice_-_Microsoft_Office.

From the outset, development has been focused on cleaning up the underlying code, some of which dated back to the 1980s StarOffice software on which OpenOffice was based, on improving interoperability with other software and on adding features which users want rather than ones which a marketing team thinks they might like. So the look and feel of the program will be reassuring to all those who started using office suites in the early part of the century, the features that 99.9% of users remember from other office suites are there and for most people LibreOffice will be a drop-in replacement for their current office suite that requires little or no explanation to use.

If your organisation uses MS Office for straightforward word-processing, spreadsheets and presentations, LibreOffice will fulfil all your needs; even if some members of the organisation, need to use MS Office for its specialist features, you may find that providing LibreOffice for other members of staff or volunteers is all you need.

LibreOffice retains the six components of OpenOffice:  Writer, a Word compatible word-processor  Calc, an Excel compatible spreadsheet  Impress, Powerpoint compatible presentation software  Draw, a vector graphics drawing program  Math, a maths editor  Base, a frontend for accessing a wide range of databases including Access.

If you prepare documents in multiple languages, it is straightforward to add the extensions and fonts needed to use these languages. If you have members of staff or volunteers with disabilities, the Java Access Bridge can link a wide range of assistive technologies to the LibreOffice content and interface making it much easier to use than MS Office.

Of these Draw and Base go further than what is offered in MS Office while Calc avoids a number of documented bugs in Excel. LibreOffice supports more languages and can import files from a far wider range of programs than MS Office; so, whether you have computer archives from the days before Windows or files from more modern programs, you are much more likely to be able to use them with LibreOffice than with any other office suite.

If you need to share documents via the cloud, LibreOffice offers you a wider choice including MS OneDrive. If you need enterprise level support for your organisation, Collabora (https://www.collabora.com/) can offer that.

If you have used some of the specialist features of MS Office, you may find that they are not directly supported in LibreOffice, you may need to download one of the

With thanks to John R. Hudson | www.bradlug.co.uk

You can download LibreOffice from https://www.libreoffice.org/download/ 28


Proposed changes to Charity Law

A Law Commission consultation on charity law reform CLOSING DATE: 03 JULY 2015

The Law Commission has proposed 40 changes to charity law and asked for views on a further 57 issues where it feels there may be a need for reform. This consultation is designed to explore whether aspects of charity law can be reformed to remove unnecessary regulation while safeguarding the public interest in ensuring that charities are properly run. Although the first section is unlikely to be of relevance (it relates only to charities governed by Royal Charter and by Act of Parliament), the remainder of the consultation addresses issues arising out of the review of the Charities Act 2006, conducted by Lord Hodgson of Astley Abbotts, regarding: the procedures by which charities change their purposes and the administrative provisions of their governing documents; the application of property cy-près, including the application of cy-près to the proceeds of fundraising appeals; the regulation of the acquisition, disposal and mortgage of land by charities; the remuneration of a trustee of a charity for the supply of goods to the charity; the power to award an equitable allowance to a trustee who has obtained an unauthorised profit; the power for trustees to make ex gratia payments out of the funds of the charity; the transfer of assets and liabilities on incorporation and merger, and gifts made by will to charities that have merged; the availability of property held on charitable trust in the insolvency of a trustee; the power of the Charity Commission to require a charity to change its name, and to refuse to register a charity unless it changes its name; the power for the Charity Commission to determine the identity of the trustees of a charity; and certain powers of the Charity Tribunal. They consider all of these issues in the consultation paper. They also examine the law relating to the use of permanent endowment, and consider whether there are other approaches that would allow permanent endowment to be used more flexibly. In some instances they have come to the view that the law should be reformed and they make provisional proposals to that effect; in others they ask consultees whether there is a need for reform and, if so, how that might be achieved. They also ask consultees to share their experiences of the application of the law in practice. They have been mindful throughout of the need for a proportionate system of legal regulation for charities – a system that provides trustees with flexibility and freedom when carrying out the purposes of the charity without exposing the charity’s assets, its beneficiaries and its trustees to undue levels of risk.

To respond to the consultation, please download the consultation paper from the link below. They also provide a summary of the consultation paper and an optional response form.

http://lawcommission.justice.gov.uk/consultations/charity-law-technical.htm This consultation relates to the Law Commission’s Charity Law - selected issues project: http://lawcommission.justice.gov.uk/areas/charity-law.htm

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PUBLICATIONS & RESOURCES BRADFORD OBSERVATORY: MAPS STATS FACTS

Bradford Observatory is your 'one-stop-shop' for data and information about Bradford District. This new service is for anyone looking to find out more about local areas and communities - so whether you're a professional or just curious, your information needs are just a few clicks away!

ACTS OF COMMISSION CHARITY REPORTING & ACCOUNTING

Hot on the heels of the Charity Commission’s findings that less than a third of charities report acceptably on public benefit and less than two thirds produce acceptable accounts (based on a sampled study for the last two years), their new official guidance CHARITY REPORTING AND ACCOUNTING: THE ESSENTIALS (CC15c) has just been published. This explains in detail what trustees need to do when preparing trustees’ annual reports, accounts and annual returns for accounting periods ending on or after 31 March 2015.

The latest Census 2011 ward level results are available from the site via the Statistics and Profiles sections.

