SW Snax

SW SNAX is the bi-monthly e-bulletin of Clinks South West VCS Development Project. It circulates the latest news about our work with the VCS, and developments in the CJS across the region to over 400 subscribers from local voluntary and statutory agencies. Sign up at the subscribe page.

Here is the latest edition:

South West Snax  :::  Issue 015  :::  1st   August 2011

 

Introduction

Welcome to Clinks South West Snax, the e-bulletin from the South West. It aims to bring you news and information relevant to the VCS working with offenders and their families in the South West region - things that may not be included in our weekly national e-bulletin, Light Lunch.

 

Clinks South West News

 

We have established a new Localism Team that broadens out the valuable work of Clinks in the South West allowing us to support the local VCS in new areas. The team will consist of the existing South West staff Laura Lavery and Louise Clark who will be joined by Jilly Vickers in London and Nathan Dick as the Localism Team Leader based in the North West. The team will have a number of tasks including work with NAVCA to encourage local infrastructure to support the VCS working with offenders, provide support to the Payment by Results and Financial Incentive Model pilots announced by NOMS, and offering time limited consultancy to local providers.  If you have any questions about the Clinks Localism Team please contact nathan.dick@clinks.org.

 

As advertised in the last edition of Snax, we carried out a survey designed to assess the needs of the voluntary sector in the South West. Many thanks for those of you who completed the survey. We want to follow up the survey with a number of telephone interviews to get a more detailed picture of the local need in the South West, if you would like to be one of the 10 interviewees please contact Laura Lavery .

 

Following feedback Clinks has set up a new online VCS network. This easy to use network will allow you to set up a profile and build relationships with fellow professionals in your field of work. You can set up or join thematic groups, get involved in discussions, share your ideas and best practice, and promote your services and events. We will be starting to take content for Light Lunch from the Network, so please post your opportunities, news and events at http://clinks.ning.com.

 

Light Lunch is the Clinks national e-bulletin sent out every Friday and the big sister of Snax. It is designed to provide national information and news on all matters relating to the CJS. If you would like to sign up please visit the clinks website to subscribe.

 

 

VCS News

 

In Dorset

Dorset has now elected VCS representatives through the PAN Dorset CJS forum to relevant boards. Another forum meeting is planned in September with further details to follow nearer the time. If you would like any further information please contact Ruth Shearn

 

In Somerset

Work is still progressing to increase partnerships and links with VCS organisations who are working with offenders and their families and with the local Integrated Offender Management (IOM) team. If you would like to be involved with this project please contact Laura Lavery

 

In Cornwall

Work in Cornwall is progressing to improve partnership work with statutory and voluntary organisations working with offenders and their families. There is keen interest from both statutory and voluntary partners to move the agenda forward. If you would like to be involved in this project or would like any further information please contact Laura Lavery

 

In Bristol, South Gloucestershire and B&NES

A dialogue continues to be developed between the CJS and VCS across this part of the region, with some partnership events planned for Autumn/Winter. Further details will be circulated later in the year.

 

In Gloucestershire

GAVCA are running a conference titled The Carrot and the Stick: Harnessing the VCS to Help Reduce Re-offending in Gloucestershire (October 14th, 10am – 3pm, Location tbc). This conference aims to share what GAVCA have learned in from their experience of involving voluntary and community organisations within Integrated Offender Management. Keynote Speakers to include Ivor Twydell Assistant Chief Constable of Gloucestershire Constabulary, plus the following practitioner workshops:

For more information, contact Hannah Gorf at GAVCA on 01452 622600 or at hannahg@gavca.org.uk

 

In Devon

Devon Reform Information Day

Devon Reform hosted a half day event at the X Centre on the 7th of July for members and affiliates. Sarah Carlsen-Browne gave an overview of the aims of Reform; focusing on building a strong collective of Third Sector Organisations and opening up communication channels with the Statutory Agencies.

