Great examples of what some volunteers do with their time could been seen in Awards for Outstanding Achievements at the Pride of Tameside Volunteer and Community Award held in June 2013 and arranged by CVAT. Awards for Outstanding Achievements were presented to individuals and groups in recognition of the valuable contribution they have made to life in Tameside.

The evening was a huge success with over 200 people attending. Presentations were made by The Worshipful The Civic Mayor of Tameside — Councillor Joe Kitchen who voiced his feelings on the important commitment made by all of Tameside’s volunteers and thanked everyone involved. Photos and lists of winners are inside this edition.

Remember, make every minute count!In this edition, we’re focusing on how volunteering and voluntary groups make a real difference to our borough, and how we can help you to help yourself and to help others.

Last year the UK’s biggest single day of volunteering, Make a Difference (MAD) day, saw over 70,000 people take action to benefit their local area. Following the success of MAD in 2012, it is no longer just a day but a whole month; 31 days to do something which improves your quality of life and makes a difference to our community.

This can be anything from volunteering for the first time to asking for volunteers from a business to take on your Community Challenges, or you could help raise funds for Tameside 4 Good, the list is endless. Register at www.makeadifference.org.uk and contact CVAT to see how we can help you make a difference.

The essence of Make a Difference day brings the spirit of the London Olympics when the UK came together. Which brings me onto Britain’s Personal Best, a chance for us to recreate that summer of togetherness. Register as an individual or an organisation at www.britainspersonalbest.org.uk also tell CVAT how you are getting involved and you could star in our next newsletter.

Sue Vickers Deputy Chief Executive & Director of Volunteering

There are 10,080 minutes in your week. What are you doing with yours?

NEWS Edition 5 Autumn 2013

Community & Voluntary Action Tameside

Issue Highlights...CVAT News ............................ pages 2–3Community News ................... pages 6–7Make Connections ..................pages 8–9Volunteering News ...............pages 10–13Focus on cvat.org.uk ...........pages 14–15Healthwatch News ......................page 16Funding News ............................page 18Training & Events ........................page 19

Saying goodbye to the people you work with can be a sad affair, but it’s also a celebration of their next step in life. We want to take a moment to thank the following staff who we recently waved au reviour to.

Volunteer Centre Manager, Ben Stoddard, said goodbye to us in July as he moved on to become the new Project Manager at Tameside Sight. This is a fantastic opportunity and we know that he will be an asset to the organisation. Our Volunteer Centre also said goodbye to Project Development Worker, Paul Moss, but we said a huge congratulations to Sasha Jackson who will take on a new role of Volunteer Development Worker (see page 12).

We also said goodbye to Tameside LINk and hello to Healthwatch Tameside, and with that goodbye to Tamenha Khan and Ruth Madden...good luck to the pair of them from us all here at CVAT. In saying hello to Healthwatch, we welcome Michelle Wood as the new Healthwatch Officer, and a massive congratulations to one of our Community Organisers, Sue Pomfret who has been appointed as the second Healthwatch Officer. For more Healthwatch news, see page 16.

In celebrating the team we also say a massive congratulations to Amanda Benson and Vashti Holland, two members of the Development Team, who have recently gained new qualifications.

Gaining her PTLLS qualification, Amanda said: “I really enjoyed doing my recent Preparing to Teach in the Lifelong Learning Sector (PTLLS) qualification. It was great to meet other people from the voluntary sector, learn new training techniques and share ideas for making our training programme both high quality and as relevant as possible for our local groups. It also gave me a wonderful confidence boost to realise that much of what we already do in our training is considered to be ‘best practice!”.

Vashti has now been awarded her Post Graduate Certificate of Education (PGCE) in Teaching in the Learning and Skills sector.

This professional qualification is for people teaching in further education colleges, adult education, higher education, and a wide range of other training and educational settings that are outside the schools sector. This award is presented by Huddersfield University.

Congratulations to the pair of them from us all, board, staff and volunteers, we know how hard you’ve worked and we’re so proud of you.

Councillors find out more about CVATCouncillors from across Tameside visited CVAT’s 131 Katherine Street offices on the afternoon of Thursday 11 July to find out more about the work of CVAT, and help us understand how we can work more closely with elected members to support community activity.

During the event we were proud to present the findings of the Tameside State of the Voluntary Sector 2013 Report. This research was conducted by Sheffield Hallam University on the social and economic impact of the voluntary sector across Tameside. We are keen to ensure that this powerful research reaches as many people as possible so if you know of an opportunity to share the details do let us know. Read more here: www.cvat.org.uk/stateofthesector

It was great to also highlight recent local developments with councillors from the Tameside 4 Good grants www.tameside4good.org/what-we-do/grant-process to building local support for the national Back Britain’s Charities campaign www.backbritainscharities.org.uk/back-the-campaign. Most encouraging of all was hearing about the many voluntary, community and faith groups that councillors support and work with and looking at how we keep working together to benefit local communities.

Celebrating our team — past and present

2 — CVAT NEWS

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The team of 11 Stagecoach employees completed 78 hours of volunteering making a big difference to the charity’s building in Stalybridge. Key tasks included prepping and painting walls to ensure the space is ready for the next volunteer project.

2nd Generation Furnishings is a volunteer led group set up to collect and reuse good quality furniture, white goods and other household items that might otherwise have gone to landfill. The charity collects items from the community then cleans, repairs and safety checks items before selling them at a low price to people who cannot afford to pay the market value.

Tom Daly from 2nd Generation Furnishings said: “We can’t thank Stagecoach and Tameside 4 Good enough, they did a fantastic job. The repair work would have taken us a long time to achieve. We are now able to start recruiting volunteers for our next project.”

Mark Haberfield, Director of Stagecoach added: “Stagecoach is pleased to support a local and very worthwhile charity which helps the local community. All of our staff thoroughly enjoyed the days spent at 2nd Generation Furnishings and we wish them every success in the future.”

