Category: Quarterly updates

Spring 2020 Update to Members and Subscribers

24th April 2020

Camden Covid-19 Special

The streets may be empty but for many it’s never been a busier time as local organisations and community groups step up to respond to residents in need.

Funding

The council has put £100,000 into an emergency fund that was distributed by Camden Giving last week.  Camden Giving raised an additional £200,000.  A further funding round is planned for June.  Groups are also accessing Community Infrastructure Levy funds at ward level (talk to your councillors).
London Funders have come together to create an Emergency Response Fund.  Wave 2 has 2 strands – Crisis Response and Delivering Differently.
We have links to many other funds but they are all being flooded with requests.
The extra funding that the chancellor announced will be distributed through the lottery – we should hear more any day now.
Sector leaders are still pressing for the furlough scheme to allow furloughed staff to volunteer for their own organisation.
Clarity is needed around business rates grants – some charities may qualify.

New VCS Forum

The first Camden Voluntary Action Forum was held on Wednesday and the participants voted to hold another in a fortnight’s time on Wednesday 6th May at 11am.  There was a chance for everyone to share an update.  VAC’s update covered our work, how the council is responding and mention of social prescribing.  Take a look here.

Voluntary and Community Groups Respond

Many organisations have stepped up to respond to the crisis. Age UK Camden and London Irish Centre were quick to mobilise and have been ensuring that vulnerable older people are getting food parcels.
VAC has put together a Covid-19 Community Directory from your updates; We have also created a daily update page and resources pages.
The Community Directory shows how many local organisations have changed the way they work in order to support vulnerable residents during the crisis.
The Care Navigation and Social Prescribing system in Camden (Community Links run by VAC and Care Navigators run by AUC and Wish+ by the council) has been taking many more referrals from both GPs, self-referrals, and from concerned family members.
We are working with the Council, Volunteer Centre Camden and others to help local organisations access all the volunteers who have signed up to help.
The Food banks have been stretched to supply demand and over the Easter weekend the Red Cross restocked Camden Foodbanks that were running low.
So many local voluntary organisations and community groups have been active in support of their local community that they are too numerous to mention here. Rest assured that the sector’s swift response has been noted at national level.

Needs of Organisations

As part of the survey of how organisations have responded we also asked for support needs.  The key concerns were
• Time is of the essence
• Clear information needed
• Contact points and referral pathways
• Payments and money
• The digital divide
• Isolation, stress, burn out, bereavement, separation
Read the full report here.

Thank you for everything you’re doing!

Kevin & the VAC team: Alex, Dianne, Donna, Hasel, Mandira, Manuella, Nasrin, Ricky and Zubair and all the VAC Trustees and Volunteers

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

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Christmas 2019 Update to Members and Subscribers

20th December 2019

What a Year! What a Decade!

Like many organisations we try to look ahead and make plans for the future but the last decade has made a mockery of planning.  Few would have proposed the current situation as a future scenario in any planning exercise.  So Christmas and New Year will be a welcome break.  Hopefully we willl all return refreshed and ready to take up the cudgels once more in 2020.

Christmas Opening Times

Full details of Camden council services opening times over the Christmas holidays can be found here.
Opening hours for pharmacies over the Christmas holidays are here.
VAC will be closed from 25th December to 1st January 2020 (inclusive) and the e-bulletin will return on Friday 10th January 2020.

Christmas Reading List

Six major reviews of the sector were published this year.  To save you reading all 6, London Funders commissioned a Review of Reviews to summarize them.
Ageing Better in Camden hosted the ‘southern’ launch of Social Infrastructure: How Shared Spaces Make Community Work.
NLGN and Local Trust published Community Commissioning:Shaping Public Services Through People Power
Youth violence and the role that London’s local Infrastructure can play is a short read from Jake Furgeson, member of the Mayor’s VRU Reduction Unit, CEO of Hackney CVS and Chair of the London CVS Network.
Radical Help, by Hilary Cottam was published in the summer and is subtitled How We Can Remake the Relationships Between Us and Revolutionise the Welfare State.  Excellent reviews here and here.
‘Discourses of Voluntary Action at Two Transformational Moments of the Welfare State, the 1940s and the 2010s’ is a major academic study funded by the ESRC.  This presentation summarizes the ideas.
Social Prescribing is an exciting development that involves connecting up members of the community with community and voluntary groups as a way of promoting wellbeing.  VAC have a useful briefing and the Kings Fund have a briefing as well as an analysis of the NHS Long Term Plan.

Thought for Christmas

Christmas can be a stressful time for many –  family and friends are thrown together and inevitably differences of opinion get aired.  And as if the traditional family fault lines aren’t enough we now have the aftermath of a bruising election to add to the list of divisive topics that can ruin a family get-together.  Of course, working in the voluntary sector seems to be a particular target for a certain type of family member who thinks that only commerce counts (some say it’s really their festival these days).  What are we good for in a market economy?  It’s not always easy to to come back with a quick response – even if most people’s lives revolve around something other than commerce –  whether it’s spiritual, sports, the arts or just hobbies and pastimes with friends, somehow it’s hard to make the case when you’re put on the spot.  Read more.