 

The Devon Reform website (www.devonreform.org) will be launched in the first week of August, so the event was also a chance for members to see all the practical functions it has to offer, including an interactive map to search for support services. To put your organisation/agency on the map go to: www.devonreform.org/Organisation/

 

At the event Devon and Cornwall Partnership gave an insight into how they had utilised Reform to engage with the VCS. There were other relevant presentations from Devon & Cornwall Probation Trust. The event concluded with Erwin James, ex offender and writer for the Guardian, who gave a moving talk about his life and rehabilitation. Devon reform will continue to host events throughout the year. If you would like to know more about Reform, please email sarah@devonreform.org

 

In Wiltshire and Swindon

 Work continues to develop a network in Wiltshire. Grow Wiltshire is one of the many VCS infrastructure organisations Clinks have engaged within Wiltshire.

The Wiltshire Voluntary Sector Forum Network are holding an event titled, South and East Wiltshire Combined (September 14th, 10am – 12:30pm, Salisbury Methodist Church). Key speakers include Sandie Lewis – Head of Community Strategy, and Voluntary Sector Support, Wiltshire Council, and Tina Thompson – South West Regional Manager, The Patients Association. Location: Salisbury Methodist Church, Tea and Coffee will be provided. You can book online here. If you want to find out more about the Voluntary Sector Forum Network please click here.

 

Other South West News

 

 

The SW Local Intelligence Team for the Office of Civil Society have made the following request for the following information relating to Advice Services:

I am emailing to ask if you could please provide information/data about advice services, e.g. CAB, Age UK and specialist advice for particular groups such as refugees in your area. The Cabinet Office and No.10 are keen to understand what the impact of expenditure cuts has been on these services, how they are being funded and whether there has been any innovative practice.

 

I would be very grateful if you could give me a general overview of advice services in your locality and how these are being funded, whether there have been any mergers, organisations closing down and what the impact of this has been.

 

Then, specifically I would be very grateful if you could provide any information on the following:

 

1)      Collaboration between voluntary/community advice agencies and public sector agencies (council, JCP, health etc) which have worked well and what have been the keys to success?  How has it improved user experience? 

2)      Ideas/examples of existing success including:

  1. a.      How advice providers deal are managing fragmented/inflexible funding streams
  2. b.      Efforts to map/address duplication of advice provision within an area eg by merger/collaboration etc  What has worked and why?
  3. c.       Attempts to get funding/contracts from those that contribute to the problems of advice-seekers  (“polluter” pays) eg banks, JCP (we suspect that this will largely happen at a national level but would be interested local examples)
  4. d.      Successful examples of trying to shift advice seekers towards the most cost-efficient form of advice – eg website, telephone as opposed to face to face. 
  5. e.      Any views you might have about the cost-effectiveness/usefulness of trying to set up systems to identify user need and shift them towards the most appropriate advice channel?
  6. f.        Examples of organisations which use peer to peer support (eg using people who’ve received advice themselves in the past) ?
  7. g.      What sort of training or accreditation do advice givers have to have to be able to give advice to the public? Is this strictly managed and controlled?

 

Please send all responses to  Margaret Firth, Policy Manager, SW Local Intelligence Team by the 12th of August.

 

 

We are delighted to be able to share with you links to our newly developed Information Hub and a Discussion Group for working with women offenders in the South West. This initiative has been developed as part of our recent partnership work with NOMS South West, to enable the VCS to assist in carrying forward the Criminal Justice Women’s Policy Team’s diversion agenda in the region. The Information Hub is part of Clink’s national website, holding strategic contacts, reports and guides & resources for working with women offenders in the South West.  The Discussion Group can provide an opportunity for sharing ideas and information to further develop services and to provide a communication tool for the region. Should you wish to contribute anything to the Information Hub, please email Louise Clark with further details. You are warmly invited to join and start using the Discussion Group. Please feel free to share these links with your networks. For listing your services, you are invited to register with Clink’s Working with Offenders Directory

 

Tribal has been successful in winning Round 2 of the National Offender Management Service’s ESF-funded programme in the SW to address barriers to learning and work faced by offenders and ex-offenders.  Tribal are currently involved in the development of their ‘Tribal: new futures’ programme which is due to launch in January 2012. As part of this Tribal will establish a peer mentoring offer and hope to train around 150 peer mentors by the end of the programme. Tribal have expressed an interest in working with “other organisations that have capacity within their own resources to work with Probation Trust Case Managers and offer additional mentoring support for offenders as required”.

