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Real Help for Communities Roadshow round up from the Charity Commission
Experts from the Charity Commission’s Merger Team held one to one surgeries and helped deliver the Modernisation Fund Workshops at all 9 regional roadshows.
Roadshow delegates were interested in collaborative working and mergers but had concerns about the resources required, how to find the right partner/s and were not clear about the rules governing the process.
From queries about governing documents to details about possible structures the Charity Commission can provide help and advice. Visit www.charitycommission.gov.uk or email enquiries@charitycommission.gov.uk
Modernisation Fund grants programme
More than 1,000 frontline groups have been offered bursaries as part of the £1m of support from the first phase of the grants programme. Delivered by Capacitybuilders the fund is designed to help frontline organisations explore the benefits of collaboration or merger as a means of becoming more resilient in the face of the downturn.
Phase 2 of the grants element of the fund will open in the autumn. For more information please visit www.modernisationfund.org.uk
Modernisation Fund loans programme
There have been 309 enquiries to date for this interest free loan funding and negotiations are currently proceeding with 64 third sector organisations to provide loans totalling more than £10m.
The loan fund is designed to support third sector organisations with existing plans for merger or collaboration or which are taking other steps to adapt to the impact of the recession.
DWP Volunteer Brokerage
This package of Government support provides all long term unemployed people with more intensive support to help them find their way back to work.
Volunteering is a key element of this offer as it can help jobseekers develop and maintain useful skills for work, benefiting the individual and wider community.
To ensure long-term unemployed people can access work-focused volunteering opportunities, three lead organisations have been appointed to broker opportunities for Jobcentre Plus customers.
The lead organisations are;
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BCTV in England dwp-volunteering@btcv.org.uk
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Volunteer Development Scotland (VDS) in Scotland (01786 479593)
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Wales Council for Voluntary Action (WCVA) in Wales (0800 2888 329)
Building Stronger Communities Business and the Third Sector: Innovation in Tough Times
The report from the Building Stronger Communities Taskforce calls on businesses, the government and the third sector to help develop stronger and more innovative partnerships to provide practical help for communities at risk of fracture due to the recession.
The report details a series of good practice examples and outlines ten recommendations under three priorities for action: building closer connections between the sectors at local level, the importance of downsizing responsibly, and investment in innovative partnerships.
Led by Dame Julia Cleverdon the Taskforce was commissioned by the Office of the Third Sector and supported by Business in the Community. For more information about the work of the Taskforce and to download the report visit
www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/third_sector/news/news_stories/090721_building_stronger_communities.aspx
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