National Voluntary & Community News
Infrastructure Investment Plans Analysis
On taking over the ChangeUp programme for VCS infrastructure development in spring 2006, Capacitybuilders commissioned the Good Foundations Consultancy to collate data and analyse what had been funded and achieved through the ChangeUp programme. Their report has now been published with recommendations of changes to improve the ChangeUp programme and analysis or how ChangeUp has performed in the nine regions.
The full report, consists of 4 sections :
1) Aims, Summary and Recommendations
2) Main Report : including aims, summary and recommendations
3) Regional Perspectives : including examples of good plans and capacity building
4) Appendices.
These can be downloaded from the Capacitybuilders website
The Review of the National Hubs
Capacitybuilders, the body which took over managing the government's ChangeUp funding in April, received the Durning report and recommendations concerning future options for the delivery of national ChangeUp services to local, sub-regional and regional infrastructure organisations in the voluntary and community sector. The consultation exercise during July to August was largely confined to sector infrastructure bodies - just a handful of frontline organisations are recorded as making a submission
The Durning report says that the national ChangeUp programme should aim "to do less better, with a stronger focus on users, more integration between the different strands ........, stronger emphasis on celebrating good practice within the sector as well as drawing from outside". It identifies three main options for delivery of national ChangeUp services to local, sub-regional and regional infrastructure organisations in the voluntary and community sector: 1) Improvement of the present system; 2) a central agency; or 3) centralisation of commissioning within Capacitybuilders.
Having rejected the second option, Capacitybuilders will discuss the implications of the other two at their next meeting on 22nd November. Durning clearly prefers option 3, but not all the hubs are happy with the idea of losing their commissioning powers and being left to "continue as centres of excellence and advisory bodies, with small budgets to enable them to identify and promote good practice."
Documents are available on the Capacitybuilders website - the 'Stakeholder Statement' gives an overall picture, summarising the recommendations and the board decisions.
Governance - Get on Board
In January 2007, the Governance Hub are launching Get On Board - a public campaign to raise awareness of trusteeship and recruit more trustees in the voluntary and community sector. If you currently have a vacancy for a trustee, you can benefit by registering your opportunity now on do-it.org.uk in readiness for the campaign.
ICT Discussion Forum
A new ICT Hub Discussion Forum has opened to allow comment on ICT issues. Current topics are: Discuss IT Volunteers, Funding, ICT in the Regions, Communicating with ICT and Discounted Products and Services.
VCS Area Profiles
Knowledge and understanding of local voluntary and community organisations could increase dramatically as a result of a project aimed at mapping the sector, through the creation of Voluntary and Community Sector Area Profiles. Project leaders NAVCA are promoting the use of a toolkit - a tested and standardised approach that will enable infrastructure organisations to profile their local voluntary and community sector.
