Sandwell PCT are hosting a networking event on Thursday 8 July 2010, 1.00pm – 3.00pm at The Brambles, Bramley Road, Yew Tree Estate, WS5 4LE. 

Martin Drayton, Project Officer (3Cs) will be attending from SCVO and there will be an opportunity to find out more about the support offer for voluntary organisations in Sandwell, including news about finditinsandwell and the 3Cs (Contracting, Collaboration and Consortia) support for the Sector.

If you would like to attend the event, please contact Ann Poynton, tel: 01922 423358 or email: ann.poynton@nhs.net

Each year, thousands of Sandwellians generously donate their personal time to organisations and projects aimed at changing the lives of local people. The 2010 Volunteer Centre Sandwell Awards will honour a select number of volunteers, who exemplify the highest ideas of volunteer service.

The Awards ceremony will take place at The Public in West Bromwich between 2.00 pm and 4.00 pm on Tuesday 8th June.  There are five award categories:-

Best Environmental Volunteer
Best Corporate Volunteer
Best Health & Social Care Volunteer
Best Young Volunteer
Outstanding Contribution to Volunteering

The challenge is now on to find those most deserving of the awards.  Nominations are now open in all five categories and you can download the nomination form below or request one by calling 0121 544 8326 or picking up a form from your local library or community centre. 

Volunteer Awards Nomination Form

The closing date for nominations is Friday 7th May.  All volunteers nominated will be invited to attend the awards ceremony and receive a certificate. 

Master of ceremonies at the Awards will be Dr Carl Chinn (pictured), BBC WM Radio Presenter and Local Historian, and entertainment will be provided by Doxology Project.

For more information and to book your place at the ceremony contact Richard Lodder at Volunteer Centre Sandwell on 0121 544 8326 or email vcsadmin@btconnect.com

Commissioned by the Community Development Foundation, the research is being carried out by Resources for Change and the National Council of Voluntary Organisations, and is focussed particularly on the impact of recession on community cohesion and empowerment.  Seven local authority areas have been chosen to take part. 

The researchers are keen to talk to people who can tell them about the experiences of recession as felt by the local authority, other public sector organisations, the VCS, grassroots organisations, the private sector and individuals. 

The case studies that result will provide key learning and messages for local authorities and VCS organisations delivering support to communities in times of economic hardship.  Recommendations from the research will have the potential to impact on current and future policy at the very highest level of government.

The research workshop is taking place in Room 34 at the Sandwell Council Training and Development Centre, Popes Lane, Oldbury, on Monday 19th April between 2.30 and 4.30 pm.  The workshop presents a good opportunity to share your views and experience as well as network with key people working in the borough.

If you would like to attend, please contact sarah@r4c.org.uk so the organisers can have an idea of attendance.  To help participants prepare for the workshop, given below are some of the questions due to be covered:-

How has the recession affected you? How has your organisation responded to this? What are the things that help and hinder you to manage the effects of recession? Have you experienced or observed more tensions in the community? How are these tensions being expressed and how are the being addressed?  Does your organisation feel more or less empowered in terms of having its voice heard and feeling able to have an influence?

The event, being held at The Public, which will begin at 10am and conclude at 12noon, draws heavily on the speed dating craze.  Volunteers will move from table to table in a bid to find their perfect match.  Twenty organisations will man the whistle-stop “first dates” and have 4 minutes to “attract” potential partners.

People choose to volunteer for many reasons and nearly all find the experience rewarding, helping many to take the next step in their lives.  One volunteer, who is new to Sandwell, commented recently, “Because I’ve only just moved to the area this will be a brilliant way of finding out how I can help my local community.”

Jean Taylor, Chief Executive Officer of Volunteer Centre Sandwell comments, “It’s a very exciting initiative and I think it’s going to be great fun.  Our organisation has been around for over twenty-five years and has matched over twenty thousand members of the local community to three hundred Sandwell organisations.  This event brings a fresh approach to volunteer recruitment, helping to bring volunteers and organisations face-to-face.”

For more information and to register for this event you can download the following event poster and booking form, or contact the Volunteer Centre at the details given below.

Speed Volunteering Flyer
Speed Volunteering Booking Form

Volunteer Centre Sandwell, Municipal Building, Freeth Street, Oldbury B69 2AB  Tel: 0121 544 8326  Email vcsadmin@btconnect.com

Open to all the Voluntary and Community Sector
(FREE Buffet lunch will be provided)

 Thursday 4^th March 2010
From 12.00 noon – 1.30 pm

Tipton Sports Academy
Wednesbury Oak Road
Tipton     DY4 0BS

This Briefing Event will allow you to meet, talk and ask questions in an informal atmosphere about what is happening around “Every Child Matters”               

 12.00 noon         Buffet lunch

 Speakers and Presentations

 12.15pm               Introduction & VCS Executive update
                                  Martin Allcott, SCVO         

 12.20pm               Extended Services & the Disadvantaged Fund
                                  Roger Hindle, Sandwell MBC

 12.40pm               Children living with Domestic Abuse
                                   Sara Ward, Sandwell Women’s Aid

 1.00pm                Questions & Answers

 1.30pm                Close

 Please select booking form – places will be allocated on a first come, first served basis.