 

Tribal intend to appoint a mentoring co-coordinator who will run local mentoring network meetings to raise awareness of their programme and draw together regional expertise to build a coherent offender mentoring offer. If you feel that your organisation may be interested in this then email Project Administrator, Tamsyn Harwood, on tamsyn.harwood@tribalgroup.com

 

2nd Chance is running a course titled Getting ready for work with the Foundation for Learning Programme. This course focuses on Literacy, Numeracy and Employability and lasts 12 weeks, and is available as and when a person wants it (an open start date after interview). This course focuses on life skills and gives practical experience which could help participants to get a job. Sport is at the core and includes Football, Cricket, Basketball, Rugby and Self Defence and the new development of Media (Film and Music). All academic work will revolve around sport. All that is needed to succeed in this course is passion, desire and commitment to further develop your life.

For more information, contact Tony Ricketts at 2nd Chance on 01179 558764 or  tony@2ndchanceproject.co.uk

 

A group of organisations are running a conference titled Thinking ahead: The Collaboration, Leadership and Fundraising Conference (September 21st, 9.30-4.30, Future Inn Hotel, Bristol. Cost: £20 per person). This conference focuses on the critical issues facing charities, not-for-profit organisations and social enterprises. At this conference, which has been designed for Trustees, Chief Executives, Finance Directors and Senior Managers, we will demonstrate how to maximise charity investments, raise funds, seize opportunities and lead change through the volatile economic climate. This is a great opportunity for you to expand your knowledge on how to reduce operating costs, increase funds and manage the fundamental changes within the third sector.

You will also be able to meet and build relationships with other not-for-profit organisations who understand the benefits of collaboration

For more information, go to: www.thinkingaheadconference.co.uk/index.html

 

Funding Central is a free website for charities, voluntary organisations and social enterprises. The site provides access to thousands of funding and finance opportunities, plus a wealth of tools and resources supporting organisations to develop sustainable income strategies appropriate to their needs. 

The Government has announced measures which could see the SW region benefiting from a slice of a £18.2m package of funding available to English coastal towns and communities. The new fund is aimed at supporting those towns and communities who have historically been dependent on tourists and fishing for their bread and butter by encouraging them to develop other economic interests such as renewable energy and environmental improvement. Click here for more information.

 

The Bristol Fawcett Society need your help to ensure it is capturing the breadth and depth of the cuts in Bristol and how those cuts are impacting on the women who use your services and the particular challenges they face. For more information click here.

 

City of Bath College wants to build partnerships with the local community.  As part of this they are offering free rooms to charities and community groups.  This opportunity is likely to be available from January 2012, but meanwhile they would like to know:

All rooms are fully accessible and could be available evenings, Saturdays and in college holidays.

Please e-mail enquiries@developecs.org.uk with your name, organisation and answers to the questions listed above.  

 

 

South West Snax Holiday Tips

Tip I Oxford Country Hotel including breakfast and 3 course dinner for 2: £99 click here for more details

Tip II  Boutique Hampshire Hotel with wine and upgrade for £95 for 2 click here for more details.      

Tip III  New Forest break with dinner and champagne £95 click here for more details.

 

Clinks South West VCS Development Project is funded by the Tudor LankellyChase Partnership.

 

To contribute to South West Snax or make suggestions for future content, please contact Nathan Dick  or Laura Lavery or Louise Clark.

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