CIVIL SOCIETY news article – short link

http://goo.gl/M5xdS3 Official guidance: www.gov.uk/government/publications/charityreporting-and-accounting-the-essentials-march2015-cc15c

http://observatory.bradford.gov.uk/

BRADFORD REVIEW

Check out this first issue of the new, free-to-pickup, monthly magazine covering business, leisure, culture and events in Bradford city centre. Contents include: The Growth Zone Project; The Beehive Poets; Bradford International Film Summit; Bradford's Twitter Community; (p)reviews, events, exhibitions and lots more besides... http://issuu.com/festivalpublications/docs/bradfo rd_review_march_issuu

TRUSTEES: YOU DON’T KNOW WHAT YOU’RE DOING!

According to the Charity Commission's head of policy and communications, Sarah Atkinson, many charity trustees "don't understand their basic duties". And according to some of the biggest critics of the Commission from within the charity world, it is more likely to regulate than guide you if Atkinson’s hat fits. Interesting article on the shifting relationship between regulator and regulated at www.civilsociety.co.uk/governance/news/content /19033/many_trustees_dont_understand_their_ba sic_duties_commission_policy_head_says

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BSL HANDS

CRIME REDUCTION – WHAT WORKS?

BSL HANDS delivers basic British Sign Language sessions for schools and organisations providing holiday clubs and out of school activities to young people. Aftab Hussain explains:

An online tool that gives easy access to the evidence of what does and doesn't work in reducing crime has just been launched. Over 300 reviews have been identified and around 60 different crime reduction interventions will be added, over time, to the WHAT WORKS CENTRE FOR CRIME REDUCTION TOOLKIT, hosted by the College of Policing. It includes some communitybased solutions that local groups may be involved in or interested in. http://whatworks.college.police.uk/toolkit/Pages/ Toolkit.aspx

I provide to a range of people of all ages in a fun and interactive way. I can arrange one off sessions or a short course, covering topics to suit the group. Sign Language is an interesting and useful skill and can help people to gain confidence in communicating in many situations. It is especially useful for people who may be interested in working with children or in health and social care and can lead on to further qualifications. It is something new and different and can help with other skills such as team building and gaining new friends.

SEE ALSO: An interesting blog, examining the recent statistical reports from the Ministry of Justice and what they tell us. www.clinks.org/community/blog-posts/criminaljustice-system-what-do-statistics-tell-us WITH THANKS TO: NAVCA LINX | www.navca.org.uk

I am fully DBS-checked and I have been working in schools and holiday clubs for the past 16 years. I would love to hear from any clubs, groups or organisations who are interested in arranging Sign Language sessions for staff or children and would be happy to meet with you to discuss this further. The best way to contact me is by email at [email protected]. I am deaf and I would book an interpreter to come with me if you are interested in meeting with me to discuss further.

COLLABORATION

Two separate charity lawyers have come up with their top tips to consider when collaborating with other organisations.

CUTS, COUNCILS & COMMUNITIES

Directory of Social Change has a bit more to say, at www.dsc.org.uk/PolicyandResearch/News/Charity Law-Topfivetipsforconsideringcollaborations, from Bates Wells Braithwaite, charity law specialists.

A new research report from Joseph Rowntree Foundation is THE COST OF THE CUTS: THE IMPACT ON LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND POORER COMMUNITIES. It "provides the most up-to-date national picture of the scale, nature and distribution of the cuts to council budgets currently available" and uses four case study councils to assess the impact, including on the voluntary sector. Recommendations for the future include boosting the capacity of the voluntary and community sector. Summary or full report via www.jrf.org.uk/publications/cost-cuts-impactlocal-government-and-poorer-communities

WITH THANKS TO: www.voluntaryresource.org.uk

WITH THANKS TO: www.voluntaryresource.org.uk

From ACEVO, the charity chief executives body, there are 12 short tips at https://acevoblogs.wordpress.com/2015/02/20/ti ps-on-collaborations-for-charities, from one of their corporate partners.

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CUTS, CRUELEST CUTS, & CAMERON ON BRADFORD

DIY TOOLKIT VIDEO TUTORIALS

The DIY Toolkit is one of those great resources that you probably don’t use - yet. We ran a feature on it in the April 2014 issue (see, for brevity’s sake: http://goo.gl/CDF7M6). In a nutshell, it’s been especially designed for development practitioners to invent, adopt or adapt ideas that can deliver better results.

The head of Britain’s spending watchdog has accused Whitehall of failing to grasp the impact of deep public spending cuts, the FINANCIAL TIMES reports. Sir Amyas Morse, who leads the National Audit Office, suggested that officials were carrying out "radical surgery" without knowing "where the heart is". See short link: http://goo.gl/m40rTz

To explain how the toolkit is used in practice there is now a full set of video tutorials, one for each of the 30 tools.

Meanwhile, David Cameron insists that Bradford Council can cope with further cuts – see TELEGRAPH & ARGUS article http://www.thetelegraphandargus.co.uk/news/11 871476.David_Cameron__Bradford_Council_s_can _cope_with_further_cuts

You can access them via the DIY Toolkit YouTube Channel www.youtube.com/user/DIYToolkit or Vimeo https://vimeo.com/search?q=DIY+Toolkit

FRESH START FOR OFFENDERS

Bradford Council will be launching a new project working with offenders in the Bradford, Keighley and Shipley areas. The FRESH START project aims to support offenders to resettle in their communities, reduce the likelihood of reoffending and reduce reliance on public services. The project will also support the offenders to become more employable by developing their personal, social and employability skills and will work with employers to provide work experience and employment opportunities.

