Voluntary Action Camden

New round of the Innovation Fund launched.  Camden Blueprint report is now out, looking at the experience of neighbourhood planning in Somers Town and Bloomsbury. Job adverts from Volunteer Centre Camden and the Pirate Castle.  

 

NEWS

The launch of the Innovation and Development Fund

Camden Council have now launched another round of funding from the Innovation and Development fund and are actively seeking new ideas that address ingrained social problems. They are looking for new, bold and better solutions to those issues we have yet to really overcome or areas where the existing solution is simply out of date.

The fund is open to:

• not-for-profit organisations based/operating in Camden

• all Camden residents

• non-constituted groups based/operating in Camden

The Council can invest in ideas put forward by individuals or non-constituted groups, but will then match you with a local voluntary and community organisation that has the skills and resources to support your idea. An applicant may only lead on one application but they may partner on more than one application. See the application form and guidance available here.

The fund is not open to:

• statutory organisations

• organisations making a surplus or profit which is not reinvested for social benefit

• organisations promoting political or religious beliefs/practice

Deadline – Midnight, Sunday 12th August

Camden Blueprint Project; Testing neighbourhood planning in Bloomsbury and Somers Town

The Camden Blueprint Project has set out to test neighbourhood planning in two inner London neighbourhoods. The intention has been to use methods that mobilise as many people as possible, address issues of access and equality, and highlight the importance of having the capacity to deliver neighbourhood planning through effective community development work and independent technical aid. You can view the report here.

Travelling During the Olympics? The London 2012 interactive travel map shows which tube stations are expected to be particularly busy. Chose your date with the date slider at the top of the map to display the busy stations for that day. Access the map at www.getaheadofthegames.com along with other information.

Opportunity to run a Café Bar

Come and run a Café Bar in Kingsgate Community Association. Situated in Kingsgate Road, off Kilburn High Road the café provides lots of potential for an individual or business to work in partnership with Kingsgate Community Association to help us meet our objective of providing healthy affordable food for centre users as well as the wider community. The café is currently unfurnished but we would be willing to look at a contribution towards equipment costs if you were able to support our aims. The space is offered at £600 per month exclusive of bills.

We are asking potential providers to submit an expression of interest, full details of the application process can be downloaded from our website www.kingsgatecommunitycentre.org.uk . The closing date for submissions is Tuesday 31st July. We would like the café bar to be up and running by October or sooner if possible.

You may wish to come along to one of our two open days before submitting your application. Thursday 5th July /Wednesday 11th July. Talk through your plans with our Centre Director, Donna Liburd and get an opportunity to view the café area at first hand and see for yourself the great potential on offer.

If you require any further information please ring: 020 7328 9480

HCCT has been awarded funding from UK Online Centre to work specifically with people with mental health needs and on-going health conditions.

Get Online for the first time or gain confidence in a cosy, friendly environment

Follow a supported, self directed course “Online Basics” and gain a certificate.

Gain the skills and knowledge to access online resources in small groups or one-to-one with an experienced volunteer tutor.

Use social media and make your own blog with digital photos or contribute to our newsletter.

Sessions are on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 11am to 1pm.

Interested parties should call 0207 278 8687 to book a slot or email. opportunities@hcct.org.uk

For more information on services visit the Holy Cross Centre Trust website.

Charity in the News

Rowan Williams pours scorn on David Cameron’s ‘big society’

Key policy ‘comes across as waffle’, says archbishop of Canterbury in valedictory bombshell. See the Guardian for the full story.

Inquiry into Camden Road Surgery closure raises concerns about remaining privately-run practices

Camden Road Surgery closed on April 13, four years after it was taken over by American health giant UnitedHealth, leaving more than 4,500 patients without a doctor.

The inquiry panel of three councillors – chaired by Labour councillor Angela Mason – said there was an “urgent need” to find a replacement for the closed surgery, adding: “We remain concerned about the remaining two contracts held by The Practice at the Bruns­wick Centre and King’s Cross, as contracts will end in 2013.”

Kentish Town Neighbourhood Forum are creating a neighbourhood plan for Kentish Town. You can get involved at two public meetings to be held on 3rd and 5th July at St Lukes, Osney Crescent, NW5. Find out more at www.ktnf.org.

