One Voice Newsroom Archive
 | GRANT FUNDING AVAILABLE County Durham Foundation currently has extra funding available for community and voluntary groups within County Durham and Darlington. The Grassroots Grants programme, funded by the Office of the Third Sector, is a three-year scheme operating until March 2011. (Last updated 21/11/2008) |
| Third Sector Funding Review The Department of Health is reviewing all funding and investment to third sector organisations. This includes primary grant funding streams: Section 64 General Scheme of Grants and Opportunities for Volunteering, and other funding through contracts. (Last updated 03/01/2008) |
| One Voice Network 2007 Countywide Conference The One Voice Network 2007 Countywide Conference was held on 14 December 2007 at the Durham Cricket Club, Chester-le-Street, Co Durham. (Last updated 02/01/2008) |
| Compact has failed to improve relationship between government and voluntary sector Almost 50% of sector workers think that the ten years since the Compact was introduced have seen a decline in the relationship between governemnt and the voluntary and community sector, according to a poll undertaken by the Directory for Social Change (DSC). (Last updated 09/11/2007) |
| Co Durham Early Adopter Project In July 2006, the Department of Health published ‘A Stronger Local Voice’, which proposed new and different ways of engaging the public in health and social care. (Last updated 16/10/2007) |
| CLGs Third Sector Strategy Consultation : VONNE's Final Response Please find attached the final regional response to the CLGs Third Sector Strategy consultation. This response will also be made available on the VONNE website in due course. (Last updated 26/09/2007) |
| Third Sector Strategy for Communities and Local Government - Consultation Opportunity In June the Department for Communities and Local Government published a discussion document outlining its proposed strategy to develop a framework for effective, on-going engagement with the third sector. (Last updated 28/08/2007) |
| SPOOF E-MAILS originating from the One Voice Network Website We are currently experiencing problems on the One Voice Network website with the generation of spoof e-mails purporting to be from the One Voice Network team. (Last updated 14/08/2007) |
| Third Sector Review: A movement away from mass service delivery by the third sector "The final report from the Third Sector Review demonstrates a significant shift in the Government’s approach to the voluntary and community sector. The report shows a much deeper understanding of the sector, not simply focussing on the sector’s role in service delivery, but recognising the need for a more holistic outlook, which values our independence." (Last updated 27/07/2007) |
| Final report of the Third Sector Review Yesterday the prime minister welcomed the report of the Third Sector Review, which announced "major new commitments to boost the sector and its partnership with government, and sets out £515m funding over the next three years." (Last updated 25/07/2007) |
| Innovation Exchange to be delivered by consortium Phil Hope, Minister for the Third Sector, today announced that a consortium including The Innovation Unit, ACEVO and Headshift has won the £1.2 million contract to deliver the new Innovation Exchange pilot – a programme to support the third sector’s capacity to innovate. (Last updated 25/07/2007) |
| Three new NAVCA reports The umbrella body for local sector support organisations, NAVCA, has released three valuable new reports. (Last updated 19/07/2007) |
| Social clauses in public service contracts A survey on social clauses in public procurement contracts is being undertaken by the North East Regional Centre of Excellence (NERCE), on behalf of the Office of the Third Sector. The survey will seek views on the use of social clauses, their benefits and barriers to their use. (Last updated 12/07/2007) |
| Funding and costing workforce and governance development Many voluntary and commmunity organisations are not adequately costing and budgeting their 'organisational development' and therefore are not seeking funding for this work. (Last updated 12/07/2007) |
| BSF Direct Newsletter - Issue 3 Building Schools for the Future Newsletter (Last updated 06/07/2007) |
| Local voluntary organisations still not independent of local government A survey carried out by Compact Voice, based at the National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO), shows that independence is far from a reality for many voluntary organisations in England. (Last updated 05/07/2007) |
| New third sector minister The new Minister for the Third Sector is Phil Hope MP, formerly minister for skills at the Department for Education and Skills. (Last updated 05/07/2007) |
| Charity Reporting and Accounting: The essentials The Charity Commission has published new guidelines on how to fulfil the accounting obligations that the law imposes on charities. (Last updated 05/07/2007) |