Local Charity Benefits from Team Building Days

Train for the Tameside XL TriathlonIs your community, voluntary or faith organisation looking to boost its fundraising? Call upon your supporters, Board of Trustees, volunteers, friends and family to take part in the Tameside XL Triathlon. Supply all of your supporters with the tools they need to drum up sponsorship for your cause. Join us on Sunday 13 Oct 2013 at The Copley Centre, Stalybridge

Individuals Swim 500m, Mountain Bike 15.5km, Run 9.7km

Relays Swim 750m, Mountain Bike 15.5km, Run 9.7km

Visit: http://tinyurl.com/TamesideTriathlon. To fundraise for Tameside 4 Good, please contact Amy Watson on Tel: 0161 339 4985 or Email: info@tameside4good.org

Would you benefit from a team challenge?Tameside 4 Good encourages local businesses to take part in team challenges. These are one-off practical tasks to improve local sites such as refurbishing a community centre or archaeological site renovation.

If you’re a Tameside good cause and you think your organisation would benefit from a business completing a team challenge, contact Vashti on tel: 0161 339 2345 or email: info@tameside4good.org

Upcoming EventsGet involved in your community and make a real difference to the lives of people right here on your doorstep. There are a huge variety of fundraising and volunteering opportunities coming up including:

13 October Tameside XL Triathlon 24 October Women in Business Fashion Show 14 November Gallery23 Charity Art Evening 30 November Sainsbury’s Denton Bag Pack

Employees from Stagecoach undertook a Tameside 4 Good employer supported volunteering team challenge to support local charity 2nd Generation Furnishings.

Denton West End Community Library now belongs to you!As you may be aware, Denton West End Community Library has now been successfully acquired by the community. The Friends of the library would like to thank the local community for your support.

After lengthy negotiations with the Council a newly formed charity ‘Denton West Community Library’ have funded the purchase of the library with a business loan. The estimated weekly cost for the running and upkeep of the library is £300. This will keep the doors open.

The library is no longer funded by Tameside Council or council tax payments. The charity, with the support of the Friends Group plan to open the library in phases.

Before the library can be fully reopened there are a number of tasks to carry out, all of which will take time.

We look forward to welcoming you to your library and community facility! If you are interested in volunteering your time to help continue to make our library a success please email admin@friendsofdenton-westendlibrary.co.uk

For more details please see www.friendsofdenton-westendlibrary.co.uk

The Friends of Haughton Green LibraryWhen the residents of Haughton Green found out that their library was to be closed down the local community rallied together to set up the Friends of Haughton Green Library. With the support of Irwell Valley Housing Association the library was saved.

The Friends have worked hard to set up a committee and drum up support in order to re-open and run the library. The Library is well on the way to being opened and The Friend’s of Haughton Green Library are looking for anyone who is over the age of 16 and who may be interested in volunteering their time.

They are looking for various roles such as Children’s Activities volunteer, Local Studies Volunteer, IT Volunteer, Library Volunteer and more. Also, the group are looking for books. You can donate new and used books to Haughton Green Library, provided they are in good condition. They are unable to accept books which are torn or that have loose or missing pages.

Library staff will assess donated books and allocate them to the most appropriate library. Any books which we can’t use on our shelves will be sold at one of our books sales or recycled, which also helps your library.

For more information please contact email: fohglgroup@gmail.com

Good news for bookworms!

4 — SUPPORT FOR SMALL GROUP ACTIVITY

Did you that there are over 750 different small voluntary, community and faith organisations in Tameside? Did you also know that people are so keen to do good work in Tameside, the number of groups keeps growing and growing. In this section, we’re highlighting a number of new groups.

Well now’s your chance to learn! Bloco Mento is a new exciting percussive group playing rhythms from around the world. We are offering workshops for you to try your hand at drumming. We play a mix of Samba and Reggae grooves on a range of instruments. From the Brazilian surdos to the African djembes, we’ve got something for you. If you’re 16 and over and live in Tameside there is a place for you at Bloco.

There’s no need to read music, no auditions, no experience necessary! Just come along and enjoy making music and new friends with our group.

Children over 11 welcome when accompanied by an adult.

Wednesdays, starting 20 Feb, 7pm—9pm. Church of the Nazarene, Ashton-u-Lyne. Tel: 0161 342 4137

The Onward Christian Centre Family Church has been in Hyde for about 16 years, and under the leadership of founder and Pastor Richard Lwin the Church has grown from very small beginnings to become a hub of community activities.

We feel it is especially important for us to be helping the community, especially at this time when government funding is restricted and many services are affected by cuts. ‘Little Soldiers’ parents and tots group is held twice weekly and the numbers have hugely increased since the inception two and a half years ago.

We desperately need more space, and have had a vision for an extension to the existing building for a long time.

We were awarded Specialist Support Funding towards architect fees through CVAT, and our architect is taking us through the process of obtaining planning permission. Once we have this, CVAT will assist us to apply for funding to transform our facilities for the community.

We want to give a big thank you to Amanda and Naomi from CVAT who have been very approachable, and have proved invaluable.

Onward Christian Centre Family Church

Do you know your agogos from your ganzas?

That’s the idea behind a new choir in Tameside. Not only does singing lift the spirits, but it can improve your breathing, balance and posture, help you meet new people or build your confidence.

It was through a Health and Wellbeing project that the choir came into being. Originally separate choirs, Tameside Voices represents the joining of Hattersley and Hurst Voices.

The group meets weekly to sing a variety of rock, pop and motown music, and is open to anyone over 55. There are no auditions or need to read music. Just come along to the Grafton Centre, Hyde at 1.30pm on Fridays and join in the fun.

Please contact Chandan Mistry, Community Engagement Office, on 0161 342 2770. Email: chandan.mistry@tameside.gov.uk

At CVAT we are here to support individuals to set up a new group correctly. If you want to know what is involved or are keen to get started with a new activity in your area then check out our simple four-step guide to starting a group on our new website: www.cvat.org.uk/start-group If you don’t use the internet, then give us a call on 0161 339 4985.

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Sing for good health

6 — COMMUNITY NEWS

We have been given donations of money to buy wool, we have the tiny patterns, and quite a lot of people are already involved in knitting and crocheting for us. We would also appreciate any donations of wool/knitting needles. Some of our ladies have bought their own wool and are busy knitting at home.