New Planning Resource from Community Matters. Community Matters have produced an interactive planning tool that turns planning into a game. It’s free to download from the Community Matters website.

Is a Council home for life? Let Camden Council have your views

For over 30 years, social landlords have only been able to offer lifetime tenancies. The law has changed and social landlords can now offer new tenants fixed term tenancies of five years or longer. This change does not affect existing tenants, who will keep their security of tenure even if they move to another social rented home. If you live in Camden, whether you are a Council tenant or not, Camden Council wants to know if you think they should offer new tenants fixed term tenancies.

The law about who should inherit a Council tenancy after a tenant dies has also changed for new tenancies. The law now only gives partners the right to inherit a tenancy. Should the council allow any other relatives to inherit a Council tenancy.

Please complete the survey by 25 July 2012

Read the factsheet and complete a survey available at: www.camden.gov.uk/homeforlife

Local Energy Adventure Partnership, Micro Anaerobic Digestion. A revolution in urban food waste management is brewing! Today, 18 million tonnes of the UK’s edible food ends up in landfill. Valued at £23 billion and rising, this is costly and bad for the environment with London’s food waste alone representing 6.3 million tonnes of greenhouse gases.

Instead, we could be using this waste to help power and feed our cities using anaerobic digestion (AD), a renewable technology that transforms food and other organic wastes into clean, renewable fuel and fertiliser.

LEAP is a Camden-based not-for-profit partnership developing cost-effective micro AD for urban applications.

To find out more contact us on: 020 8888 6293, 07587 200811 email leap@creativehealthlab.com

Volunteer Centre Camden, Pirate Castle, Camden New Town Festival and Camden Community Nurseries are recruiting. See Jobs and Volunteers section below.

Camden Shares. The website for exchanges in Camden. Current offers include Italian lessons and IT Training. Current requests include; help with Facebook and piano lessons. You can view all of the available offers at www.camdenshares.org.uk

You can read more about all
of these stories on our news page at www.vac.org.uk/new

FUNDING NEWS

See the Funding pages on VAC’s website for all the latest information.

Small grants for volunteering

Volunteer Centre Camden has been funded by the London Borough of Camden to provide small grants for volunteering. In 2012 the priority for these grants will be providing volunteering opportunities for people aged 14-17. For full details and to apply online please go to the Volunteer Centre Camden website.

VAC EVENTS

VAC
has a full programme of courses coming up: Click
here to find out more. All courses are £25 for members (unless otherwise stated).

VAC are running Quality Assurance Surgeries. Please contact Somanah Achadoo for more information or to arrange an hour surgery session. Sachadoo@vac.org.uk

OTHER EVENTS

Spanish Saturday School

http://casalatina.org.uk/saturday-school/

Saturday 10am – 1pm; Native Teachers; For children aged 5 – 10; Tel.: 020 7372 8653

Also : OFFICE SPACE AND HALL AVAILABLE TO HIRE AT LATIN AMERICAN HOUSE

Latin American House — Community Learning Centre

10 Kingsgate Place, London NW6 4TA

Tel 020 7372 8653 Fax 020 7372 5650

learn@casalatina.org.uk www.casalatina.org.uk

Elfrida Rathbone Camden is hosting a pub quiz.

Come and support this local charity that works with families, parents and young disabled people.

Wednesday 4 July, from 6.30 for a prompt 7pm start

Assembly House, 292-294 Kentish Town Road

Cost: £2 per person – all proceeds go to ERC

• Exciting prizes and a raffle on the night (£1 a ticket)

• Everyone is welcome – feel free to pass this invitation on

• Haven’t got a team? We’ll help put teams together on the night

• If you are able to come, please email amanda@elfridacamden.org.uk to give us an idea of numbers.

Elfrida Rathbone Camden, 7 Dowdney Close, London NW5 2BP

Tel: 020 7424 1601 Web: www.elfridacamden.org.uk

Camden’s Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service focus group, 4 July, 10am – 12pm

Regents Park Children’s Centre, Augustus St., London NW1 3TJ

Camden CAMHS supports young people, their families and carers who are experiencing emotional, behavioural or mental health problems. If you would like to have your say about these services please contact sandra.soteriou@camden.gov.uk on call 020 7974 5450.

