‘Flush and grow’ is a great title for a project. This is what Bayer Street Allotments Association have called their new project, which will help people in Coseley grow more green-fingered thanks to a grant of £10,000 from Awards for All. It’s been both fun and fascinating to support this group of volunteers who’ve given so much of their time to the community in recent months.
voluntary groups
Dudley groups that got involved in Small Charity Week
I just wanted to say a big ‘THANK YOU!’ to everyone who got involved in Small Charity Week in Dudley borough and to highlight the organisations that joined in our conversations.
We had quite a few conversations online and some busy activities that I really hope were useful and stimulating for everyone that joined in.
Helping the small charities that do awesome work right here in Dudley
This week is Small Charity Week, an annual and national celebration of the great work of charities, voluntary and community groups and social enterprises that have an income of up to £1.5million. Don’t forget to get involved throughout the week – click this link to see how!
I wanted to share my experience of supporting groups across the last year (April 2015-March 2016), what I’ve helped them with, the amazing people I’ve got to know along the way and the wonderful work they do to enrich people’s lives across Dudley borough.
Supporting groups in numbers
Here’s a little infographic I’ve made that should give you more information about the work I’ve been doing to support groups.
Many people get in touch with me wanting support with paperwork and registration (whether as a charity, a company limited by guarantee or a CIC). These kinds of things really seem to daunt people, but honestly, they’re the easiest part of getting up and running and in many cases, they shouldn’t be the starting point. What I’m always keen to do is getting out and supporting people, hopefully taking that fear away and taking the time to work with individuals on what they want to achieve, bringing people together and helping them plot and develop into a team. Paperwork and structures alone don’t make a successful group. Conversely, getting the foundations right by supporting people to understand what they want to achieve and why, building a shared vision can tell us what structure and paperwork is best suited and necessary to the group.
A good example is the work Donna and I did to support Friends of Lye and Wollescote Cemetery, a 
group of people that had been volunteering on the site supported by West Midlands Historic Buildings Trust. They wanted to ensure that they still had a way to liaise with the local authority and to continue volunteering onsite once West Midlands Historic Buildings Trust’s funded project had come to an end. We worked with the volunteers using a variation of Team Canvas, to get them thinking as a collective about their vision, the great skills each of them brought to the group, the kinds of activities they would like to do in the short, medium and longer term. We also got the group thinking about specific things that people could do to support the group, from keeping a list of members, to looking after the Facebook group and leading guided walks. Finally, we collectively d
eveloped a short constitution to get all of this into writing.
It’s been lovely to take other groups, such as Coseley Working Together, Together We Strive CIC, Dudley Youth Council, Ehsas Carers, Friends of Hay Green Recreation Ground and others, on a similar journey.
Particular highlights have included:
- Seeing the launch of Black Country Integration Project, which works to challenge prejudice and
to bring communities together - Working with determined volunteers to resurrect Friday Night Lower Gornal Youth Club
- Meeting members of the Roma Gypsy community and supporting them to set up a group, now called Reaching Out For Change, using Google Translate to get over our language barrier!
So that was my year. I’m already enjoying the challenges of this one and I’m looking forward to sharing more about the amazing work that Dudley’s community groups, charities, social enterprises, volunteers and active citizens do every day.
Join Dudley borough’s first voluntary and community sector unconference
It’s great to invite anyone involved in the voluntary and community sector (or anyone that wants to learn more about it) to the brand new Bostin Summer Camp! We’re looking for people with a passion for the voluntary and community sector to join us on the day.
What on earth is Bostin Summer Camp?
Bostin Summer Camp is a new event for people that have an interest in Dudley borough’s voluntary and community sector organisations to connect, listen and learn from each other.
So if you’re from a voluntary and community sector organisation or if you’d like to know more about the changes, challenges and opportunities they are responding to in Dudley borough, then Bostin Summer Camp is for you!
The event will be run as an unconference. This means there won’t be an agenda set before the day so participants get to decide what’s important to talk about on the day. All you need is a desire to learn. Lorna, who’s co-organising Bostin Summer Camp has participated in a few unconferences now and has written about why she loves them! I’ve been involved in one unconference so far (VCSSCamp) and I love how open, unpressured and collaborative they are.
How you can get involved
Come along to Bostin Summer Camp on Thursday 21 July, join in the discussions as you please, make connections and learn. You can book your place here. It’s completely free to attend and you don’t need to be from Dudley borough or the voluntary and community sector.
Be a co-organiser: Don’t worry, we wont ask you to do too much! We already have a date and a venue. It would be awesome if people could join us in promoting the event, sharing on social media, being a friendly face to welcome people on the day, helping to facilitate building the agenda on the day etc. If you’d like to chip in, please do let us know!