We would welcome as many people as possible to join us, either by knitting at home or coming to our knitting group which is held in the Tenants’ Base every Monday 1–4pm. The Tenants Base is situated on the ground floor of Ryecroft House, just off Stockport Road.

The group is open to everyone, including beginners, and we have people who can do 1-to-1 sessions to get you started. The Neo-natal knitting project is being led by myself and Jenny Boff, so please contact us for more information, from joining in to finding us at the Tenants Base.

For more information about the Rough Diamonds group please contact Nicola Woods, email: nicola.woods@ashtonpioneerhomes.co.uk tel: 0161 343 8128.

Reaching out to people in AshtonREACH, a people friendly community organisation based in the Tenants Base, Ryecroft House, just off Stockport Road, offers free IT sessions each week on Tuesday 1-4pm.

Whilst we do not offer tuition as such, we can help people set up email accounts, facebook etc. We can also show people how to pay bills on-line, job search and claim benefits.

This is open to everybody in the Ashton area who does not have access to the Internet at home, or has a PC they are not too sure how to use/get the best out of. We have friendly, knowledgeable people on hand to help and can refer you on to more structured learning if that’s what you want.

For more information, or help getting to us at the Tenants Base, please contact Peter email: glenn.peter@yahoo.com tel: 07531 235705.

Knit with the Rough DiamondsIn a joint project with REACH, we are knitting items for the neo-natal unit at St Marys’ Hospital in Manchester.

Manchester Community Transport (MCT) is a not for profit transport provider and has been working with the people of Greater Manchester since 1982.

The MCT approach is simple; people need transport to get around. But of course, this is not always easy; some communities are unable to access good public transport for numerous reasons:

• Geographical isolation, living in a rural area or on estates such as Hattersley

• No access to a car

• Physical restrictions such as disability or some people not being as young as they once were

• Cost

MCT operates regular bus services in and around Tameside, under contract to Transport for Greater Manchester, and is at the forefront of door to door Demand Responsive Transport.

MCT work with a number of partners to develop and deliver specialised services including:

• NHS Pilots for patient transfer and visitor accessibility

• Shuttle Services to connect people to remote and poorly connected employment centres

• Connection Services linking people from poorly connected communities to major transport hubs

• Health and Well Being services such as First Stop (mobile smoking cessation and health check-ups)

For more information see: www.manct.org

People like you, people like me...

On Saturday 24 August You Can Youth and Community opened their new Play Zone in Carrbrook, Stalybridge.This is the only play area for age 7 and under in the area and has taken 12 months to complete with funding from Mosscare housing, local Councillors and You Choose funding.

Many local companies have also helped us complete this, not least the support of Community and Voluntary Action Tameside. The play area is open to all children aged 7 and under, who must be accompanied by an adult. Depending on interest it will be open Monday to Saturday 10am–12pm and 2pm–4pm as a member of the Committee needs to be on site.

Refreshments will be available at a small charge to users of the Play Zone. Nursery and play groups wanting to use the facilities will be able to have a ‘booked in’ session by arrangement for a small fee.

The Play Zone is behind Mosscare Housing on Broadbent Close. For more details contact Linda on 07549 298873 or Terry on 07868 423837

For residents in the Broadoak, Smallshaw and Hurst areas of Ashton-under-LyneThe Tameside and Glossop Branch of the RSPCA is holding a Community Animal Action Day (CAAD) in the Broadoak Community Centre, Broadoak Rd, Ashton-under-Lyne, OL6 8RS, from 10.30am—3pm, Friday 4 October 2013

Visit their website www.rspca-tameside-glossop.org.uk

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Do you work with children, young people or families in Tameside?Or do you want to set up a group to help children, young people or families? If so, CVAT has a great support package to help you get going and grow and be great including information and assistance with:

• Setting up a new activity for children, young people and families.

• Finding the right funding to meet your needs.

• Making sure your committee is in tip top working order!

• Helping with balancing the books – treasurers don’t need to suffer in silence.

• Helping you assess and show the difference you make to people’s lives.

• Safeguarding – help you make sure you’re up to date with the latest good practice and new DBS checks.

For more information, check out the new section on our website: www.cvat.org.uk/help-your-organisation (or www.cvat.org.uk/safeguarding) or contact Naomi, Dawn or Amanda on 0161 339 4985 email development@cvat.org.uk

You Can Youth & Community group

RSPCA Community Animal Action Day

Hyde Festival Theatre presents: Miss JulieOctober 1 2013 – October 5 2013, 7.30pm Tickets: £8 per person. £5 for concessionsAugust Strindberg’s classic play, Miss Julie has been adapted for the Hyde Festival Theatre by Rob Johnston. In 1951 Northern England, Festival Britain is in full swing. Post war austerity is losing its bite and things are starting to change for Miss Julie, although they aren’t changing fast enough.

On 4 October 2013 for the third year running the Hyde Festival Theatre will be putting on a BSL sign performance of this play thanks to the support of a Tameside 4 Good grant.

More information about this play and all other upcoming events can be found on the website: www.hydefestivaltheatre.org.uk

8 — MAKE CONNECTIONS, HAVE INFLUENCE

Recently funders have wanted to see a more co-ordinated approach from the voluntary sector. This has resulted in a greater number of local voluntary sector organisations working in partnership to provide a better service.

Better Futures Tameside (BFT) provides support for this way of working. It is a new formal consortium, or network, of organisations that work with families, children and young people in Tameside.

Its membership is going from strength to strength with new members coming on line all the time. This year we were able to use its systems to make life easier for members applying for the Holiday Activity Grant. As they had already been through the process of applying for BFT membership, they had already

met part of the criteria for the Holiday Activity Grant, and were able to skip part of the application process.

There is nothing to lose from being part of BFT and it does not commit your group/organisation to anything. You can see all of the benefits and a list of current members on our new website at www.cvat.org.uk/better-futures-tameside

For further information about BFT and becoming a member please contact veronica.hyde@cvat.org.uk or call 0161 399 4985 extension 2015.

Takeover Day gives children and young people the chance to work with adults for the day and be involved in decision-making. This year Takeover Day is on Friday 22 November.