Alternative Perspectives: The Case for Culturally Sensitive Services. 5th July 2012

In partnership with the Afiya Trust, Voice 4 Change and the Federation of Irish Societies, the London Irish Centre is hosting a one day conference focusing on the role and relevance of culturally sensitive services in health and social care under the new commissioning systems.

Workshops include:

1. Before Breaking Point: Strategies to improve BME engagement with mental health services

2. A modern model – Developing BME consortia

3. Multiple Discrimination in health and care

4. From Big Lottery Fund to grass-roots delivery: A funders perspective

The conference is taking place on July 5 in the London Irish Centre. Full details can be found at http://alternativeperspectives.eventbrite.com/

Volunteer Impact Assessment Training, 3rd July 2012, 2-4pm.

The session will help you to:

~ Explore what is meant by ‘Impact Assessment’ in the context of volunteering and get to grips with the model used in the Volunteering Impact Assessment Toolkit

~ Consider the benefits of impact assessment for your organisation

~ Look at how to carry out an assessment using a range of different tools provided in the toolkit

~ Review different approaches to publishing your findings and promoting your achievements

All participants will receive a copy of the Volunteering Impact Assessment Toolkit and will develop their own action plans to help implement the assessment in the work place.

Non members price: £75.00 VCC members price: £0.00. Full details on the VCC website.

African Diaspora and Development Day (AD3) 2012 – ‘Africa-Gives’ 4 & 7 July

African Diaspora and Development Day (AD3) 2012 is aimed at young Africans between the ages of 18 to 35.

This year’s AD3 will focus on the theme of New African Philanthropy and will take place over two days.

First there will be a morning launch of a new initiative and giving platform ‘Africa-Gives’ on 4 July which will be held at the Royal Institute of International Affairs, Chatham House, 10 St James’s Square London SW1Y 4LE. This will be followed by a one-day conference on ‘Africa-Gives’ on 7 July at the Brunei Gallery, SOAS, University of London, Thornhaugh Street, Russell Square, London WC1H 0XG.

Come and join us at our AD3 events if you are:

• A young person of African heritage

• Between the ages of 18 to 35

• Second or third generation person of African heritage with an interest in giving to and benefiting from Africa

• Have an interest in supporting the initiative ‘Africa-Gives’

To register for

(a) Launch of Africa-Gives on 4 July, please register online using the following link: http://www.chathamhouse.org/events/view/184149

(b) Africa-Gives Conference on 7 July, please email events@afford-uk.org.

Further information on the website at www.afford-uk.org

Social Enterprise London: Going for growth helping you to map out the issues

- does your governance remain fit for purpose?

- are you ready for investment and new forms of funding?

- opportunities for new ways of working e.g. collaborations

- is your legal vehicle still the most appropriate model?

- do you know the value of your brand and intellectual property, and are you protecting it?

Join Social Enterprise London at our morning corporate networking event with Hempsons.

10th July 2012, 10am-noon, 21 Garden Walk, London EC2A3EQ, Free

Join us for our morning event over refreshments. Click here to sign up for free.

If you have any queries, please email events@sel.org.uk or call 020 7033 2607

King’s Cross Festival On Saturday 14th July 2012 at Coram’s Fields 93 Guilford Street, London WC1N 1DN

12.00-5.00pm. This year we have; Music; Dance; Arts & crafts; Healthy Activities; Free Face Painting; Youth & Children’s Activities; Food & drinks; Stalls & Funfair rides.

For more information contact Nasim Ali on 020 7278 5635 Email: nasim.ali@kcbna.org.uk

Community Preview at the British Museum of ‘Shakespeare Staging the World’

Sunday 15 July 2012, 11.00–17.00

To book your free tickets* please email hbahra@britishmuseum.org before Friday 29 June stating:

• Name of your community group and group leader

• Number of tickets required (maximum 20 tickets)

• Preferred entry time to exhibition between 11.00 and 16.00

• Postal address to send tickets

For more information about the exhibition visit the British Museum website.