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For booking or more information contact Gill Collins on Tel: 0121 612 1485   or E-mail: gillian_collins@sandwell.gov.uk

20 places for VCOs are available is Walsall, Wolverhampton and Sandwell. Due to the cost of running this course there is a charge of £40 per person to help cover some of the cost of the trainers, venue and lunch.

Please see the attached flyer for more details and to book a place.

Legal Structures For Social Enterprise and Charity Trading
Trainer: Sandy Adirondack
Date: Wednesday 3rd February 2010, 9.45 am to 4.30 pm (the course will start promptly at 10.00 am)
Venue: Hindu Cultural Resource Centre, 360 Spon Lane South, Smethwick
Cost: £35 per person (or £60 for two people)

What types of organisations or businesses are social enterprises? What legal forms are available to them, and what difference does it make in terms of legal responsibilities, liability, taxation, income generation and credibility?

This one-day training course, led by Sandy Adirondack, will start from basics and not assume any prior knowledge about social enterprise, charity trading or legal structures.

For more information and to book your place, you can download the flyer and booking form below or contact the Capacity Building Team on 0121 565 8939 or by e-mail to: stephen@scvo.info

Legal Structures for Social Enterprise booking form

Next year’s main Children & Young People event will take place on Thursday 4^th February 2010 from 4.00pm to 6.30pm in the Richardson Suite, West Bromwich Albion Football Club, The Hawthorns, West Bromwich.

 Organised by the Voluntary & Community sector Executive Group, the event is to raise awareness about services and inspire young people and adults alike.

 Workshops are planned on:

• Artemis – skills development for the workforce
• Financial Literacy
• Opportunities for Young people to get their Voices Heard
• Contracting with Sandwell Council
• Small Grants

 The main speakers will be:

 Penny Mallory, TV Presenter, whose theme is “Taking Control”
Roger Crouch, Sandwell’s Executive Director of Children’s Services

 Penny is best known for her years as presenter of Channel’s 4’s successful DRIVEN, and has for the last three years presented the Used Car Roadshow with Jason Dawe on ITV4.  The show is the most popular car programme on satellite television with more than a quarter of a million viewers each week.  She had always dreamt of being a rally driver…was told over and over she couldn’t make it, and did…. in fact she became the first woman in the world to drive to World Rally Car.  She has a natural ability to communicate and as a counsellor and performance coach, has a passion for helping others overcome whatever obstacles they may have.  Her unique and inspirational story shows there is no limit to what you can achieve with will power and commitment.

 Roger will be summarising on the local scene and how young people can thrive in Sandwell.

 Performances by young people are expected from:

          All Nations Musical Youth Steel Band
          Year 9 Drama Group, Sandwell Academy

 There will be opportunities for some organisations to showcase their work with display stands.  There is no charge for attending, but a maximum of 2 delegates per organisation will be accepted.  A free buffet is included.

 For more information, or to register, contact Martin Allcott at SCVO on 0121 565 8939 or by e-mail martin@scvo.info

Awards For All Training Day and Funding Surgery
Friday 4th December 2009, 09.30 am to 3.00 pm
Sandwell Council House, Oldbury

Awards for All aims to fund projects the meet one or more of the following needs:

People have better chances in life
Stronger communities
Improved rural and urban environments
Healthier and more active people and communities

The training will cover how groups can express the purpose and need for the project or activity for which they are applying. It will also support groups in identifying the changes that will or may occur as a result of the project being delivered.

Those attending the training are asked to come with a particular project or activity in mind.

To book your place on the training, contact Kally Matharu at SCVO on 0121 565 8939 or e-mail: kally@scvo.info with your name, organisation, contact telephone number and e-mail address (if applicable) and any dietary or access requirements.

For more information about Awards for All, visit: www.awardsforall.org.uk or call the Big Lottery Fund on 0845 410 203.

CDS26: ‘Funding Communities – Adding Value’
Tuesday 24th November, 09:30 to 13:30 (including lunch)
National Metalforming Centre, West Bromwich

The event draws its inspiration from a book entitled ‘Funding Communities Adding Value: Community Development Approaches to Grant Giving’, recently published by the Community Development Foundation.  The book can be downloaded free from the following link: http://www.cdf.org.uk/web/guest/publication?id=79346

The aim of the event is to improve the quality and effectiveness of grant funding in Sandwell by bringing together grant providers and the communities that apply for grant funds, to share best practice in creating grant programmes that facilitate and support community development.  The keynote speaker for the event is Irene Evison, the author of the book (with regret, Phil Aubrey, Grassroots Grants Programme Manager at the Community Development Foundation, is now unable to attend).

A market place of stalls and displays will be available at the event.

To book your place at this event either download, complete and return the booking form below or e-mail: Pauline.Jones@sandwell-pct.nhs.uk or call Pauline Jones on 0121 612 3394. 

CDS 26: ‘Funding Communities – Adding Value’ booking form