Third sector organisations have a key role to play in this work and are invited to attend a briefing session on 20 April at 2pm in Room 8A at Jacob’s Well, Bradford BD1 5RW to discuss how you may be involved. If you would like to attend, please let Project Manager, Alison Bunn know at [email protected]

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JUST ACT – NEW CDF WEBSITE

Just Act is the Community Development Foundation’s new website, providing practical information for anyone wanting to make a difference and improve their community.

HAPPY RELATIONS?

So if you are currently involved in a community project or just looking to get more active in your local area, Just Act is for you. Content has been sourced from a variety of organisations and community groups.

NPC has published a briefing paper from its recent seminar on how to ensure effective partnerships between charity trustees and senior management. It touches on roles and responsibilities, boundaries and expectations, communication and power, and provides two case studies drawing on these themes. Download HAPPY RELATIONS? ENSURING EFFECTIVE

The site focuses around 10 Steps www.justact.org.uk/the-10-steps, covering the key stages of running a project, such as involving others, finding funding and expanding.

PARTNERSHIPS BETWEEN TRUSTEES AND SENIOR MANAGEMENT

www.thinknpc.org/wpcontent/uploads/2015/02/Trustee-briefing-Happyrelations.pdf

The site is also home to the Just Act Forum www.justact.org.uk/the-just-act-forum – a place to share experiences, ask questions or offer tips to other people involved in their communities.


A new package of support called My Community aims to help communities to take over buildings and local services. It offers grants, advice and networking. My Community Network has been set up on the Just Act website as a place to chat to experts and connect with others who are involved in this work.

HIGH STREET ACTION

KICK START YOUR HIGH STREET: YOUR ACTION PACK is a

collection of short, simple guides and videos aimed at retailers and communities looking to kick start their local high streets and town centres. http://thegreatbritishhighstreet.co.uk/kickstart

Find out more at www.justact.org.uk

KINDLINESS IN COMMUNITIES

A new report has been published by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation looking at how informal helping, or the giving and receiving of acts of kindliness, works in the semi-rural West Yorkshire community of Hebden Bridge. It also explores how this can be fostered in other communities.

WITH THANKS TO: NAVCA LINX | www.navca.org.uk

HOW TO SET UP AN ART GROUP

GUARDIAN lifestyle article on setting up and running

an art group. The same principles would apply to almost any activity. BRIEFING BRADFORD TOP TIP: make sure the men are not running a session in the shed at the same time. www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2015/mar/16/ how-set-up-art-class-group-shed

LANDSCAPES OF HELPING: KINDLINESS IN NEIGHBOURHOODS AND COMMUNITIES

www.jrf.org.uk/publications/landscapes-helpingkindliness-neighbourhoods-and-communities

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LANGUAGE LESSONS ONLINE

Download (pdf, 2MB) via http://ejc.net/projects/Ongoing/making-themedia-work-for-you-a-guide-for-civil-societyorganisations.

Learn languages for free? Lessons in 48 languages at www.openculture.com/freelanguagelessons. Most of the resources listed are downloadable audio lessons that you can save to your computer or mp3 player, but some of the links are to video based material. Of course you can convert the ones on YouTube to mp3 as well, using many free online options, such as our favourite www.video2mp3.net.

WITH THANKS TO: Euclid Network via www.voluntarynews.org.uk

MORE ON MERGERS

The legal adviser who has worked with CollaborationNI for several years and supported a number of successful mergers applies his experience to explaining what is actually involved in a voluntary sector merger.

MEDIA GUIDE

The authors of MAKING THE MEDIA WORK FOR YOU keep the reality of our sector’s limited communication resources in mind, creating content which ranges from hyper-local strategies like initiating and maintaining relationships with local journalists, to organising social media fuelled national campaigns.

A useful introduction to an often daunting subject, TO MERGE OR NOT TO MERGE is on NICVA’s sub-site at http://collaborationni.nicva.org/article/merge-ornot-merge.

The guide provides practical advice, strategies and real-world experiences from campaigners, journalists, non-government groups and governmental entities.

CollaborationNI provides support to voluntary and community organisations in Northern Ireland on merger or other forms of collaboration. WITH THANKS TO: www.voluntarynews.org.uk

nfpSynergy top ten reports

With the think-tank nfpSynergy’s 100th free report on the way, here’s a snapshot of their top 10 most downloaded (in case you missed them). The New Alchemy - in-depth report on volunteering The Politics of Charities - do people think charities should lobby? Thanks for Everything - how do charities thank their donors? Global Digital Fundraising - fundraising opportunities in a digital world A Healthy Audience - does prevalence match charity size? A Trusted Role - how to create an effective trustee board Nine Campaign Tactics - strategies for charities before an election The Right Attitude - how to segment your audience and why A Short Briefing on Corporate Gift Aid - problems and solutions Searching for Answers - how transparent are our charities?

https://nfpsynergy.net/free-report/top-10-reports-2014 34


 ‘We’re under huge pressure to do more with less, and we don’t know how we’re going to do it.’  ‘It’s hard to stay objective when we’re faced with such emotionally charged decisions.’  ‘We know we’re doing a good job – but how can we prove it?’