Organised by the Children’s Commissioner (who now has a duty to protect and promote children’s rights) the aim is to help break down barriers between generations and encourage children’s active involvement in their communities.

Organisations across every sector can be part of Children’s Commissioner’s Takeover Day. It’s a flexible event which can be tailored to suit your organisation, and they provide guidance, resources and support to help you get the most out of the day.

To find out more, register your interest or request an information pack visit www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk/takeover_day

Better Futures Tameside goes from strength to strength

Are you letting children and young people make decisions about how your organisation runs?

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Riots final report and responseResidents in communities where riots took place in August 2011 want rioters, many of whom had long criminal records, appropriately punished.

They believe that action is needed to ensure that in future these individuals, and those displaying worrying signs of similar behaviour, can play a positive role in their areas. When people feel they have no reason to stay out of trouble the consequences can be devastating. We must give everyone a stake in society. The key to avoiding future riots is to have communities that work:

• where everyone feels they have a stake in society

• where individuals respect each other and the place they live in

• where public services work together with the voluntary sector to spot those who are struggling at an early stage and help them

• where opportunities are available to all, especially young people

• where parents and schools ensure children develop the values, skills and character to make the right choices at crucial moments

• where the police and the public work together to support the maintenance of law and order

• where the criminal justice system punishes those who commit crimes but also commits itself to making sure that they don’t do it again

The final report can be found at: http://tinyurl.com/cvatriots and the Government response can be found at: http://tinyurl.com/governmentriots

My community rightsWhat is it that most bothers you in your community? Not being listened to? Want to raise money for projects?

You have the power to make the change you want to see in your community. Across the country there are hundreds of community groups who are making the changes they want to see. Grants from a pot of over £60m are available to help.

There are four new Community Rights:

1. Community Right to Build - gives communities the power to build new shops, housing or community facilities without going through the normal planning process.

2. Community Right to Bid - gives communities the opportunity to bid to buy and run valued local amenities if they come onto the open market.

3. Community Right to Challenge - gives local groups the opportunity to express their interest in taking over a local service where they think they can do it differently and better.

4. Neighbourhood Planning - powers to give people the chance to decide how their local area should develop and what should be built.

To see what others are doing and to find out more go to: www.mycommunityrights.org.uk

Report marks progress year of Dementia ChallengeThe Dementia Challenge champion groups have produced a report on their progress since the challenge was launched in March 2012.The report describes achievements in the 3 main areas of the challenge: driving improvements in health and care, creating dementia friendly communities and better research. It also identifies shared themes across the work of the champion groups, reflects on what they have learnt so far, and sets out how they will work together to sustain and accelerate progress: http://tinyurl.com/cvatdementialearning

Bar removed on Healthcare Professionals with HIVRules about healthcare professionals with HIV are to be revoked.

It means that a wide range of workers will no longer be banned from undertaking medical activities on patients. The 20-year-old rule is being scrapped following extensive research that revealed just four cases of workers infecting patients since 1992, none of which occurred in the UK.

Sir Nick Partridge, Chief Executive of Charity, Terrence Higgins Trust, said: “It’s great to see regulations starting to catch up. So long as the right safeguards are in place, there is now no reason why a dentist or a midwife with HIV should be barred from treating patients, or why people who would prefer to test at home should be denied that chance.”

The Government has also announced that self-testing HIV kits will be legalised from April 2014.

10 — VOLUNTEERING

Tameside’s Volunteers and Community groups make a huge difference to everyone’s lives, this was was our chance to say thank you for the work they do all year round.

The Pride of Tameside Volunteer and Community Awards were held in June this year at Ashton Town Hall. Light refreshments were provided and guests were entertained by Droylsden Christian Church Choir.

This event recognised the outstanding contribution made by Volunteers and Volunteer Involving Organisations in Tameside.

Outstanding Achievement Awards and Individual Volunteer Awards were presented in recognition of extraordinary achievements in the world of volunteering.

Volunteer Involving Organisations Awards presented in recognition of the greatest contribution to the local community. All organisations taking part received a certificate.

Individual Volunteer Hours Certificates were produced to recognise the commitment and achievements of local volunteers. Bronze (100 hours), silver (200 hours) and gold certificates (500 hours) were awarded to volunteers in recognition of the commitment made to a Volunteer Involving Organisation.

Sue Vickers, Director of Volunteering for Community and Voluntary Action Tameside said: “The Volunteer and Community Awards, what a fantastic evening, so many examples of the work carried out by amazing volunteers in Tameside. I’d also like to thank Tameside Arts for their fantastic performance. See our new site www.cvat.org.uk for photos of the evening”

Follow us on twitter @vctameside or visit www.cvat.org.uk/volunteering

Pride of Tameside Volunteer and Community Awards

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Individual Outstanding Achievement WinnersThe Stroke Association Tameside and Glossop Hannah McDonald

People First Tameside Jenny Threadgold

2nd Generation Furnishings Ashley Sephton

Youcan Youth and Community Pamela Whatmough

Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council Jade Carr

250th Manchester (St Mary’s) Scout Group Margaret Sever

Tameside Arts Ltd Carla Stokes

Adullam Homes Housing Associations Sandra Browne

Shree Bharatiya Mandal Indian Association Morarbhai A Mistry

Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council Jennie Wakefield

Young Volunteer of the Year Award Bradley Buckley

Volunteer Involving Organisations WinnersPeople First Tameside

Friends of Duke Music and Media Project

Stalybridge Street Pastors

Tameside Oldham and Glossop Mind

Werneth Community Centre

Hyde Community Action

Making a Difference

Citizens Advice Bureau

Intameside.com

Friends of Kind George V Playing Fields

Haughton Green Young People’s Centre

Hattersley Neighbourhood Partnership

Mencap

430 Droylsden Squadron

North Tameside Scouts

250th Manchester (St Mary’s) Scout Group

Ashton–under–Lyne and District Gateway Club

Water Adventure Centre

At Time Banking in Tameside, we have been kept busy over the Summer months with members helping out with swaps such as: weeding, path clearing, window cleaning, cooking and fence painting, along with a number of social activities including coffee mornings, country walks and home-making workshops.

One of the most heart-warming swaps spanned three generations, including one of our youngest members, Liam aged 11.