| A Countywide CVS? Navca reports on the Cumbria experience Political and funding pressures have led Cumbria's five CVSs to merge into a single countywide CVS. Navca has just published a report on the merger, intended as "a case study to provide guidance and inspiration for other local infrastructure organisations for which merger might present similar opportunities." (Last updated 02/07/2007) |
| Funders' monitoring requirements more stringent than ever "The proliferation of more and more stringent and prescriptive monitoring requirements are choking the voluntary sector, and forcing its beneficiaries into second place in the pecking order." (Last updated 29/06/2007) |
| LAAs fail to involve the third sector Local Area Agreements (LAAs) include only limited references to the third sector and there are as yet no visible changes in local patterns of service provision or in local public bodies’ funding practices towards the third sector. That's one of the main conclusions of a National Audit Office report, "Local Area Agreements and the Third Sector: Public Service Delivery", published last week. (Last updated 29/06/2007) |
| Consulting on consultation With summer sunshine and a Prime Ministerial resignation on the way, things are evidently slowing down at the Cabinet Office and they are struggling to find new subjects to put out to consultation. Here's their innovative response. (Last updated 21/06/2007) |
| Workforce reforms across the FE/Learning and Skills sector in England - essential preparations for September 07 onwards Last Friday, the DfES issued a letter regarding the new regulations that will affect practitioners across the learning and skills sector, including VCS providers. This is a major development and the letter sets out the specific changes that will come into force on 1st September, including: (Last updated 21/06/2007) |
| Voluntary sector not always best at delivering public services New research from the National Consumer Council (NCC) reveals that, although the voluntary sector plays an important role in the delivery of public services, it may not always be the best solution for consumers. (Last updated 21/06/2007) |
| Full cost recovery: still a long way to go Government departments have found difficulties translating the principle of full cost recovery into practice, according to a recently published review by the National Audit Office (NAO). (Last updated 15/06/2007) |
| New PQASSO Kitemark Charities Evaluation Service (CES) has secured sufficient investment from the Big Lottery Fund BASIS programme to develop an externally assessed, national ‘Quality Mark’ for PQASSO (Last updated 14/06/2007) |
| Farewell/Yassas to Sue Northcott NE VCS Learning and Skills Coordinator As most of you will be already aware I am leaving my post at the end of June. I am taking up an opportunity to explore the life and culture of Greece and will be heading off to Kefalonia in July with my husband, for the next year. This is an aspiration we have had for sometime so I guess I’m off to live the dream. (Last updated 08/06/2007) |
| Church examines implications of involvement in public service delivery. The Church of England is among the 'third sector' organisations that the government is encouraging to become more closely involved in the provision of statutory services. (Last updated 07/06/2007) |
| Association of Volunteer Managers A new Association of Volunteer Managers has been launched today to campaign on behalf of volunteer managers and speak out about the issues that affect their work. (Last updated 06/06/2007) |
| Volunteers from socially excluded groups: Goldstar toolkit The GoldStar Exemplar Programme is a national initiative funded by the Cabinet Office and designed to encourage and enable voluntary organisations and projects throughout England to realise the potential of volunteers, mentors and befrienders from socially excluded or disadvantaged groups. (Last updated 06/06/2007) |
| Sustaining grants Statutory sector grants to voluntary and community groups must not be altogether replaced by contract funding says a charity coalition whose members include Navca, the Directory of Social Change and the Community Foundation Network. (Last updated 04/06/2007) |
| Service delivery contracts: bad for the sector, bad for workers, bad for services, claims union Bidding for public service delivery contracts causes voluntary organisations to abandon their campaigning work, lay off staff, and reduce working conditions. The evidence that the voluntary sector is better at providing services than the state is 'thin', and the imposition of market values and market methods is eroding the essence of voluntary work. (Last updated 01/06/2007) |
| Transfer of public buildings to community groups Local Government Minister Phil Woolas has announced a six-point action plan today to give people greater control over how key assets in their communities are run - from disused swimming baths to pubs and community centres. (Last updated 01/06/2007) |
