Lincolnshire’s third sector (voluntary & community organisations, charities, social enterprises, co-operatives and mutuals) has a total direct economic impact of £410 million.
This estimate of economic impact means that the value of the Third Sector in Lincolnshire is greater than the Hotels and Restaurants sector, and approximately 27% the size of the wholesale and retail sector.
This and additional key information is available in the recently published report -The Economic Significance of the Third Sector in Lincolnshire. The full report and an Executive Summary are available on Lincolnshire County Council’s website – http://www.lincolnshire.gov.uk/healthycommunities but for further information please contact Bev Finnegan, Healthy Communities, Lincolnshire County Council on 01522 550516.

The Equality Act brings together nine  separate pieces of legislation into one single Act simplifying the law and strengthening it in important ways to help tackle discrimination and inequality. Implementation of majority of the Equality Act will begin on 1 October 2010.

 

Equality Act 2010: What do I need to know? is a series of summary guides and "Quick Start" guides to the key changes in the law, produced by the Government Equalities Office in partnership with the British Chambers of Commerce, Citizens Advice and the Equality and Diversity Forum, to support implementation of the Act.

 

These simple guides set out clearly what the new laws will mean for business, the public sector, the voluntary sector and the public, helping people understand their new responsibilities and rights.

 

The voluntary sector guide can be found here.

Chief executives body will provide advice on how to minimise the impact of spending cuts Sector chief executives body Acevo has launched a website designed to monitor public sector cuts to third sector organisations.
Cuts Watch provides information about cuts and sets out action that voluntary sector leaders can take as funders’ budgets are reduced. The website also has information on how organisations can negotiate with funders, challenge poor funding decisions and demonstrate their impact.

An Acevo spokeswoman said third sector leaders were increasingly worried about how the cuts in public spending would affect them and the people they supported. The spokeswoman said that the site would be providing particular information about mergers and collaboration.

There would also be a section where members could share examples of how they had demonstrated to the government ways of reforming services rather than making straightforward cuts.

NCVO is offering free Governance Healthchecks for infrastructure organisations. This service is funded as part of the Leadership and Governance National Support Service, which means that you have the opportunity to access a service which would normally cost in the region of £2,000.

This scheme is open to infrastructure organisations based in England only. To qualify your organisation must:

• Be an infrastructure organisation. For the purpose of this scheme this is defined as 'an organisation whose principal purpose is to play a supporting, co-ordinating or development role for frontline third sector organisations'. Examples include Council for Voluntary Services (CVS), Volunteer Centres, or specialists sub-sector organisations such as Arts, BME, Equalities, Sports etc.
• Be willing to devote sufficient time and resources to the process. The detail and extent of the commitment will be discussed with you if your application is successful.
  Where demand for the Governance Healthchecks is high, we will prioritise the award to small infrastructure organisations and to those from subsectors such as equalities, BME, Sports, Youth, Religion, Arts and Social Enterprise and others. However, all organisations who meet the criteria are encouraged to apply. Feedback is not provided to unsuccessful applicants.

Once you have received confirmation full details of the process will be explained to your organisation. NCVO will review your organisation's governance against the key principles of Good Governance: a Code for the Voluntary and Community Sector. As part of the Governance Healthcheck we will facilitate a half day workshop for your board and work with you to identify the strengths and weaknesses in your governance. At the facilitated workshop, you will also create an action plan outlining the next steps for improvement.

It is easy to apply for a free Governance Healthcheck. Simply fill in the application form and send to governanceandleadership@ncvo-vol.org.uk. Applications will then be assessed. Applicants are notified within one calendar month wheere their application has been successsful.
The closing date for the next round of Governance Healthchecks for infrastructure organisations is 20th May 2010.

2010 sees the first Lincolnshire Volunteer Managers of the Year Awards and we are asking you, the public to nominate your volunteer manager of the year!

The awards are being held to recognise those who, in a voluntary capacity make outstanding contributions to their local communities through recruiting, developing, managing, training and supporting volunteers.

The Awards will be presented by the High Sheriff of Lincolnshire at the Volunteer Management conference being held on 3^rd June at The Golf Hotel, Woodhall Spa as part of National Volunteers Week (1^st - 7^th June).