Liam’s mum, Sarah, joined Time Banking some months ago and when he heard about Time Banking he wanted to join too. She needed help in the overgrown front garden so we enlisted the skills of two of our members, Fred and Susan.

Together, they tackled what was becoming a jungle! Fred taught an eager Liam how to weed and to tell the difference between a flower and a weed. Liam supported the pair by clearing all the cuttings into the recycle bin, despite it being a roasting hot day!

As Liam cleared all the weeds from the front picket fence, he thought it looked shabby and that it would be a good idea to paint it. Less than a week later, Sarah contacted us here at Time Banking in Tameside to say that off his own back, Liam had chosen the fence paint colour and completely painted the fence! Sarah also sent a few photos of Liam working!

Very, very well done Liam, from us all here at CVAT. You are a star! As a young member of Time Banking, he will be able to exchange his Time Credits for some great activities, including as ten pin bowling, swimming or canoeing.

There are lots of people around us who just need the encouragement, guidance and know-how to be able to empower themselves. Time Banking is one of many projects that can really help achieve this. If you would like to know more about Time Banking in Tameside, please call into our Volunteer Centre reception and ask for Elaine or Julie. Alternatively you can drop us a line on 0161 339 2345 or e-mail elaine.kilburn@cvat.org.uk or julie.cunliffe@cvat.org.uk

Check out our pages on our new organisational website www.cvat.org.uk/time-banking which is packed full of information, an archive of our newsletters, and details of all the latest swops.

We also have a have a ‘Coffee & Chat’ on Tuesday 24 September at Dukinfield Library, Concord Way, Dukinfield starting at 2.00pm until 4.00pm. There is no obligation to become a member so why not come down and see what’s happening. We love meeting new people.

Meet Sasha Jackson, CVAT’s new Volunteer Development WorkerI started as a volunteer in 2009 as a receptionist for Volunteer Centre Tameside. In 2010 I successfully gained the position of Research Assistant via the Future Jobs Fund with the Centre and 6 months later became the Funding Bids Researcher.

When this position came to an end in 2011, I became the Research and Administrator for Time Banking in Tameside and have been working very closely with all departments within CVAT ever since. I’m now embarking on a new chapter with CVAT, as the Volunteer Development Worker.

The role will offer me the chance to gain extra experience of working hands on with Volunteers and Volunteer Involving Organisations, which I have long wanted more involvement with. I’m looking forward to working with the variety of people who come into the centre and finding the best volunteer opportunity to suit them.

New New New!Alongside our new volunteer development worker is our brand new website www.cvat.org.uk/volunteering

Everyone at CVAT is really pleased with the look of the site and we hope you will find the information on the volunteering pages useful. Information sheets and the Breaking the Record toolkit will soon be found on there as well as the form to register your volunteering opportunities.

As always we want to deliver what is useful to you so please let me know if there is anything you would like to see on there. At the next Volunteer Coordinators forum we will be discussing the use of on-line spaces for volunteers and coordinators, we look forward to hearing your views.

12 — VOLUNTEERING

Transport is not cheap. However, MCT try and keep costs down to a minimum and like other not for profit organisations rely on the goodwill of volunteers.If a community group can identify volunteers to drive MCT minibuses, MCT will provide the buses at a reasonable rate. Volunteer drivers must be compliant with all legislation and MCT, where appropriate, will supply Minibus Driver Awareness Scheme (MIDAS), a nationally recognised qualification, free of charge. So, if you are a Tameside community group and able to recruit volunteers, then why not contact MCT to find out more.

To find out about the services MCT has available or volunteering call Terry Crewe on 0161 946 9255 or 07841 919 173.

At the end of May 2013, New Charter introduced a new allocations scheme for letting its homes in Tameside.The way a housing provider lets its homes can strongly influence communities. Traditionally, properties are often prioritised to those in greatest need and New Charter customers have often felt there should be more recognition for people who are having a positive impact on their neighbourhoods.

With their new policy, New Charter therefore wanted to recognise the positive work many customers do, by introducing ‘Community Contribution.’

People who may qualify for Community Contribution:

• Those employed for at least 16 hours a week, (for six out of the last nine months)

• People who volunteer for a recognised organisation/group for at least 25 hours a month, (for six out of the last nine months)

• People in approved job related training e.g. modern apprenticeships etc.

• Registered carers and foster carers

• Serving or former armed services personnel

Applicants are now placed in a ‘band’ – gold, silver or bronze, according to their needs and their positive impact on their community. Customers are also given priority based on the date they were placed in the band.

Half of the homes New Charter now advertises for new/transfer applicants give additional preference to people meeting the Community Contribution criteria.

The new system aims to encourage people to have more of a positive impact in their communities and help to make them better for us to live and work in. They also hope it will help people to become active members of the community, where they want to stay for life.

New Charter improve the way they let their homes

CVAT is pleased to hear that there is a new owner of do-it.org.uk.Many of you will have used do-it via the Volunteer Centre to advertise your volunteering opportunities and recruit volunteers. Earlier this year YouthNet, the founders of do-it, announced their intention to seek new owners for the volunteering website. YouthNet announced a partnership led by the team behind the volunteering site ivo.org as the intended new owner.

The primary organisations in the new partnership are: ivo.org, Believe.In, Blue Dot, Vivo and Prospectus. The partnership is supported by others including Tinder Foundation and their network of UK Online Centres, TimeBank and a Volunteer Centre advisory group.

Congratulations to all at the charity the Red Trust, which runs ivo.org. We look forward to a new look www.do-it.org.uk in the very near future.

Volunteers wanted New owner for do-it

13

In 2011 we asked you whether you liked to access information and resources via our website and 87% of you told us you are happy to get support online. We’re very pleased and excited to launch our new CVAT website, which has been especially designed to help you ‘self serve’ support at the click of a button.

If you haven’t had chance to have a look at the new website yet, then here are some key areas of the site to check out if you are looking for practical information on developing your organisation.

Start a group provides a step by step guide on how to set up a group successfully.

• Planning explains the key stages of planning and provides templates for business plans; funding plans and simple action plans — all designed to help you meet your goals!