Pitch a topic on the day or get discussing possible topics on the Bostin Summer Camp blog or by tweeting with the hashtag #bostinsummercamp. There’s no need to wait until the event to join the conversation!
Celebrate Small Charity Week with us!
We’re really pleased to be joining Small Charity Week (13th-18th June) again this year and want to invite Dudley borough’s small charities to help us celebrate and put your organisation and Dudley on the map!
“Small Charity Week celebrates and raises awareness of the essential work of the UK’s small charity sector who make an invaluable contribution to the lives of millions of individuals, communities and causes across the UK and the rest of the world.
Small Charity Week is brought to you by the Foundation for Social Improvement (FSI), who with the support of partner organisations ensure the work of small charities is recognised and celebrated.”
The FSI defines small charities as charities and CICs that have an annual turnover of under £1.5million and we know that that will cover a lot of community organisations in Dudley borough, because the overwhelming majority of charities are small.
Like last year, the week is divided into themed days, and here’s how you can get involved:
- Monday 13th June – join the #ILoveSmallCharities celebrations on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram by by posting a photo of yourself holding a poster showing why you love your small charity? You could get your members and supporters to join in too! And doing so could win your charity up to £450 in the process. Visit the #ILoveSmallCharities page for more information. I’ll be joining in by posting some stories here about some of the small charities I’ve recently supported.
- Tuesday 14th June is Big Advice Day – Eileen and I will be on hand at DY1, Dudley for a special, mid-month DY1 stop shop. Pop into DY1 between 10am and 4pm to get guidance on any topic to do with running a voluntary and community organisation. We can cover topics such as:
– setting up
– legal structures and compliance
– policies
– asset transfer and development
– fundraising and finance
– involving and supporting volunteers
– planning
– promotion and marketing
And if you can’t make it, we’ll be monitoring our Twitter, Facebook and this here blog so that you can ask questions virtually.
- On Policy Day, Wednesday 15th June, our friend and colleague Donna Roberts will be sharing how Working Together for Change, Dudley borough’s parent-carer forum, has successfully worked with and influenced decision-makers in the design and delivery of local services. Look out for her hints and tips on this blog.
- Thursday 16th June is Fundraising Day – you’re invited to Synergy, the peer support network for Dudley borough’s charities and social enterprises, organised by our friend Andy Mullaney. Martin Jones, our Funding Officer, will be joining the event to share his insight and experiences when it comes to raising money for your cause. The event will be held at DY1, Dudley, 10am-12noon.
- And finally! Friday 17th June is Volunteering Day – Eileen is planning a networking and support event for local small charities, including social enterprises, who involve volunteers. There’ll be an opportunity to meet new people, build connections and find out who’s out there to support, with hints and tips on the best way to involve volunteers. The event will run from 10am-12 noon. If you’d like to join this event, please book your place on Eventbrite.
We hope you’ll be able to join some of these activities and join us in celebrating the wonderful work our small charities do day in, day out.
Gornal volunteers helping to #keepdudleybostin
People in Lower Gornal have rallied, mobilised and rolled up their sleeves to reopen the Friday night youth club at Lower Gornal Youth Centre, and I’ve really enjoyed supporting them to make it happen!
DY1-stop shop: Open door for anyone involved or wanting to be involved in community initiatives, charities or enterprises
On Wednesday 2nd March, Eileen and I are launching DY1-stop shop! We’ll be throwing open DY1’s doors to anyone who wants to chat through anything to do with:
- Setting up a project or group – information and guidance on how to get started, what routes you could take, how to get support
- Running a charity or voluntary organisation – you might want information on leading an organisation, responsibilities of being a trustee, compliance, help with rules and paperwork, finance, planning
- Recruiting and supporting people to help run your group or activities – you might be looking for volunteers or helpers to make great things happen
- Getting more active in your community – you might be interested in volunteering, joining local groups, clubs and organisations
- Connecting with other organisations
Whether you’re from an existing voluntary group, charity or social enterprise, or you’d like to do more to support your community, come along to get your questions answered, generate ideas and feel supported all over a friendly cuppa!
Drop in on us anytime between 10am and 1pm in the coffee shop area of DY1, Stafford Street, Dudley, DY1 1RT. This will continue on the first Wednesday of every month.
We’re looking forward to meeting you there!
Can you name two or more local charities?
Source: gratisography.com
If you can name two or more local charities, you’re part of only 10% of the public that can – that’s according to research carried out by TSB Bank as reported by Civil Society.
Integrated Plus – the role of the Locality Link Officers in Dudley borough
Future in safe hands: working with Dudley Youth Council
As everyone’s winding down for Christmas, I’ve been thinking about things I’m looking forward to in the new year when I come back to work re-energised. One group I’m really excited to be working with more closely is Dudley Youth Council.
Dudley CVS blog 