If you work with a supplementary school there will a free training session all about how to bring your students and their families to see the Shakespeare exhibition, from 2 – 5pm on the 15th July. A separate weekend for supplementary schools to visit the exhibition will take place in October. Please let me know if you would like to attend the training on the 15th July and would like more information regarding this opportunity.

Gaining Power- Challenges Facing Activists

19th July 2012 – 10.00am – 4.00pm at Resource For London, 356 Holloway Road, London N7 6PA

The next NatCAN conference will be held in London for the first time and we hope that you will be there to join us.

The day will look at the issues close to our hearts and give real accounts of work across the country that has made a real difference to communities. We will be providing lots of time to take part in discussions with others, as requested by members of NatCAN.

Free event, but you do need to enroll on the NatCAN website.Click on this link to attend. Confirmation of speakers and further information to follow.

Don’t forget that Camden TDS
run a full programme of course which are subsidised or free for
voluntary sector partner organisations. There is a link to a list of
partner organisations on the home page.

Find more
Training Opportunities at www.vac.org.uk

JOBS AND VOLUNTEERS

Volunteer Centre Camden seeks Best Practice Support Manager, SO 2, £30351pro rata plus 6% pension contribution. 37.5 per week. Contract until May 2014.

VCC are looking for someone who has an excellent knowledge of best practice in volunteer involvement, and is passionate about sharing this expertise. Successful candidates will have managed volunteers in at least 2 different settings.

The Manager will provide a quality service to volunteer involving organisations in Camden, primarily through one to one support. The focus of the role is to enable groups to grow and develop their volunteer involvement in line with recognised best practice. You will do this through taking a positive, and supportive approach. Managing a team of volunteer membership coordinators’ you will ensure that Volunteer Centre Camden is able to deliver an excellent service, and become recognised as a valued partner. The service developed will be inclusive, adaptable and able to respond well to the external environment. The Best Practice Support Manager will be responsible for monitoring outputs and outcomes, and managing external communications with members and prospective member organisations.

Details of the post and how to apply can be found on our website http://www.volunteercentrecamden.org.uk/pages/recruitment.html.

Volunteer Centre Camden is committed to equality and diversity and welcomes applications from all sections of the community.

The deadline for completed applications is 9am 23rd July. Interviews will be held on 6h August 2012.

Completed applications should be emailed to recruitment@volunteercentrecamden.org.uk. Late applications and CV’s will not be considered.

The Pirate Castle – Job Vacancy Role: General Manager

Summary: Reporting to the Trustees, the General Manager has overall responsibility for the charity’s operations, general management and fundraising efforts. Part time applicants will also be considered for the role but Fundraising experience is considered vital. Salary range £30,000 negotiable.

Background: The Pirate Castle is a community charity of long standing and high reputation, located in the heart of Camden Town, London. Following a period of significant investment, the charity has rapidly expanded its operations over recent years, providing charitable, community and private use of its Canal Boats, Canoes and Kayaks and Community Centre Building. For family reasons the current Manager has given notice and the Charity is seeking a replacement. More details about the charity can be found at www.thepiratecastle.org

Please send CV, covering letter and any queries to Charles Brock, charles@thepiratecastle.org

Camden New Town Community Festival 22 JULY 2012 Volunteering opportunities with

The Community Festival has been running since 1999. Its aim is to draw together the members of our very diverse local community. We do this by developing partnerships so that many people can take part in and enjoy a wide range of events over a summer weekend. This year the Festival will happen in Camden Square on Sunday July 22nd with some preparations on Saturday 21st July 2012.

Interested in Helping?

You can help by being a Volunteer Steward on the weekend. We ask you to commit to a 3 hour time slot so we can plan to have enough cover. This will still leave you plenty of time to enjoy the Festival when you are not on duty. You can do more than one slot if you wish. We will give you training.

Contact: David Walters & Judy Powell at Maiden Lane Community Centre on 0207 267 9586. Email: davemlcc@yahoo.co.uk

Treasurer Wanted

Camden Community Nurseries is a friendly, parent-led, local charity that wishes to appoint a Treasurer to provide financial leadership to the board at a time of expansion.