• People are key to the success of our organisations. Find helpful information on trustees, volunteers and staff here to keep your folk happy.

• Financial Management explains how to manage your money and plan for the future.

• Demonstrating Success is key to help you prove to funders and check yourselves that you’re making a difference.

• Close a Group is here for when you feel your group has served its purpose or are struggling to keep going. This section will help guide you through what you need to do in line with charity law and your constitution.

Funding is your first stop to making money for your group. It’s jam-packed with details of key income sources including fundraising, trading, contracts and of course the latest grants you can apply for. If you’ve not already registered on the CVAT funding portal you can do this via the website or do it now by going to www.open4community.info/tameside Once registered you can search whenever you like to find funding ideas.

The Learning Zone provides you with a “one stop shop” for all your training, education and professional development needs:

• You can link to our brand new e-learning portal “Learning Zone” in which you can access over 30 courses which you study online at a time and place to suit your needs.

• Useful resources contains loads of practical information and tools to guide you through every aspect of running your group effectively.

14 — FOCUS ON...HELPING YOURSELF...

New 24/7 access help for your organisation at www.cvat.org.uk

www.cvat.org.uk/ help-your-organisation

www.cvat.org.uk/funding

www.cvat.org.uk/learning-zone

...TO HELP OTHERS — 15

All our factsheets and other useful “how to” guides are stored in one place for you to read and use.

• Evidence bank is where you will find useful statistics, consultation results and up to date information on the latest policies and strategies in Tameside, regionally and nationally that relate to your work.

We’ve also set up a dedicated Safeguarding page of good practice and information for groups that support children, young people and families (see www.cvat.org.uk/safeguarding-children) or adults at risk (www.cvat.org.uk/safeguarding-vulnerable-adults) e.g. older people, people with disabilities.

Our www.cvat.org.uk/volunteer section has been designed to enable you to find volunteering opportunities (see www.cvat.org.uk/opportunities and our twitter feed @vctameside #vctopp), whilst the www.cvat.org.uk/need-volunteers section supports volunteer involving organisations to recruit and manage volunteers within their organisation.

One of the new parts of the site brings together all the networks we facilitate under one roof Making Connections and Have Influence (see www.cvat.org.uk/use-your-voice). Once in this section, we have created a space for each of the key networks: Black & Ethic Minority; Families & Youth; Health & Wellbeing, Faith, and Older Groups, all with information on network projects, policies and research, and ways to ‘have your say’.

We know that you (the voluntary, community and faith sector) not only have some important things to say, but want to have more of a say in local decision-making.

Traditionally, we have supported local people and groups to speak up through:

• Supporting representatives of the voluntary, community and faith sector to be part of local decision-making meetings and make sure our voice as a sector is heard. More information: www.cvat.org.uk/representatives

• Organising events and training that raise awareness, skills and experience about campaigning and lobbying locally (come along to the Voice event on 10 October and our campaigning and influencing training with NCVO on 26 November — more information: www.cvat.org.uk/events)

• Working specifically in Ashton St Michael’s and Denton North East with local residents to help them take action on the issues that matter to them. More information: www.cvat.org.uk/community-organisers

• Providing one to one advice and support. Get in touch with your queries – voice@cvat.org.uk

• Bringing groups together around their priorities to have a more powerful collective voice – who do you want to meet with? More information: www.cvat.org.uk/use-your-voice

• Gathering intelligence to increase our influence. For example see our recent “State of the voluntary sector 2013” research: www.cvat.org.uk/stateofthesector

But it doesn’t stop there! The development of our site will enable us to create and facilitate online forums, password protected network members areas, and even webinars!

Keep checking in with the site for all development news and remember, as one of our favourite quotes says, “if you think you’re too small to make a difference, you’ve never been in bed with a mosquito!”

We would love to hear what you think of the site. Please feel free to send your comments, criticisms and compliments to duncan.craig@cvat.org.uk

www.cvat.org.uk/safeguarding

www.cvat.org.uk/volunteering

www.cvat.org.uk/use-your-voice

www.cvat.org.uk/events

16 — HEALTHWATCH NEWS

The Healthwatch Champions are now out and about! You will see them in their distinctive green T-shirts at a range of locations across Tameside. Currently they are in action in Hyde, Stalybridge, Dukinfield, Ashton, Hattersley, Hyde and Denton.

Their role is to:-

• Listen to and record, your experiences of using local health and care services.

• Provide information and signposting to those services.

• Tell you more about Healthwatch.

In their first three weeks of activity, the Healthwatch Tameside Champions have already seen 89 local people, collected six patient stories, given out 120 leaflets and newsletters and referred four complex enquiries to the Healthwatch Tameside office for follow-up. If you have a question about health and care services, or want to tell us about your recent experiences, pop along to one of their sessions!

If you are interested in volunteering as a Healthwatch Champion or you would like more information about where to find them contact Sue Pomfret on 0161 339 4985 Ext 2011 susan.pomfret@healthwatchtameside.co.uk or alternatively check out our website www.healthwatchtameside.co.uk/content/healthwatch-champions

Healthwatch ChampionsTameside ListensTameside Hospital has launched what it describes as the biggest listening exercise in its history. They told us:

“I thought you might like to know that Tameside Hospital has launched the biggest listening exercise in Tameside Hospital’s history. We’re calling it Tameside Listens. Tameside Listens gives staff, patients, stakeholders and local people a big say in our ambitious strategy to deliver excellence, quality and compassionate care.”

Beginning on 1 August 2013 and taking place over a six month period, it will gather people’s comments then report to everyone involved. The hospital wants to hear ideas and responses from as many people as possible.

For more information

Email: tamesidelistens@tgh.nhs.uk Twitter: @TamesideListens Facebook: www.facebook.com/tamesidelistens YouTube: www.youtube.com/TamesideListens Podcast: www.tamesidehospital.podbean.com Phone: 0161 922 4032

KEY NETWORK EVENTS — 17

Tackling Poverty TogetherThursday 10 October, 9.45am-1pm (free networking lunch 1-2pm). Dukinfield Town Hall, King Street, SK16 4LA.

• Donations and government funding are down.

• Demand for services and costs are up.