OPEN SPACES

The Open Spaces Society has launched a campaign “to save England’s much-loved open spaces”, publishing a tool-kit for communities to protect their green spaces as well as calling on planning authorities to respond positively to requests to save local spaces.

The Operational Research Society is offering free support to third sector organisations to help reduce costs and improve utilisation of limited resources. www.theorsociety.com/Pages/Probono/Probono.a spx

The tool-kit consists of three handbooks:  How to win local green space through neighbourhood plans  Community assets and protecting open space  Local green space designation. All three are available in pdf (under 100KB each) via www.oss.org.uk/what-we-do/local-green-spacedesignation (or see news item www.oss.org.uk/new-tool-kit-to-save-openspaces). WITH THANKS TO: www.voluntarynews.org.uk

HOW CAN O.R. HELP YOU?

ORGANISATIONAL CULTURE TOOLKIT

Operational Research (O.R.) is about finding ways to apply analytical methods to make better decisions. Third sector organisations face extremely complex decisions about the direction they should take and how to allocate scarce resources.

CULTURE FOR CARE: YOUR TOOLKIT, created by Skills for

Care, is of potential interest for any organisation or workplace seeking to understand, identify and develop its ‘culture’. It has a mix of resources suited to study, training and implementation, and includes materials that could be used by groups/teams themselves, or by trainers, consultants or development/support workers. The main selfassessment tool uses an ‘outcome star’ which links back to the modular toolkit. www.skillsforcare.org.uk/Skills/Culture/Yourtoolkit/Your-toolkit.aspx

These are some of the issues that pro bono Operational Researchers can bring their skills and experience to bear on:  ‘We have lots of different options for the future but it’s impossible to decide which to choose in such uncertain times.’

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RESEARCHERS – CALL FOR PAPERS

provides an update on government programmes to develop its reach and impact.

The call for papers for the 2015 Voluntary Sector and Volunteering Research Conference has been issued. This year’s conference is in Leeds from 8-9 September. A background article encouraging first time submissions is at http://blogs.ncvo.org.uk/2015/03/23/researchconference-2015-why-we-want-to-hear-from-you/.

It sets out how social action:  empowers local groups, enabling local solutions and building resilient communities  increases the resources available to achieve social goals  offers new sources of expertise and knowledge  enables broader and better targeted support  creates new models for how society can respond to challenges  helps reduce demands on public services.

Proposals are particularly invited on civil society and democracy, grassroots voluntary activity in challenging times, education and training in and on the voluntary sector, volunteering and participation in times of change, and several other headings. See www.ncvo.org.uk/training-and-events/researchconference/guidelines-for-submitting-a-proposal.

www.gov.uk/government/publications/socialaction-harnessing-the-potential

A call for papers for the separate, but concurrent, New Researchers’ Sessions, is at www.vssn.org.uk/2015/03/20/call-for-papersnew-researchers-sessions/. Deadline for submitting proposals for both events is 8 May. Another opportunity for researchers is an e-journal that the Social Research Association is launching in 2015, SOCIAL RESEARCH PRACTICE. Articles are welcomed from anyone working in social research or social policy, whether as a producer or a user of research. See http://the-sra.org.uk/sra_resources/journalsocial-research-practice/. (SOURCE: @IVRtweets)

SOCIAL VALUE TOOLKIT SOCIAL VALUE AND COMMISSIONING TOOLKIT – A GUIDE


FOR CHARITIES ON SOCIAL VALUE AND COMMISSIONING,

SOCIAL ACTION DISCUSSION PAPER

produced by NCVO for the Children’s Partnership 2015. http://thechildrenspartnershipknowledge.org.uk/media/1089/social-value-andcommissioning-toolkit-final-with-ncb-logos.pdf

This Cabinet Office discussion paper SOCIAL ACTION: HARNESSING THE POTENTIAL explains what social action is and how it plays an important role in helping to respond to long-standing challenges. The paper also

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THE COMMISSION SPEAKS :

FUNDING OF NON-CHARITABLE ORGANISATIONS The Charity Commission is reminding charities to exercise greater vigilance when considering funding non-charitable bodies, to ensure that funds are used only for charitable activities which further the purposes of their charity and do not expose it to reputational risks or other risks that impact on public trust and confidence in charity.

What is inappropriate funding? Funding other charities or non-charitable organisations can be an effective way to further a charity’s purposes. But charities must only fund activities that further their charitable purposes and trustees must ensure they take steps to protect their charity’s assets and reputation. Failure by trustees to ensure their use of funds is aligned with their charity’s purposes would give rise to regulatory concerns and prompt the commission to get involved.

   

The following scenarios would raise serious regulatory concerns:



 a charity funds activities that are either not charitable or not capable of furthering the charity’s specific purposes.  trustees do not undertake appropriate due diligence or adequately ring fence grants in the hands of recipients or have not taken adequate steps to protect the charity’s position and ensure proper use of the charity’s funds.  trustees risk their charity’s reputation by making grants without fulfilling their legal duties.  trustees fail to take adequate steps to monitor the use of funding their charity has provided.



including by acting in good faith, informing themselves adequately, taking account of all relevant factors and disregarding irrelevant ones, seeking professional advice where relevant and ensuring any decision is within the range of decisions a reasonable trustee body may make. assess whether the grant would pose reputational risks for the charity. compare their charity’s objects with those of the proposed recipient. carry out appropriate due diligence checks on the proposed recipient. set proportionate terms and conditions that restrict what the funds can be spent on. take reasonable and appropriate steps to monitor how their charity’s funds are used. seek repayment if funds are not spent in accordance with the charity’s terms and conditions.

