Issue 563 | 04 April 2019
Call for evidence: Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee’s inqury into local government finance
In the next few week’s NAVCA will be submitting a joint response to the Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee’s inquiry into local government finance. Ahead of the Spending Review 2019 expected this autumn, the inquiry will consider how effective the existing funding set-up for local government is in providing resources to meet need and demand for local services both now and in the future.

Two of the key areas the inquiry looks to examine are:

  • What lessons can be learned from past changes to local government funding in England, the current financial situation of councils, and how this has affected their ability to deliver services.

  • The efficiency, fitness for purpose and sustainability of the current system for funding local government (central government funding, council tax, business rates retention and other income); how it could be improved, including options for widening the available sources of funding; and what lessons can be learned from other jurisdictions.

We’re keen to inform this submission with our members’ views and experiences and would like your thoughts on the questions above. We’d also like to hear evidence and examples of where creative and collaborative partnerships between local government and the local voluntary sector are delivering real value for money and improving local communities.

Please log on to NAVCA Connect for more information, or you can email our policy and research lead, Amanda Stevens to submit your evidence to us, no later than 5pm Friday 5 April.
NAVCA joins expert partnership to create voluntary sector safeguarding resources
NAVCA is one of 13 national umbrella bodies and organisations that have joined forces to help facilitate safeguarding improvement .

A comprehensive suite of free safeguarding tools and advice will soon be available to the voluntary sector following the award of £570,000 by the National Lottery Community Fund to the Safer Social Sector Partnership.

Co-ordinated by NCVO, the partnership will share their skills, knowledge and experience with the aim of ensuring that all voluntary organisations should be a safe place for beneficiaries, volunteers and staff.

The funding has been awarded by the National Lottery Community Fund as part of a joint £1.2m Safeguarding Training Fund (1) with the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS). This will allow for the development of a suite of accessible and relevant safeguarding resources, tailored to meet the needs of the full spectrum of the voluntary sector, from small community groups through to the largest organisations.

You can read more about this and access the full list of partners involved here .
News, views and opportunities
Council takes Community Waltham Forest CVS in house: our concerns
This month the London Borough of Waltham Forest announced that it was incorporating Community Waltham Forest (CWF) into its newly established ‘Connecting Communities’ team. The organisation was being run by CVS Community Southwark, however the Council has ended this contract, amid the decision to bring it in-house.

This is a rare move by a council to take a CVS back in-house. A spokesperson has said: “We believe that both residents and the sector as a whole will benefit as we look to build the Waltham Forest offer.”

NAVCA has concerns over the future independence of CWF, as well as its sustainability as an in-house council function. A vital role of a CVS is to provide an independent voice to speak on behalf of the voluntary sector, to speak truth to power and when necessary, to challenge them. This obviously becomes very difficult when the CVS is a part of the council.

We spoke to Civil Society about this story and you can read everything our business and communications lead, Tom Watson had to say, here.
Core funding report offers ‘ammunition’ for others to make the case
The Esmee Fairbairn Foundation has this week launched a report for “funders who care not just about the impact of what they fund, but the impact of how they fund.”

The organisation has gathered data and insights from research carried out over three years, looking into more than 600 grants. It has released the report with the aim of giving others “the ammunition to continue to make the case".

Insights on Core Funding sets out four recommendations which include investing in the ‘what’ and letting the funded organisation determine the ‘how’ and making longer grants. You can read more about this here and you can download the report here .
Support Staffordshire celebrates 5th birthday
Support Staffordshire celebrated its 5 th birthday in style after announcing it has secured more than £10m of inward investment over the same period – all going towards boosting local communities.

Support Staffordshire has assisted more than 1000 charities and organisations since it was formed. It marked ‘helping its members to be the best they can be’ at a special anniversary party last week, where almost 200 delegates heard how the charity provides help with funding, good governance and a range of business and back office support services.

Garry Jones, Chief Executive, said: “The voluntary sector is a very challenging environment and austerity has given many of our members significant challenges to contend with if they are going to help the communities they operate in.

“Our role has been to give them a strong voice and, importantly, cost effective access to essential services that means they can overcome these hurdles to continue to support local people in getting crucial access to transport, training, help with mental health issues and community projects that offer volunteering and job opportunities.

“The 5 th birthday party was all about celebrating what we have achieved and recognising some of ‘our stars’ that have been on the journey from the very start.”

Happy birthday to Support Staffordshire! Read more about their celebrations here.
Grants for core costs of small charities
The Masonic Charitable Foundation (MCF) has launched a new grants scheme specifically for running costs and other core costs of small charities.
Available to charities with an income of £500,000 a year or less, the grants are a maximum of £5,000 per year, over three years.

The MCF has recognised that smaller charities face difficulties in accessing funding for core costs, with many charitable foundations – including the MCF – choosing to concentrate on project-based funding. The foundation hopes that its policy shift on grant-making will help smaller charities be able to continue delivering their vital services and activities. Read more .
Digital roundup
Government urges charities to take action to prevent cyber attacks
New statistics from the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) have shown a reduction in the percentage of businesses suffering a cyber breach or attack in the last year.