• Welfare changes are hitting the ground.

• Voluntary, community and faith groups are stuck in the middle.

Are you worried about these situations? Are you seeing the impact of poverty in Tameside? Like many areas across the UK Tameside is facing some big challenges. The good news is that voluntary, community and faith groups continue to respond to the needs they see in their communities with creative and inspiring work. Join other groups and organisations at this Voice event to discuss how we can pool our expertise and do an even better job of finding real solutions and tackling poverty together. Come along to share what you are already doing, and how you want to work with others, to help people across Tameside.

The event will include a chance to share your expertise in workshops on poverty’s links to Health, Children and families and Food. Get updates on welfare changes and their impact. Gain practical help on engaging your members and adapting services. Plan with other groups what we can do together to respond to poverty across the borough. Have your say on a Tameside Poverty Strategy. Make sure your work is represented local action plans to tackle poverty. Hear guest speakers and network with other groups over a free buffet lunch. Create real solutions to the major challenges our communities face.

We would like to make sure you have the information that you need in advance. Please let us know what would help you to prepare, or what you would like to share with others, so we better understand poverty in Tameside. In particular please tell us:

• What is your group/organisation already doing to tackle poverty in Tameside?

• What is missing in how we help the most vulnerable people in the borough?

• What opportunities do you see for working with others (voluntary, public or private sector) to better tackle poverty locally?

Get in touch by email voice@cvat.org.uk or call 0161 339 4985.

Looking for evidence for Health, Care and Wellbeing bids?As part of the development of our website CVAT now has created an ‘evidence bank’ where you can find significant policy, strategy and research to help you write bids and evidence your groups contribution.

For example, Public Health England have launched two searchable databases/interactive maps to support people to use existing data better. These can be key tools for voluntary organisations to help build their case to commissioners, funders and policy makers:

• Local Health—this interactive map shows health data for the population, broken down to local authority area, ward level and small areas (called middle super output areas). It lets you export reports and data- and there is an online tutorial for how to access the data. It includes information such as breakdown of age, race, and ethnicity for an area and “indicators” such as housing and living environments, childhood development, education, employment, cancer incidence, A&E admissions, index of deprivation etc and compares them with the national average.

• Longer Lives—shows how different local authorities compare on incidence of premature mortality caused by cancer, heart disease and stroke, lung disease and liver disease. It gives a ranking in the country, the number of deaths and the number of people living in the authority.

Links to both of these resources are available on our website at www.cvat.org.uk/evidence

Regional Voices who have developed a similar evidence bank on a regional basis say “Our favorite tip is to make your evidence ‘cut and paste-able’- when you’re telling your story, aim to make it a ‘fit’ for the person you’re aiming to influence. A 200 page document can’t easily be slotted in to a JSNA document- but a key paragraph, with suitable numbers in, will. Make commissioners’ lives easier!”

Read more about Regional Voices’ work to support the VCS use evidence effectively to build a compelling case to commissioners, funders and policy makers: www.regionalvoices.org/evidence

If you are looking for evidence to support a bid, build a case, or evidence the worth of what you do please contact Anna Hynes at CVAT who can support you to know where to start!

18 — FUNDING NEWS

Tameside Community Learning FundThe main aim of the Tameside Community Learning Fund is: ‘support local voluntary and community sector organisations to deliver learning opportunities for disadvantaged residents in Tameside to support their progression back to work.’

Priorities: The Tameside Community Learning Fund is replacing the previous Neighbourhood Learning in Deprived Communities (NLDC) funding

Projects must help contribute to one more of the following outcomes of the Tameside Community Learning Fund:

• improve confidence and willingness to engage in learning

• develop skills preparing people for training, employment or self-employment

• improved digital, financial literacy and/or communication skills

• better equip parents/carers to support and encourage their children’s learning

Who can apply: Local community, voluntary and faith organisations in Tameside.

Grant amount: You can apply for up to £5000. Please note, groups are also asked to demonstrate match funding towards your project (e.g. volunteer time, in-kind room hire etc).

How to apply: please download the application pack and read the guidelines carefully from www.cvat.org.uk/grants

Deadline: 15 October 2013

For help with your form or more information contact Naomi or Candice at CVAT on 0161 339 4985 or email candice.southern@cvat.org.uk

Tameside 4 Good GrantsTameside 4 Good aims to make it easier for local people to help local good causes through the giving of time and skills, money and resources.The Tameside 4 Good grant scheme has been made possible due to the release of a number of dormant Charitable Trust funds that Tameside Council, as a big

supporter of Tameside 4 Good, has made available to local good causes. The aim of the Fund is to make Tameside a great place to live and work by funding activities that will have a positive impact on local communities. In Round 1 (July 2013) nine grants were awarded totalling £15,520 to a range of projects including life skills workshop for adults who have suffered with long term mental health problems, theatre workshops for students and older people, first aid training and youth outreach provision for young people.

Grants for IndividualsThe Tameside 4 Good Grants for Individuals scheme is open to people aged between 5—25 who live in Tameside. Priority will also be given to applications/activities that also benefit the community. You can apply for a grant up to £500 to fund opportunities that will enable you to learn and/or develop new skills or take part in hobbies or interests.

Grants for GroupsLocal community, voluntary and faith organisations can apply for funding for projects that must meet one or more of the following priorities for the Tameside 4 Good Fund ‘Grants for groups’ programme:

• Developing skills, education and employment

• Alleviating poverty, hardship and social exclusion

• Improving the lives of people with long term illness/disability

• Activities for disadvantaged children and young people

• Improving health and wellbeing of older people

The panel is particularly welcoming applications from older people’s groups and projects that alleviate poverty, hardship and social exclusion in the next round.

Grant amount: If your project will be borough-wide (i.e. provide activities that benefit more than one area) you can apply for a maximum of £4,000. If your project will benefit a specific locality within the borough the maximum you can apply for is £2,500

How to apply for a Tameside 4 Good grant:

Download an application pack from: www.tameside4good.org/what-we-do/ grant-process

Deadlines: Round 2 — Thursday 31 October 2013 Round 3 — Monday 31 March 2014 Round 4 — Friday 31 October 2014

Contact Candice Southern, email: grants@tameside4good.org or call on 0161 339 4985. For more information: www.tameside4good.org

Sources of FundingTues 1 October 9.30am—12.30pm Voluntary Action Oldham Thurs 17 October 5.30pm—8.30pm Community and Voluntary Action Tameside

This course will provide you with an overview and opportunity to explore which sources of funding are most suited to your organisation including: community fundraising, grants, contracts, businesses and even how to get things for free!