Wider issues for trustees to be aware of Some charitable purposes such as community development and the promotion of human rights are difficult to interpret. While both these purposes can be charitable, not all activities that fall under these headlines are capable of being charitable. This means that trustees considering funding organisations to pursue community development or to promote human rights must take particular care to assure themselves that the grant will be used only to fund activities that further their charity’s purposes.

Trustees’ legal duties and responsibilities Trustees must be clear about what their charity hopes to achieve and if a funding decision may help achieve that aim. The Commission expects trustees to:

Some activities, such as political campaigning, are only permissible within certain boundaries. Charities must follow Commission guidance on campaigning and political activity (CC9) http://goo.gl/CSdw0n.

 follow Commission’s guidance on decision making www.gov.uk/government/publications/its-yourdecision-charity-trustees-and-decision-making,

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VOLUNTEERING

volunteer their time later on in life (or say they are, at least), according to a new report – although they may be LESS likely to donate money! Just a couple of the findings in:

EMPLOYEE VOLUNTEERING

Personnel professionals body CIPD has published a guide to employee volunteering, looking at the current state of play, benefits and barriers. It argues that it is in an organisation’s own interest to play a more active role in promoting volunteering to employees and supporting them in that role.

EVALUATING YOUTH SOCIAL ACTION, AN INTERIM REPORT:

Does participating in social action boost the skills young people need to succeed in adult life? www.behaviouralinsights.co.uk/sites/default/files /Evaluating%20Youth%20Social%20Action_An%20I nterim%20Report.pdf

FROM BIG SOCIETY TO THE BIG ORGANISATION? THE ROLE OF

SOUTH SQUARE CENTRE seeks a

ORGANISATIONS IN SUPPORTING EMPLOYEE VOLUNTEERING can

Volunteer Programme Manager.

be downloaded via www.cipd.co.uk/publicpolicy/policy-reports/bigsociety-organisation.aspx.

For more details, see: www.southsquarecentre.co.uk/index.php?/news/ vacancy--volunteer-programme-manager

VOLUNTEER INTERNSHIPS: NEW BEST PRACTICE GUIDE FOR CHARITIES

They can benefit volunteers and charities - but there’s a fine line between opportunity and exploitation. There’s some useful bloggery from NCVO’s Justin Davis Smith at http://blogs.ncvo.org.uk/2015/03/04/making-thecase-for-volunteer-internships and the guidance itself VOLUNTEER INTERNSHIPS IN THE VOLUNTARY SECTOR REVIEW AND GUIDANCE is at http://knowhownonprofit.org/people/volunteersand-your-organisation/volunteeringinternships#guidance.

THE NEW “NEW ALCHEMY” REPORT

nfpSynergy has spent the last six months updating its most downloaded report on volunteering. The new report draws on research carried out with over 500 volunteer managers, including 20 in-depth interviews. It is divided into seven parts: The political and social landscape for volunteering Volunteering trends over the last decade Harnessing volunteer motivations The changing mechanics of volunteering Engaging the young, the old and the family to volunteer How do we manage the 21st Century Volunteer? Conclusions and recommendations.

VOLUNTEERING RESEARCH

The final reports from a three-year research project by IVR looking at volunteering across England during the downturn have been published. This drew on more than 140 interviews with volunteers, organisations that work with volunteers and local authorities. www.ivr.org.uk/ivr-news/188-volunteering-in-thedownturn-research-report-launched

You can view/download from the Briefing Bradford online elibrary at http://bit.ly/new-alchemy-2015

SCHOOL-AGE VOLUNTEERING

School-aged children who take part in some form of social action are significantly more likely to

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WELCOME TO THE RETURN

The updated online return which collects information from charities is now live on GOV.UK and ready for charities to use. The annual return is an essential service for collecting data to update the register of charities, and helps the Charity Commission to hold charities to account on behalf of the public. All registered charities with an income of more than £10,000 and all Charitable Incorporated Organisations (CIOs) who are reporting on their financial years ending in 2015 must complete the online form. Sections of the data then populate the Commission’s register of charities. The online public register was viewed more than 6 million times last year and is a key source of data about charities in England and Wales. The form includes new questions which charities must answer that will strengthen the regulator’s ability to identify risk, and will ensure people have access to the information they need to make confident decisions about charities. Charities must now answer three new questions when they go online to complete the annual return:   

In the reporting period, how much income did you receive from (a) contracts from central or local government to deliver services? and/or (b) grants from central or local government? Does your charity have a policy on paying its staff? Has your charity reviewed its financial controls during the reporting period?

Charities, their trustees and advisers are encouraged to read the online guidance provided before logging on to complete the annual return so that they know what information they need to submit. Charities have ten months from their financial year end to complete the annual return. Sarah Atkinson, Director of Policy and Communications at the Charity Commission said: “Charities will recognise that the public’s appetite for information about where their money comes from, and how they use it, is growing. It is therefore vital for charities to provide the regulator with up to date information. Completing the annual return is about meeting both your legal responsibilities and the expectations of the public - there’s no excuse. As well as improving transparency, I hope the new questions will also promote good governance by prompting trustees to consider carefully their charity’s financial controls and the basis for setting staff pay.”