Everyone is being encouraged to nominate someone in their local area who deserves special recognition for their work supporting and developing volunteers. There are eight categories including: Community Safety, Caring for Older People, Social Care, Children and Young People, Environment and Heritage, Community Activism, Sports, Recreation and leisure and Animal Welfare.

Paddy Perry, Volunteer Management Programme Worker said: "Many people don't see themselves as volunteer managers, but that is the job they do. These people are the backbone of the Voluntary and Community Sector. We are looking for anyone within Lincolnshire who, through supporting other volunteers makes an outstanding contribution to the local community. These Awards are an excellent opportunity to celebrate individual volunteer manager's achievements.”

Download a nomination form here!

Alternatively contact Paddy Perry on

Tel: 01476 563285

All nomination forms must be returned by Monday 24^th May 2010.

NAVCA has published 'Strong Independent Roots 3: Supporting Local Voluntary Action'. This is the third in a series of detailed policy documents that expand on the original campaigning document.

For more information, please visit www.navca.org.uk/roots

Do you manage a group of volunteers in your community? Are you thinking of setting up a voluntary group?

There maybe a number of things that you are unsure about and need some guidance on. South Lincolnshire Community and Voluntary Service can help you find out about what you need to know, what you need to do and how you may be able to make your activity a success.

For the next year or so, you'll have access to a dedicated support officer who will help you with information and advice on volunteer management as well as being able to tell you about a whole range of other support services available to you. The great thing about this is all it will cost you is your time.

South Lincolnshire CVS has teamed up with Voluntary Action East Lindsey and Urban challenge to deliver the Volunteer Management Programme across the whole of Lincolnshire. This is funded by Capacity Builders, a funding stream from the Office of the Third Sector. The main focus of this initiative is to make sure that voluntary and community groups in rural communities get the help and support they deserve.

Paddy Perry, Volunteering Support Officer for South Lincolnshire Community and Voluntary Service said:

‘If people living in these communities are prepared to give time and commitment to making their communities better, it is important that as much help as is possible is given to them'.

Involving Lincs members are encouraged to come along to a special event which will look at how the Lincolnshire Voluntary Sector Consortium can better work together. The event, which takes place on Wednesday 24th February, at the Len Medlock Voluntary Centre, Boston, will take place between 10am and 3.30pm. The day will be split into two sessions and you are welcome to invite all relevant people from your organisation to attend, including board members.

The morning session will involve a review of Involving Lincs itself, with a view to setting key targets and objectives for the coming year. We want to know what IL has helped your organisation to achieve and if you feel it hasn’t been of any help, what you think its focus should be in the coming year.

Don’t forget that Involving Lincs is here to: Provide the opportunity for joint delivery of services · Provide a forum for sharing information · Create a stronger third sector voice · Act as a rout for third sector involvement in strategy · Record the success of members and wider partnerships · So come along and lets look at how we have done and what we can do better.
The afternoon session is all about Organisational Needs Analysis and how these will build up into a countywide infrastructure training plan. Emma Strafford from Learning Lincs will lead this session that aims to help us all approach ONAs and TNAs from the same direction. We will go through the processes involved and Emma will arrange to vist your organisations individually at a later date to help draw the information together. This process also has strong links to the NAVCA SKilD programme and its main aim is to support the training needs of our delivery staff.

This is an important opportunity to undertake a piece of collaborative work that will have direct benefits to us all, so please attend and also invite the person responsible for organising staff training within your organisation. If you are able to attend this event, please let Katy Roberts, of South Lincolnshire CV, know by emailing katy.r@southlincscvs.org.uk or telephoning (01205) 315925. There will be refreshments and a buffet lunch available on the day. Please also notify Katy if you have any dietary requirements.

Would you like to find out more about Equality and Diversity legislation? A special Involving Lincs training event focusing on this subject will be held on Friday 12th March at the Admiral Rodney Hotel, North Street, Horncastle, from 10am until 4pm (Registration from 9.30am).

As well as receiving a legislation update, the workshop will also look at Developing Policy and Strategy and Equality Impact Assessments.

The workshop will be delivered by members of the Lincolnshire Equality and Human Rights Council Shadow Board, giving a Lincolnshire context, an understanding of the role of Statutory Bodies and tools to take forward in your organisation.