The 2019 Cyber Security Breaches Survey shows that 32% of businesses identified a cyber security attack in the last 12 months - down from 43% the previous year. This is partly because of the introduction of GDPR, with 36% of charities having made changes to their cyber security policies and processes as a result of GDPR coming into force in May 2018.

The survey also showed that cyber security is becoming more of a priority issue for charities. Those charities who treated cyber security as a high priority has gone up to 75% in 2019, compared with just 53% the year before, and is now at the same level as businesses.

However, of those that did suffer attacks, the typical number of breaches has risen from 4 in 2018 to 6 in 2019. Where a breach has resulted in a loss of data or assets, the average cost of a cyber attack on an organisation has gone up by more than £1,000 since 2018 to £4,180.

Charities and businesses alike are b eing urged to do more to protect themselves against cybercrime. Take a look at the full article from DCMS where you'll find links to useful resources and specific advice about how you can improve your cyber security.
Free e-learning modules from the Charity Digital Code of Practice
Zoe Amar, Chair of the Charity Digital Code of Practice  has teamed up with the Cornwall Museums Partnership to create an e-learning project.

This includes two e-learning modules to help organisations to use the code. The first is an introduction to the code, exploring challenges faced by charities and how the code of practice can help the VCSE sector. The second module looks more closely at the principles of the code and how they can be applied to the learner’s organisation. This includes leadership, culture, strategy, skills, managing risks and adaptability.

You can read more about this here and you can access both modules on the Cornwall Museums Partnership’s  website .
Newcastle CVS has a moment…
Newcastle CVS had lots to celebrate at this year’s NAVCA Awards, winning awards for Leadership and Embracing Digital and making the shortlist for Campaigning & Advocacy and Collaboration & Partnership Working.

They summed up their achievements perfectly using a Twitter Moment, making it easy to share the experience and celebrations with their followers. Take a look.
Events
The Voluntary Regulation Conference 2019 will provide leading updates and best practice insights to ensure all charities deliver high quality regulatory compliance which supports public confidence across the voluntary sector. Attendees will hear from key policy experts and practitioners on effective financial and fundraising compliance, supporting successful transparency and reporting and ensuring charity operations meet the regulatory standards expected of the Charity Commission. Find out more and book your ticket here.
This two-day collaborative conference will provide an exciting opportunity to hear the latest research and thinking on the implementation and practice of social prescribing around the world. You will hear how social prescribing is being implemented in Canada, the Netherlands, Singapore, and Finland as well as understanding progress in the home countries of the UK.

Keynote talks and breakouts include the latest strategic information and discussion from NHS England by James Sanderson, Director of Personalised Care and a comprehensive review of the evidence for lifestyle medicine by Dr Dean Ornish, Clinical Professor of Medicine, University College San Francisco.
Jobs
Visit our  jobs page  for more details on current vacancies in the voluntary and community sector, or click on the links below:

Big Local Coordinator, Warwickshire CAVA

Also here's a   quick guide  to selling yourself when applying for a job in the voluntary sector.

Advertise jobs and contracts here, on our website and through our Twitter page! Just send details including a weblink to   webedit@navca.org.uk . This service is free to members.
Funding, contracts & awards
Our funding section is brought to you by  Community Matters Yorkshire .

The British & Foreign School Society (BFSS) is a grant giving organisation that offers charitable aid to educational projects in the UK and around the world. Deadline 15 April.

Friends Provident Foundation want to back innovative ideas and practical projects that get to the roots of the problem, that can challenge the economic status quo and help shape a future economy that works for all. Deadline 23 April.

The Leche Trust is a registered, grant-making charity (225659) founded and endowed by the late Mr. Angus Acworth CBE. Deadline 26 April.

The Childwick Trust provides funding to registered charities to assist people with disabilities, the elderly in need plus adults and children who are seriously ill, and will help towards the welfare of people involved in the horse racing industry. The Trust also supports a number of Jewish charities within the United Kingdom. Due to the large number of applications they receive they have restricted their funding geographically to the South and South East of the UK. Deadline 30 April.

The fund exists for the purpose of supporting the provision and restoration of pipe organs in the British Isles. Deadline 30 April.
Blogs
Garry Jones , CEO of Support Staffs, explores whether some charitable activity is replacing basic human connectedness.

Andy Hillier writes for Third Sector about the tide of change in Tendring, and how the local voluntary sector – supported by its local CVS - is tackling challenges and head on.
Health and social care
Getting hospital discharge right
The British red Cross has published a report which sets out recommendations to improve care when patients return home from hospital.

Home to unknown: Getting hospital discharge right focuses on research about patients’ experience of discharge from hospital and their transition from hospital to home. Although the British Red Cross has seen many examples of excellence, including successful partnerships with the voluntary and community sector in delivering home from hospital transition, the research has found a lack of consistency of provision, with many people falling through the gaps. You can read a summary of the key findings and recommendations here.
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