The Commission is reminding charities that it is getting tougher on those that fail to file annual returns and accounts on time. The Commission has just updated its class inquiry into charities who have failed to file their annual returns and accounts on time more than once. There are currently 26 charities under investigation. SOURCE: THE CHARITY COMMISSION 04 MARCH 15 | www.gov.uk/government/news/annual-return-2015-released

NOT FILED YOUR RETURN YET (OR NOT SURE)?

www.gov.uk/send-charity-annual-return

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WHAT’S ON BRADFORD LITERATURE FESTIVAL

BRADFORD'S literary and cultural heritage, past and present, will be celebrated in 150 events across the city this spring. The first BRADFORD LITERATURE FESTIVAL, from May 15-24, features a range of events - including digital storyboarding, a Brontë-themed afternoon tea, Indian poetry and Jewish storytelling.

TRUSTEE EXCHANGE

21 April 2015 | London Find solutions to shared charity governance issues at this 8th annual one-day conference for chairs, chief executives and trustees. Trustee Exchange “is produced by trustees, for the benefit of trustees”. www.civilsociety.co.uk/events/conferences/conte nt/18393/trustee_exchange_2015

The ten-day festival is aimed at boosting literacy levels among children and adults, promoting cultural diversity, health and wellbeing, and encouraging people into the city centre. Festival organisers Syima Aslam and Irna Qureshi plan to make it an annual event. Tickets are now on sale. For more information visit www.bradfordliteraturefestival.co.uk, facebook.com/bradfordlitfest or Twitter @bradfordlitfest

DIVERSITY EVENTS AT UoB

The University of Bradford, Centre for Inclusion and Diversity is running a free online taster session for the Diversity Management programme on Thursday 21 April 2015, from 12 noon to 1:00 pm, designed to give participants a flavour of its online Diversity Management programmes. Visit short link http://goo.gl/ZWiCs8 for bookings (future sessions will also be listed here). The session will be conducted online by one of the programme lecturers and will last about an hour and include a brief introduction of the programmes and presentation of material from one of the programmes. You can ask questions you may have about the course content, delivery, and format.

BRADFORD PLAYHOUSE IS BACK

It's an exciting time at The Playhouse; not only are they launching their fab spring season, they also won a competition a few months ago to have a promotional video made all about the Playhouse. After months of hard work by Molineaux Productions, you can now watch it here: https://youtu.be/x7sm1Htag6I.

Minimum technology requirements for these sessions include a PC with speakers (headset preferred) and the latest version of Java installed (download https://java.com/en/download/index.jsp).

To find out more about the Playhouse, visit: http://www.bradfordplayhouse.org.uk/

Contact: Caprice Lantz [email protected].

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If you’re interested in studying for the PgCert/PgDip/MSc in Diversity Management, you can find out more (and register now for May 2015) at www.brad.ac.uk/health/career-areas/diversitymanagement.

SEE ALSO: MAKING DIVERSITY INTERVENTIONS COUNT 5th Annual International Conference Tuesday 16 June 2015 at University of Bradford

MIND THE GAP ACADEMY

Mind the Gap's Academy runs a range of training courses for adults with a learning disability, who want to learn about theatre and different types of performance. Applications are now open until Friday 24 April for its full time Making Theatre course, and the one day Acting and Dance courses.

Conference themes:     

Innovation and Creativity Diversity Management in the Workplace Practicing Diversity Inclusive Leadership Identity, Belonging and Intersectionalities.

To find out more and apply, visit the Academy Courses page at www.mind-thegap.org.uk/academy/academy_courses or call 01274 487390 for an application pack.

More at: www.brad.ac.uk/health/mdicac-2015

Anti-Racist Concert – call for volunteers

With the growth of setting people against each other all over Europe, sharing our different cultures can help bring us together - which is why I'm organising an anti-racist concert in Bradford towards the end of April, probably on a Tuesday or Wednesday evening. If you're free on April 14, 15, 21, 22, 28 or 29, and can assist us in any way, please let me know. I'm extending this invitation to some people well out of Bradford, because even if you can't be with us perhaps you could send us CDs or DVDs for the raffle. We want to make this a truly multi-cultural event, so if you know any performers from any ethnicities, please encourage them to come or get in touch. Some poetry, even a dramatic sketch or two, would also go down well, I'm sure. So if you're free on any of the dates mentioned, and are willing to take part or assist in any other way (e.g. taking money at the door, selling raffle tickets, MC-ing) please let me know. When I've got the measure of which date suits most people best, I'll make it firm. Until then, it's entirely open-ended. PLEASE SPREAD THE WORD. As my latest song says, THE SONG IS MIGHTIER THAN THE SWORD: https://youtu.be/OAWRY1AeanY KARL DALLAS WRITER OF SONGS AND POEMS, TELLER OF TALES | EMAIL: [email protected] | MOBILE: 07880 770721 | TEL: 01274 687221

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CASH INCENTIVE TO TRAIN YOUR STAFF

Central YMCA has been successful in securing European Social Funding to offer limited free training to ‘upskill’ workforces. This is a great opportunity to benefit from national accredited English and Maths qualifications to employees and volunteers in Yorkshire & the Humber. There is also a generous cash incentive to the employer of £800 per qualifying trainee (up to a maximum of £2400). For more details, call 01952 797468 or email [email protected]. See: www.ttc-uk.com/Corporate-Partnerships