As well as this, the day will also feature the launch of Communities Together. This is a five year project funded by the Big Lottery Fund. The aim of the project is to provide support and training to small groups, village halls and community buildings throughout Lincolnshire, and to help both new and existing community groups to develop. There are five partners, whose organisations are able to provide a variety of specialist advice, training and support, they are; Community Lincs, Age Concern, Children’s Links, Lincolnshire Council for Voluntary Youth Services (LCVYS) and Groundwork Lincolnshire.

The presentation will be delivered by Community Lincs and will give a brief introduction on what each of the partners can offer and examples of work already achieved. To book your place, please email Tracey.broll@childrenslinks.org.uk for a booking form. Places are limited. The training is free of charge, but no-shows will incur a £40 charge to cover administration and catering costs. Lunch and refreshments will be provided.

Capacitybuilders is inviting Expressions of Interest to Strand C of its Volunteer Management Programme.

From April 2010, bursary funding totalling almost £1 million will be made available to not-for-profit organisations in England to help meet some of the skills development needs of people managing volunteers.

Applications must be in support of projects which are based on the current National Occupational Standards in Volunteer Management at levels 3, 4 and 5 with substantial elements having already been delivered successfully for over one year.

Proposed projects must cover at least four of the nine Government Office regions in England.

The deadline for receipt of Expressions of Interest is 8 January 2010 (1 pm).

Source: Copyright of GRANTfinder Ltd, Enterprise House, Carlton Road, Worksop, S81 7QF

The first ever Area Assessment of Lincolnshire was published by the Audit Commission as part of Comprehensive Area Assessment (CAA) on 9^th December 2009. CAA is nowbranded as OnePlace for the general public. The Area Assessment looks at how local public services are working together to tackle the major issues facing the people of Lincolnshire.

There is no score for the Area Assessment but green flags are awarded for areas where public bodies are achieving exceptional outcomes in priority areas, or something innovative, and that others can learn from. Red flags highlight where something more or different needs to happen to ensure that the most important challenges in Lincolnshire are addressed. Lincolnshire's Assessment does not have any green flags but one red for strategic housing. You can access the full OnePlace Area Assessment for Lincolnshire at http://oneplace.direct.gov.uk/

The 152 Area Assessments published nationally have highlighted 74 green flags and 62 red flags.

Scored Organisational Assessments within CAA /OnePlace were also published on the 9^th December. You can access details of all these on the same website - http://oneplace.direct.gov.uk/

Further information from teresa.carter@lincolnshire.gov.uk

It has been agreed that the Lincolnshire Day for 2010 will have a new approach following a meeting of the Sustainable Community Strategy Planning Group in December 2009.

It was decided that the morning sessions will be a reserved session for SCS Theme and outcome leads with the afternoons being used to demonstrate leadership and delivery to a wider audience.

More news about this in the New Year.

Source: Lincolnshire Assembly Partnership News.

PurpleZebra have been successful in receiving funding from the Big Lottery Fund to enhance the use of ICT within the community and voluntary sector. The project covers the whole of the East Midlands and is delivered in partnership with High Peak CVS, Involving Lincs, Voluntary Action Leicestershire, LCIL and Northamptonshire Volunteering.

To help finalise the content for upcoming workshops in your area by answering our short questionaire

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=f2_2fDkxYcRdGaFZQ_2bu7495A_3d_3d

Your help is really important and we would be grateful for a few minutes of your time.

We are hoping that this will be completed by as many development workers as possible across the East Midlands.

For more information about the project, please contact Andrew Tristram or Linda Hooton at PurpleZebra on 01623 727650 or by email admin@purplezebra.org.uk

A new project is just starting which sees the Volunteering Development teams of South Lincolnshire Community and Voluntary Service,Voluntary Sector Services Lincoln, North Kesteven and West Lindsey and Voluntary Action East Lindsey.

The project is funded by Capacity Builders and has the following four aims.

Development Services Brochure: A brochure is being prepared to outline the development services available to voluntary and community groups throughout Lincolnshire. Work has already started on this and the brochure will soon be available.

Volunteer Coordinators Guide: This will be a quick reference guide for staff or volunteers who undertake a temporary volunteer management role. The aim is to encourage and support quality volunteering experiences.

Volunteers Week 2010: A countywide event is being planned for Volunteers Week 2010 (first week of June). Discussions are still taking place on what form this event will take. If you have any ideas or suggestions please discuss them with Paddy Perry.