VAC News

We are planning a series of events in the new year, including our AGM, a series of IT seminars, a workshop on managing buildings with the Ethical Property Foundation and a Funder Fair in the spring.  Full details in the New Year!

Finally, thanks to all who filled in out survey.  The lucky winner of the £100 voucher was Polly from Kids.

We wish you all a peaceful break and look forward to seeing you all in 2020.

Kevin & the VAC team: Alex, Dianne, Donna, Hasel, Mandira, Manuella, Nasrin, Ricky and Zubair and all the Trustees and Volunteers.

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

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Autumn 2019 Update to Members and Subscribers

25th October 2019

Space to Connect

We are taking part in the Coop Foundation’s enquiry to help community organisations identify, improve and protect spaces where people can connect and co-operate. This is part of a national debate on public realm being led by DCMS, The Coop Foundation and Locality.  Over the next 6 months we will start exploring ways that local challenges could be addressed through better use of space, and/or identify potential spaces that could be opened up to community use. To kick off this initiative we are holding an initial event on 19th November (12 – 2pm) to gather ideas and prioritise areas to take forward.
More info and booking at Eventbrite.

Trustee’s Week

Trustees’ Week is celebrated each year in the first week of November (4th – 9th).  It’s a chance for trustees and chairs to come together to learn, share and network.  VAC and VCC have arranged a full programme for Camden trustees:
Learn about the Trustees’ role in safeguarding on 6th November 2-5pm.
There will also be an update on the major changes in the health service that are currently underway on 7th November at 5.30 with special guest speakers.  Book your free place at Eventbrite.
Trustees can access resources from VAC, join the Camden Trustees Meetup group and get information on recruitment from VCC.

Rents Review update

VAC is taking part in meetings with the council and others to look at VCS rents and leases.  As rent values in central London soar,  the council’s policy of applying market rents to community assets has come under scrutiny.  Even with a  discount rents are becoming unaffordable for many in the sector and there is a knock on effect to those who need to rent space in community buildings to run their activities.  Social Value is a way of taking some of the ‘rent’ as exchange for the social good that the users of the building create.  Some simple measures of social value will need to be developed along with a set of basic principles. The proposals generated will go to Cabinet in the new year and we have pressed for the sector to have a say before any final decision is taken.

Social Prescribing Learning Network (SPLN) Event

The next SPLN event is on funding for VCSE  providers of social prescribing activities on 28th November. Places will be limited and focused on some Camden priorities and key themes and areas where there will be increasing demand from social prescription referrals.

VCS Infrastructure Funding

In April the council announced a 2 year package of spending on VCS infrastructure in the borough.  We’ve summarised  what each organisation is doing for the money and how those organisations are working together here.

Finally, if you haven’t done so already, please fill in our survey. It’s only a short survey but we really value your views and it will help us shape our work in the future – and you could win £100!

Yours

Kevin & the VAC team: Alex, Dianne, Donna, Hasel, Mandira, Manuella, Nasrin, Ricky and Zubair

PS We’re planning our Annual Conference & AGM in February – more details soon

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

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Summer 2019 Update to Members and Subscribers

26th July 2019

There is also a separate and super short 10 question survey about the website. It’s been a few years since we looked at our websites and communications and we would like to get your views before we make any changes.

Finally, we welcome some new board members: Hilary Barnard, a local resident, former CVS Director and Management Consultant, Tim Holt, Marketing Manager at Visit Britain and two council observers, Cllr Nash Ali and Cllr Richard Cotton.

Yours

Kevin
& the VAC team: Alex, Dianne, Donna, Hasel, Mandira, Manuella, Nasrin, Ricky and Zubair

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

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Spring 2019 Update to Members and Stakeholders

26th April 2019

We’ve been busy recently with a range of things – administering this year’s Festival Fund, working with our partners to make the most of the Charlie Ratchford building (where we are currently based), taking part in Healthwatch Camden’s ‘renters and health’ investigation and organising a new network of organisations involved in Social Prescribing (see below).

We’ve also been raising awareness in the sector for a couple of major Consultations:
Training: Camden TDS (the training and development service) is changing both its name (to Camden Learning and Development) and how it works.  We’ve hosted some discussions with the sector and impressed on the council the importance of retaining access to training for the VCS.
Rents:  The council have engaged consultants to take soundings from the sector about the market rents issue. VAC has long advocated for the role of social value and the need for a clear measure for use both for rents and for contracting and commissioning.  Social value gives us a chance to measure our worth by other measures such as wellbeing and community cohesion. The consultants running the consultation (Snook) will report to soon.

Of course, all the core things that a CVS does continue; keeping you informed with the weekly e-bulletin, and up to date with policy and local changes; Offering advice and support on everything from HR to fundraising and running training and events (our annual Governance course for trustees starts end of May!);  Linking members to each other, to resources and to public sector partners; And of course, helping you to ensure your voice is heard on the local stage.
We’re looking forward to a positive and constructive relationship with Camden’s new CEO, Jenny Rowlands, and we have started working with the Community Partners Team, C4, Volunteer Centre Camden and others to strengthen support to the sector in order to benefit the lives of Camden residents.

Yours

Kevin & the VAC team: Alex, Dianne, Donna, Hasel, Mandira, Manuella, Nasrin, Ricky and Zubair

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

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