FREE TRAINING for THIRD SECTOR SME'S

Forster Community College is offering bespoke training to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to help them improve the skills of their workforce. Funded by the European Social Fund (ESF) this training is unique in that it addresses emerging training needs not eligible for traditional Skills Funding Agency support and allows the recipients to shape the training on offer. Training modules might include fundraising, understanding local strategies and opportunities, social media, community organising, safeguarding, the roles and responsibilities of trustees, trading at local events, and building partnerships. This is an opportunity for local groups to help shape future training – modules can be developed specifically to suit an organisation’s needs. For more information, contact Alistair Griffin, t: 01274 308 707 or e: [email protected]. www.forster.ac.uk/employers/response.html

TRUSTEE TRAINING SEMINAR

30 APRIL 2015, from 09:45 to 12:15 | DWF, Bridgewater Place, LEEDS LS11 5DY

This FREE seminar offers a comprehensive induction for new trustees as well as a useful refresher for existing trustees, ensuring they are fully aware of their legal and financial responsibilities as trustees. Charities are required to report on their efforts to ensure that all trustees are trained and inducted to fulfil their role. This trustee training seminar offers a comprehensive induction for new trustees as well as a useful refresher for existing trustees, ensuring they are fully aware of their legal and financial responsibilities as trustees. The speakers are Jane Marshall, Head of Charities at BHP Chartered Accountants, who will present on the financial duties and responsibilities of charity trustees and Catherine Rustomji, Head of Charities & Social Enterprise at DWF LLP, who will cover the legal duties and responsibilities. Informative and practical, this seminar will also provide an opportunity for you to network with other trustees and share information with other organisations in order to develop new perspectives and insights into the running of your organisation. HOW TO BOOK: Places will be allocated on a first come, first served basis; to reserve your place, please email [email protected] or call 0114 266 7171.

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WEST YORKSHIRE SEXUAL VIOLENCE ACTION PARTNERSHIP Launch Event 9 April 2015, 17:30-19:30 | Film & Speaker Discussion Series 16/23/30 April

VIEW DOCUMENTS FULL SIZE

(NO SQUINTING)

http://bit.ly/apr15bb-docs

BECK SONG

Not the Grammy-winning Scientologist – this is a song about Bradford Beck by Eddie Lawlor! www.undercity.org/bradford_beck_song. Almost as good as the legendary Born in the BRI: http://bit.ly/born-bri.

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ZISCELLANEOUS PICKLES ATTACKS CHARITY INDEPENDENCE

NAVCA (the national organisation for CVSs and the like) was one of a number of charities who spoke out against our old adversary Eric Pickles’ call for charities that criticise Government to lose grants. Possibly the most powerful response was from Simon Stevens, the Chief Executive of NHS England, who said that voluntary organisations are the "eyes and ears and advocates for change". He said that the state should never trade away the sector's campaigning role in exchange for ‘participation’. www.civilsociety.co.uk/governance/news/content /19185/political_parties_and_charity_bodies_cond emn_eric_pickles_comments SEE ALSO: The official press release, with quotes and link to the full statement to Parliament, is at www.gov.uk/government/news/eric-picklescracks-down-wasteful-spending-of-governmentlobbying-government

VIEW in full at: http://bit.ly/apr15bb-docs

NCVO’s Director of Public Policy gives some excellent background to the problem with the Pickles approach in GRANTS, LOBBYING AND VOLUNTARY ORGANISATIONS. It includes the following: It’s not without irony that the Pickles story broke more or less at the same time that NHS England has published its model grant agreement, together with its BITE SIZED GUIDE TO GRANTS. One of the core principles of the guidance is that grants help government to hear from people who traditionally it finds it difficult to deliver services to.

BBC Radio Leeds is holding three special election debates across West Yorkshire and they’d like YOU to be part of the audience.

http://blogs.ncvo.org.uk/2015/03/03/grantslobbying-voluntary-orgs

If YOU have questions, opinions or views that you would like to discuss directly with the parliamentary candidates in our area, call 0345 303 33 33 or email [email protected] to apply for free tickets.

14 April | Morley Town Hall: talking about the economy st 21 April | Bradford College: talking about 1 time voters 28 April | Dean Clough, Halifax: talking about the NHS.

WITH THANKS TO: NAVCA LINX | www.navca.org.uk and VoluntaryResource www.voluntarynews.org.uk

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Wanted: RETAIL DEVELOPMENT WORKER Provisionally 18 hours/week at £18,200 p.a. pro rata (based on 35hrs/week) - initially on 6 month contract. Do you have the drive to develop new ventures and a proven track record of generating income? The award winning HALE project is looking for a Retail Development Worker to join our team in Shipley. This is an exciting new opportunity where the successful candidate will help HALE identify new ways in which to raise funds through retail, to help us continue delivering our vital work improving health and wellbeing for local people. For more information, visit: www.haleproject.org.uk or call 01274 271 088. Apply by 5pm Monday 13 April. Interviews on Thursday 16 April. Please note that if you do not hear from HALE by Wednesday 15 April you have not been shortlisted for interview.

BRADFORD COUNCIL JOBS: see http://bit.ly/council-jobs for details of the Council’s new system.