Outreach Support Services: Volunteer managers will be able to access support in their locality to develop best practice in volunteer management, quality standards, promotion of partnerships and local networks, training and funding opportunities for volunteering projects. New volunteer coordinator forums will be established as one of the ways of getting access to this support.

For more information please get in touch with Paddy Perry: Tel: 07956 391376 or email: paddy.p@southlincscvs.org.uk

Following a review of aspects of the new Vetting & Barring Scheme (VBS) the Government has accepted all of Sir Roger Singleton's recommendations to make sure that the Scheme protects vulnerable groups without getting involved in private arrangements between parents and friends.

Responding to Sir Roger's report Drawing the Line, published on 14 December, the Government pledged to make the necessary adjustments to the rules of the Scheme to ensure it strikes the right balance between protecting children and vulnerable adults without being unnecessarily burdensome.

It is estimated that once these adjustments have been put in place, the number of people who will be required to register with the Scheme will fall from 11 million to nine and a half million.

Sir Roger Singleton, the Chief Adviser on the Safety of Children and Chair of the Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA), was asked by DCSF Secretary of State Ed Balls in September to check that the Government had drawn the line in the right place in relation to those who have to register with the Scheme because of the frequent or intensive nature of their contact with vulnerable groups.

Sir Roger recommended that private arrangements between parents and friends should continue to remain outside the Scheme, but where an organisation makes the decisions on which adults should work with their children then the requirement to register will apply.

The effect of Sir Roger's recommendations will be that:

• Where organisations such as schools, clubs or groups make the decisions as to which adults should work with their children or vulnerable adults then the requirement to register with the VBS should apply, subject to the frequent and intensive contact provisions.
• The frequent contact test should normally be met if the work takes place once a week or more (previously the test was if activity happened once a month or more). The intensive contact test should be met if the work takes place on 4 days in one month or more or overnight (previously the test was 3 times in every 30 days or overnight).
• Individuals who go into different schools or similar settings to work with different groups should not be required to register unless their contact with the same group is frequent or intensive.
• The minimum age of registration for young people who engage in regulated activity as part of their continuing education should be reviewed. The Government will make immediate changes to the rules so that the scheme will not require 16, 17 and 18-year-olds in education to register.
• Overseas visitors bringing their own groups of children to the UK, e.g. to international camps or the Olympics, should have a three months exemption from the requirement to register for the work they do with children they have brought to the UK. This provides that they only work with their own group. Once they start work with other groups, then registration will be required.
• Exchange visits lasting less than 28 days, where overseas parents accept the responsibility for the selection of the volunteer host family, should be regarded as private arrangements and the Scheme will not require registration.

Further recommendations made by Sir Roger Singleton mean that the Government will also take action to:

• Consider whether private health practitioners, such as self-employed chiropractors and homoeopathists should be required to register. Current legislation allows them to register but does not require them to.
• Review the continuing need for 'controlled activity'. 'Controlled activity' is defined as a small number of activities where there might be opportunity for contact with children or vulnerable adults, such as working as a hospital or school receptionist, but falls short of the opportunities open to other roles such as nurses or teachers.
• Review the law and the Government's advice on when, in the future, workers who have already secured ISA registration, will have to get CRB checks.

Home Office Minister Meg Hillier said:

"I'd like to thank Sir Roger for his excellent work. The recommendations he made, which have been fully accepted by the Government, ensure that the Vetting and Barring Scheme strikes the right balance between keeping the most vulnerable in our society safe from harm and making sure we don't interfere in personal and family arrangements.

"The benefits of the scheme are clear - better sharing of information, portable registration status for employees and volunteers, and clear decisions on who is unsuitable to work with vulnerable groups.

"Parents and carers expect us to protect children and other vulnerable groups from harm. I am confident that the scheme does this in a proportionate and common-sense way."

For full details of Sir Roger's report and the Government response please visit http://www.isa.homeoffice.gov.uk/.

Involving Lincs will be providing Equality and Diversity Training for its members. In order for us to ensure we meet the training needs of the membership, please take the time to respond to this short mapping exercise.

Please complete this Training Needs Analysis and return to Tracey Broll at Children's Links by 30th October 2009.

Following the deadline we will compile all of the responses and design a training programme for Spring 2010

Thank you for your time.