Voluntary Action Camden e-bulletin 9th April 2020

London Community Response

The second wave of London Community Response funding is open.
1. Crisis response – grants up to £10,000 to meet the immediate needs
2. Delivering differently – grants of £10,000 to £50,000 to change how you work

Government Announcements

Announcement from the Chancellor of a package of support to the Charity sector. Headlines here.  Summary from Civil Society and Politics Home.
Letter from the Prime Minister to all households.

Take the Young Camden Foundation Survey

YCV has launched a Covid19 needs assessment for organisations working with Children and Young people in Camden. https://surveyhero.com/c/685c9c89

Camden COVID-19 Community Directory

Please keep the Covid-19 Community Directory updated.  Give your update here. Your response will appear in the Covid-19 Community Directory and will automatically update the Council’s new Get Help directory.

Coronavirus COVID-19 –  Update Page

Find information and advice as it becomes available on our COVID-19 Update page. There is also a separate resources page full of useful information.

How to Volunteer and How to Recruit Volunteers in Camden

Volunteer in Camden at Time to Spare.
Volunteer for the NHS at GoodSAM.
Join a neighbourhood Mutual Aid group.
Organisations can sign up to Time to Spare and request access and you will then be able to recruit volunteers directly.
The council has a  page of resources to help community organisations

Hitting ‘pause’ on complaints to get behind the NHS

Healthwatch Camden calls on residents to save details of concerns during
COVID-19 emergency and to ‘Clap for our Carers’ again tonight at 8pm
The NHS announced that the complaints process will be deprioritised to allow front-line workers to focus on saving lives during the COVID-19 emergency.

Bill Gates Plans to ‘Waste’ Billions

Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to spend billions to quickly build seven manufacturing facilities, so that when vaccines for Covid-19 are identified, they can be mass-produced quickly.  However, only 2 will be used. The other 5 factories will be demolished. Gates says wasting billions like this will save lives.
If that’s not enough – Bill Gates also explained why we weren’t ready for the next big pandemic in 2015.

Play the Flu Pandemic Game

As a result of the H1N1 bird flu scare in 2006 Camden Primary Care Trust developed a game to help organisations test their preparedness.  Ideally you need 12 people to play the Flu Pandemic Game.  The game comes with scenarios, score sheets and chance cards.  On a serious note, the game did not assume much virtual working, or a lockdown policy.

See the Funding pages on VAC’s website for all the latest information.

The Neighbourly Community Fund

Its a new fund that aims to distribute small sums (up to £400) quickly.

The Childhood Trust

The Trust is launching a new match-funding campaign offering unrestricted funds to charities working with vulnerable children and young people who have been impacted by the Coronavirus.

The Clothworkers’ Foundation

The Foundation have awarded £1 million to initiatives to help organisations supporting vulnerable and at-risk groups, with a further £1 million to be disbursed in the coming weeks and months. Read more at the website.

Camden Giving Covid-19 Charity Fund

Charities, community groups and social enterprises in Camden are facing a huge surge in demand and cuts to their income. This fund is here to support them to do what they do best and to ensure they are here in the future.

Youth Futures Foundation

The Foundation is committed to transforming employment for young people.
Funding is for a 6-12 month period of planning and set up from September 2020 onwards, during which time no direct delivery to young people will be required. This will be followed by funding for a delivery phase from January 2021 onwards, by which time we hope face to face work will be possible again.

Arts Council Emergency Response Package for #Covid19 crisis.

Arts Council makes £160 million of investment for people and organisations in the cultural sector. Full details here: http://artscouncil.org.uk/covid19

Emergency support fund announced to help community and voluntary organisations

The Greater London Authority and Emergency support fund have raised over £5M from City Bridge Trust Bloomberg etc. The emergency fund will be available to organisations that are facing immediate financial pressures and uncertainty because of coronavirus. This includes increasing demands for services, higher staff absences, fewer volunteers and lower donations for organisations. Full details here.

A Helpful List of Emergency Funders

Charity Professional, Ian McLintock, is maintaining a web page of Emergency Coronvirus Funding resources.

The National Emergencies Trust lunches Coronavirus Appeal

The Trust will collaborate with charities and other bodies to raise and distribute money and support victims at the time of a domestic disaster.  Full details here.

Trustee Training, IT Training etc

All VAC fact-to-face training is suspended for now.  Training will online soon

Safeguarding Courses:

VAC is working with funders to see what can be done online and on webinars so that safeguarding courses can continue where feasible.  Further details to come. There are some basic safeguarding videos on the home page and on the COVID19 Update page.
Tel: 020 7 284 6575 | Email: dogunyemi@vac.org.uk email (Mon – Wed)

More details on the VAC website: https://vac.org.uk/events/

Camden Events

All face-to-face events are cancelled for now. Many groups and organisations have moved their activity online.  Check the Covid-19 Directory or go to the organisation’s webpage.
WEP have a newsletter with online and virtual activities.

Training Link: New Director required

Following the planned retirement of our present director, Training Link, a basic skills training centre in Somers Town, is looking for a new part-time Director to start in August 2020. Must have management experience in a small voluntary sector organisation; experience of policy development, financial management, fund raising in the voluntary sector and recruiting and retaining volunteers.
£35,000 pro-rata for 10 hours a week over at least two days. For an informal discussion about the post, or for an application pack, please email Peter Lush on director@traininglink.org.uk   Closing date: 14 April

Age UK Camden seeks Emergency Food Parcels Project Volunteer

You will be assisting our efforts to ensure that our services continue to support older people in Camden during this time of a Coronavirus Pandemic.
You will need to give us 2-4 hours of your time a week/fortnight and also
~ Complete our volunteer application form
~ Attend an induction meeting
Register: 020 7239 0400 or emailing   info@ageukcamden.org.uk

Paid work opportunities for people who have been laid off/ reduced income

Local Adult social care providers are still recruiting, and as they support the NHS to move vulnerable adults out of hospital to stay well at home, their need is growing. Contact Proud to Care.

Camden Social Prescribing and Care Navigation update

Social Prescribing and Care Navigation delivered by Age UK Camden, Voluntary Action Camden and Wish+ is operational, and adapted, as a point of access to services and support during the COVID 19 emergency.
We are aiming to connect residents with emerging support in their local areas where there is appropriate provision.
If local community organisations are contacted by residents with more complex needs than they can support please refer to Community Links and we will work with the Care Navigation and Wish+ teams to find the support needed. Referral form can be found here. Minimum requirements are contact details and permission to contact the person needing support.
All the usual routes in to the service apply via Community Links at VAC:
Freephone: 0800 193 6067 (please leave a message if no answer. Staff are using other phones to call back and keep this one free)
Secure NHS email (referrals only): camccg.socialprescribingreferral@nhs.net
Community Links email (enquiries and referrals): communitylinks@vac.org.uk

Our mailing address is:
Charlie Ratchford Centre, Belmont Street, London, NW1 8HF

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