HOLME CHRISTIAN COMMUNITY

*PLAYCENTRE VACANCY* DEPUTY MANAGER DESIGNATE NVQ Level 5 or equivalent

NHS JOBS: www.jobs.nhs.uk

Closing date for applications: 14 April 2015 th Interviews commencing 20 April 2015

JOBSINBRADFORD: http://twitter.com/Jobsin_Bradford

This is an exciting new opportunity for a suitably motivated NVQ level 5 graduate or equivalent with a minimum of three years’ experience in a nursery setting.

SPECIALIST RECRUITMENT AGENCIES & VCS JOB SITES: www.volresource.org.uk/jobs/index.htm

The work will involve promoting the setting, quality provision and team leading. Suitable for an enthusiastic, personable and innovative individual with a love for children and a passion for seeing them thrive.

CHARITY JOBS: www.charityjob.co.uk/jobs/?location=Yorkshire www.val.org.uk/jobs.php http://divabradford.org.uk/vacancies/ www.networkleeds.com/ www.involveyorkshirehumber.org.uk/jobs/jobs/ http://www.glassdoor.co.uk/ http://jobs.theguardian.com/jobs/charities/

For an information pack, write to: Holme Christian Community, Madison Avenue, Bradford, BD4 0JE, tel. 01274 689306 | email [email protected]

th

Currently the nursery opens term time only for 38 weeks a year; this will change subject to demand so flexible working is an advantage. Staff will be paid equal monthly amounts across the year subject to meeting contracted commitments.

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PROGRAMME DIRECTOR Better Start Bradford | £60,000 pa

CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER £ 50,000 pa

Bradford Trident is the lead partner in the Better Start Bradford Partnership, set up to improve outcomes for children aged 0-3 years across 3 wards in East Bradford for the next 10 years. We have been awarded £49m to deliver programmes in 3 key development areas:

Bradford Trident is one of the most successful Neighbourhood Management organisations in the Region. We are a community owned and run regeneration company, development trust and charity working with partners to transform the Park Lane, Marshfields and West Bowling areas of Bradford.

• • •

Social and emotional Language and Communications Health and Nutrition.

From 2000 to 2010 we were one of the leading New Deal for Communities partnerships, winning many awards. In the last few years we have been a national pilot for Community Budgets, have Asset transferred a community sports centre, and we are the lead organisation for Better Start, a Lottery funded project to transform the lives of young children in 3 inner city wards in Bradford.

The Programme Director will lead system change within a multi sector environment, play a key strategic leadership role within the Better Start area and provide dynamic leadership to the programme.

We have a substantial property portfolio valued at £10m which is the basis of our long term sustainability.

You will have at least 3 years’ strategic management experience at a senior level, experience of managing complex multi-agency teams and have the credibility to influence partner organisations at the highest level to work together on high level system change.

We require an exceptional candidate with a strong record of achievements, including at least 5 years’ experience of organisational change, leadership and programme management.

The Partnership is community led and you will have practical experience of involving local communities in decision-making processes. This is a major opportunity to lead a cutting edge programme which will deliver better outcomes for children over a ten year period.

Applicants should have a strong commitment to neighbourhood management and community leadership, be a creative and effective leader, a strong motivator of people and have a track record of building professional relationships and networks at all levels.

Applications are welcomed from all sections of the community.

Applications are welcomed from all sections of the community.

Closing date for applications: 17 April 2015 Interviews week commencing: 27 April 2015

Closing date for applications: 1 May 2015 Interviews week commencing: 11 May 2015 For application forms and further details, please contact: Rachel Deeks, Candelisa People, 01274 727617 Or email [email protected]

For application forms and further details, please contact: Rachel Deeks, Candelisa People, 01274 727617 Or email [email protected]

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Briefing BRADFORD Is published by Bradford Community & Voluntary Service (Charity no: 1090036. Company limited by guarantee: 4283003. Registered Address: 19-25 Sunbridge Road, Bradford BD1 2AY. T: 01274 722772), on behalf of the CVSs in Bradford district (Bradford CVS, Keighley & Ilkley Voluntary & Community Action, Shipley & Bingley Voluntary Services), and in partnership with BDIP member groups.

Current & back issues of Briefing BRADFORD: http://bit.ly/bb-archive Subscribe to the all-digital Briefing BRADFORD: [email protected]

Is available online at www.bradfordcvs.org.uk in pdf format. To subscribe to our notification list so you are kept informed as soon as each issue is published, email [email protected]. Is currently published 8 times each year (every six weeks approx.). Articles do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Bradford CVS staff or Board(s). Inclusion of an article or advert does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation.

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EDITOR’S NOTE: BRIEFING BRADFORD 2015 – UNCERTAIN NEW YEAR  It would seem like tempting fate to talk about the future of Briefing Bradford when, in common with much of the voluntary and community sector in the District, we face the challenge of a 25% cut and trying to do more with less in the new financial year 2015-16. With the new Bradford CVS website up in ‘beta’ form now, the job – if it still exists in April 2015 - of editing the newsletter looks set to transition to ‘content’ curation, management and dissemination. We expect the Briefing Bradford ‘brand’ to continue, but how it meets the Bradford CVS aims of promoting, developing and supporting the voluntary sector in Bradford will undoubtedly change. If you have any thoughts on this - if there are things you value about the service we provide just as much as if there are things you think we should be doing but are not – please get in touch at [email protected]. THANKS TO ALL OUR READERS! We wish you all the best for the year ahead. Keep sending the content & feedback, keep sharing with colleagues & networks. PEACE, LOVE & SOLIDARITY!