Management Committee SkillsThurs 3 October 5.30pm—8.30pm Community and Voluntary Action Tameside

Have you considered all the benefits that young people bring to your organisation? We look at all the positives and the negatives that come with young people and how we can make our organisations inclusive for the people that are going to be running our groups/organisations in the future. Presented by Oldham Young People’s Volunteering Team.

Basic BookkeepingThurs 10 October 5.30pm—8.30pm Community and Voluntary Action Tameside

An introduction to the basics of bookkeeping, covering recording day-to-day transactions, reconciling these with the bank account and producing financial reports for your management committee or year-end accounts.

Volunteering & Young PeopleTue 15 October 10.00am—4.00pm Voluntary Action Oldham

Have you considered all the benefits that young people bring to your organisation? We look at all the positives and the negatives that come with young people and how we can make our organisations inclusive for the people that are

going to be running our groups/organisations in the future. Presented by Oldham Young People’s Volunteering Team.

Volunteers and the LawThurs 14 November 10.00am—4.00pm Volunteer Centre Tameside

This is a very popular and necessary course for anyone who involves volunteers in their organisation. It covers: Volunteers rights, health and safety, vetting and criminal record checks, insurances, contracts and agreements, benefits and policies.

Become a Volunteer MagnetThurs Jan 16 10.00am—4.00pm Voluntary Action Oldham

Magnets attract and repel. What attracts and repels volunteers? This interactive session explores new ways of attracting volunteers whilst taking an honest look at why volunteers leave. Discover why, as volunteer managers, we have to attract people to our programmes as volunteers. It’s time to magnetise your approach to recruitment in 2014 and beyond!

Managing VolunteersTue 25 Feb 10.00am—4.00pm Volunteer Centre Tameside

All the hard work that goes into recruiting volunteers is often lost due to poor management of volunteers. We will use a variety of learning methods to help you identify ways that you can support your volunteers to become outstanding!

Booking InformationIf you are Oldham-based book online at www.vaoldham.org.uk/training or contact David Sharples for more information. Tel. 0161 633 6222

If you are in Tameside book online at www.cvat.org.uk/workshops or contact Lisa Hannibal for more information. Tel. 0161 339 4985

19 — TRAINING & EVENTS

If you’re over 55 come along to the Full of Life Day at Hattersley Library on Tuesday 1 October, 9.30am—3.30pm. It’s going to be a FREE fun filled day of activities, talks, information and health checks that will help you live life to the full.

Full of Life DayThere is no need to book just come along on the day. If you need more information visit www.tameside.gov.uk/libraries or contact Hattersley Library on 0161 342 2552

Development Services

One-to-one capacity building support, including funding information and advice, for Voluntary & Community Organisations in Tameside.

Contact Naomi, Dawn, Amanda or Lisa on 0161 339 4985, naomi.sampson@cvat.org.uk, dawn.acton@cvat.org.uk amanda.benson@cvat.org.uk lisa.hannibal@cvat.org.uk

Breaking the Record

Supporting volunteer involving organisations to recruit ex-offenders as volunteers.

Contact Vashti, 0161 339 2345, email vashti.holland@cvat.org.uk

Policy & Participation

Supporting groups and providing a policy function and developing the voice of local community and community action via a range of networks and associated activity.

Telephone the team on 0161 339 4985 or Voice ben.gilchrist@cvat.org.uk BME and BME Women’s Networks mohamed.seedat@cvat.org.uk Older People’s Network, Faiths United mohamed.seedat@cvat.org.uk Health and Social Care Network anna.hynes@cvat.org.uk Children & Young People’s Network veronica.hyde@cvat.org.uk

Volunteering Services

Including brokerage (matching both individuals and groups interested in volunteering with appropriate opportunities in the local community); marketing volunteering locally and promoting good practice in volunteer management to organisations; developing local volunteering opportunities; identifying and responding to proposals or legislation that may impact on volunteering.

Contact Sasha or Vashti on 0161 339 2345, sasha.jackson@cvat.org.uk or vashti.holland@cvat.org.uk

Timebanking

A project that encourages people to exchange skills and time. One hour given to another earns one time credit which they can save, donate or spend.

Contact Elaine or Julie on 0161 339 2345 or elaine.watkins@cvat.org.uk or julie.cunliffe@cvat.org.uk

Miles of Smiles

A community transport scheme using volunteers to help people attend medical appointments.

Contact Sam on 0161 339 2345 or sam.ross@cvat.org.uk

Tameside 4 Good

An initiative to help local people and businesses give time, skills and money to local good causes.

Contact Amy on 0161 339 4985, amy.watson@cvat.org.uk or Riona on 0161 339 2345, riona.doidge@cvat.org.uk

Central Services

Facilities management, financial control and administrative support, personnel management.

Contact Helen or Sam on 0161 339 4985, helen.tallents@cvat.org.uk, samantha.mcnicholls@cvat.org.uk, or Kelly on 0161 339 2345, kelly.chadwick@cvat.org.uk

Marketing and Communications

Promote your message locally through CVAT’s Newsletter and eBulletins. We can also provide marketing & design support services for your group under CVAT plus+

Contact Duncan or Michael on 0161 339 4985, duncan.craig@cvat.org.uk, michael.withington@cvat.org.uk

Senior Management

Chief Executive, Tony Okotie, 0161 339 4985, tony.okotie@cvat.org.uk Director of Volunteering and Deputy Chief Executive, Sue Vickers, 0161 339 2345, sue.vickers@cvat.org.uk

If you are interested in having an article in CVAT News the deadline for the next issue is 14 November 2013. Newsletter articles should be sent to newsletter@cvat.org.uk, tel 0161 339 4985

20 — WWW.CVAT.ORG.UK/STAFF