For more than 35 years CCN has been promoting and delivering a quality programme of affordably priced early years education and care for Camden’s diverse population.

The Treasurer has the role of overseeing the financial matters of the charity, reporting to the management committee about the financial health of the organisation. The Treasurer will ensure that effective financial measures, controls and procedures are put in place, and are appropriate for the charity. Overall responsibility for financial matters rests collectively with all trustees. If you are interested in volunteering for this position please contact us for the full role description or view it online and send a CV with covering letter by Friday 6th July 2012 to: Dr Harriet Atkinson, Trustee, Camden Community Nurseries c/o 121 Leighton Road, London NW5 2RB or by e-mail to harriet.atkinson@camdencommunitynurseries.org.uk.

Volunteer Bank

Volunteer Bank is a new service offered by Volunteer Centre Camden, which shall cater for organisations looking for specific skills in their volunteers.

It is to assist organisations in finding the volunteers they need with the experience to back their skills.

Volunteers and organisations will sign up to the service and organisations will look through the bank to find the volunteers with the specific skills they are looking for.

For more information you can visit the website www.volunteerbank.org.uk or alternatively e-mail Kayleigh at kayleigh@volunteercentrecamden.org.uk

Find Jobs and Volunteering
opportunities at www.vac.org.uk/2010/08/jobs-volunteers/

OFFERS

Are you a young disabled person between the ages of 16 – 30 years?

Train to be a Volunteer or a Volunteer Peer Mentor for the ‘The Skill Up For Volunteering project’. This is a fantastic opportunity for young disabled people to join a creative three day course to prepare them for a voluntary role in the community. Young people have found that it’s a great way to improve confidence, self-esteem, work preparedness, and to help them feel useful and a part of the community. Contact Ali at Elfrida Rathbone on 0791719606 or Leah on 0207 424 1624 or email ali@elfridacamden.org.uk

Debt Advice A New Service for Camden Residents who are suffering from Mental Health problems to give them easy access to free debt advice. CAB can advise on any debt problem, large or small:

rent or mortgage arrears, court claims, benefit over payment, electricity or gas debt, credit card and bank overdraft.

For referrals or self-referrals, please call and leave a message on: 020 7430 5093 or 07986 118 027

Did you know the average family wastes £50 a month on food that is not eaten!?

North London Waste Authority’s food waste advisors are offering community groups in north London the opportunity to receive a presentation or workshop highlighting the problem with food waste, and providing practical solutions to help save money.

The food waste advisors will share their best tips and pass on tools to help people make the most of their food and highlight how throwing away good food can easily be avoided.

The informative presentations and interactive workshops can be tailored to fit your session but usually last 1 hour – and they are FREE!

However, availability is limited and places fill up fast so book early to avoid disappointment.

To arrange a presentation please contact Luke Rice: luke.rice@nlwa.gov.uk (02084 895741).

www.lovefoodhatewaste.com

Fundraising & Income Generation. VAC will continue to offer fundraising support such as:

1. The fundraising pages on VAC website provides quick access to funding information & tools as required.

2. VAC weekly e-newsletter released every Friday, will provide all news updates on funding environment, opportunities and new trends. Please look out for this regularly. If you do not receive it after the 21st of June, please email knunan@vac.org.uk to request it.

3. The popular Grant finder on-line search engine is still available for you to access anytime free, by coming into VAC to be logged in to use it. VAC members only.

FREE VAC and VCC Membership for Unfunded Groups: Voluntary Action Camden and Volunteer Centre Camden have joined forces to offer you a special membership deal. Small organisations with no paid staff and a turnover of less than £1,500 can now join both organisations for FREE. To take advantage of this offer just fill in the membership form which can be downloaded from the VAC website or you can enter your details via our sector survey here.

Looking
for a meeting room to hire? Or a hall for your activity or an office to
let? Don’t forget to try www.camdencommunityspace.org.uk

You can now follow VAC on Facebook.

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To get discounts on
training, room
hire and many more benefits click here to join
Voluntary Action Camden

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If you have an item for the
newsletter, please email it to Kevin Nunan, knunan@vac.org.uk
with a note of which section you would like it to appear under.