| 'Silent' charities risk removal from the Charity Commission Register The Charity Commission is about to cull from its Register 17 000 charities deemed to be inactive because they have failed to update their registration details. (Last updated 31/05/2007) |
| Risk assessments: keep them short! The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) demolishes the myth that an organisation's risk assessment document has to be so weighty that it constitues a lifting hazard. (Last updated 31/05/2007) |
| Farewell to OVN communications officer Claire Creffield, One Voice Network's communications officer, has left the organisation to pursue a freelance career as a copywriter and editor. (Last updated 24/05/2007) |
| Does your organisation take complaints seriously enough? Many voluntary organisations are reluctant to address complaints about the services they provide, and there needs to be a much better complaints procedure for disatisfied users of public services which are delivered by voluntary groups. (Last updated 24/05/2007) |
| Volunteers Week 2007 - June 1 -7 Volunteers' Week is a national celebration of volunteers and volunteering which takes place from 1 – 7 June of each year. (Last updated 11/05/2007) |
| VCS organisations spend more on training than public sector A survey of organisations belonging to the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) on learning and development found that voluntary organisations spent £375 per employee on training, 50% more than the public sector. (Last updated 11/05/2007) |
| VCS Infrastructure Support : Mapping Current Patterns and Future Needs We have put together a questionnaire to try and capture this information, and would be very grateful if any VCS organisation which provides infrastructure support could fill this in to help with the information gathering exercise. The questionnaire needs to be returned to Joy Brindle at District of Easington Council by 18 May 2007. (Last updated 08/05/2007) |
| Building a Future For Play in the District of Easington As part of a bid to secure BIG Lottery funding to improve children’s play, Groundwork East Durham are producing a Play Strategy for the District of Easington. (Last updated 19/04/2007) |
| New Edition of 'North East Guide to Grants for Voluntary Organisations' The 9th edition of the ever popular North East Guide to Grants for Voluntary Organisations has just been published by FINE (Funding Information North East). (Last updated 19/04/2007) |
| Shaping the County Durham Local Involvement Network Report of an event held on Friday 2nd March 2007 at the Glebe Centre, Murton. (Last updated 19/04/2007) |
| Workplan for the national Compact Commission The Compact Commission, an independent body launched last year to take forward the national Compact, has announced a draft workplan. (Last updated 19/04/2007) |
| Compact breaches: Naming and shaming the offenders Government departments which aren't meeting Compact obligations have been put under the spotlight by NCVO’s Compact Advocacy Programme, which represents voluntary organisations in such cases. (Last updated 10/04/2007) |
| Have your say on how the NCVO is governed The voluntary and community sector is being encouraged to have its say as the National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO) launches a consultation on how it is governed. (Last updated 10/04/2007) |
| Capacitybuilders consultation draws to a close Capacitybuilders claims that its consultation 'Destination 2014', on national support services to the voluntary and community sector, which closed at the end of March, "has ensured that a wide range of voices from across the sector have had their say, feeding into the development of the strategic framework, which aims to identify the priorities Capacitybuilders should adopt to meet its vision and achieve its strategic objectives by 2014." (Last updated 03/04/2007) |
| Training local commissioners to purchase services from the voluntary sector A £2 million 'National Programme for Third Sector Commissioning' to help local authorities "harness the potential of the third sector to improve people's lives" is to be run by the Improvement and Development Agency (IDeA). (Last updated 20/03/2007) |
| Regional Economic Strategy Action Plan The Regional Economic Strategy (RES) Action Plan was the subject of a region wide consultation exercise until 30th January 2007. (Last updated 20/03/2007) |
| NCVO response to the Third Sector Review interim report The government's recognition of the vital campaigning role provided by voluntary and community organisations is a welcome feature of the interim report of government's 'Review of the Future Role of the Third Sector in Social and Economic Regeneration'. But what will government do - and what can it do - to ensure that voluntary organisations are in a strong position to campaign effectively? This is a question posed by NCVO in its response to the interim report. (Last updated 20/03/2007) |