VolResource Newsletter 354

11. HM Revenue and Customs telephone helpline
-------------------------------------------------------------
From 15th September the HMRC Charities telephone helpline
(0845 302 0203.) has changed its opening hours to
8.00 am to 5.00 pm, Monday to Friday. "This will allow staff more
time to deal with customers who communicate with us in ways
other than by telephone".
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/charities/
helpline-update.htm.

12. National Minimum Wage rates from October
-----------------------------------------------------------
The national minimum wage rates are updated from 1
st October to:
Workers aged 22 and over - £5.73 per hour;
Workers aged 18-21 - £4.77 per hour;
Workers aged 16-17 - £3.53 per hour.
http://www.berr.gov.uk/employment/pay/
national-minimum-wage/
index.html.

13. Governance in children's organisations
--------------------------------------------------
The National Council for Voluntary Child Care
Organisations has published, with help from the
Governance Hub, 'Governing for Children:
A beginner’s guide to governance in the children,
young people and families voluntary sector'.
There are focused real-life examples of
particular relevance to any committee members
of smaller  organisations involved with children.
Download in pdf, 1.59MB.

21. Standards for community development work
-----------------------------------------------------------
The National Occupational Standards for the community
development workforce are being revised by Lifelong
Learning UK, to reflect changes in legislation and working
practices within the sector. A questionnaire, for response
by 7th November, is available at
http://www.lluk.org/community-development-
work-nos-consultation.htm.

22. National sector survey starts
--------------------------------------
From 22nd September, 104,000 charities, voluntary
groups and social enterprises across England will receive
the National Survey of Third Sector Organisations. Carried
out by Ipsos MORI on behalf of the Office of the Third Sector,
it is designed to measure the quality of support for the third
sector in every local area. As well as being part of the new
local government performance targets, it will provide information
to enable local improvements in sector support.
OTS news item, and a dedicated survey web site at
http://www.nstso.com.

31. Northern Ireland's charities legislation in place
------------------------------------------------------------
The Charities Act (Northern Ireland) 2008 received Royal
Assent on 9th September after its protracted passage
through the legislative process. It is expected that the
establishment of a Charity Commission will start next
month with the appointment of Charity Commissioners.
To lift wholesale from NICVA's news item: The first main
business of the Commission will be to consult on public
benefit guidance and this will probably take place in the
early part of 2009. It is envisaged that charities will not
need to register with the Charity Commission until the
spring of 2010, with the first reporting requirements the
following year. The new rules for fundraising and public
collections are not likely to take effect until 2011.

Some provisions of the Act, such as the Charitable
Incorporated Organisation legal model, require secondary
legislation but it is expected that all parts should become
fully operational by early 2011. The Charities Implementation
Team in the Department or Social Development has set up a
Charity Regulation Stakeholder Forum to consider the i
mplications of the new Charities Act.

The full Act is available in pdf, 6.6MB.

32. Community control of assets steps up
---------------------------------------------------
The government has announced as part of its "communities i
n control" agenda that a new 'asset transfer unit' will be led by
the Development Trusts Association. This will offer an independent
hub of advice across England, for local people and authorities,
to help community groups take over underused or derelict public
buildings and land and put them to better use. The DTA, along
with partners such as the Local Government Association and
Community Matters, expects to have this functioning from
January 2009.

This was announced alongside twelve 'participatory budgeting
' or 'community kitties' pilot areas, engaging local people in h
ow public money is spent. Communities and Local Government
Department's news item at h
ttp://www.communities.gov.uk/news/
corporate/968816.

33. European Parliament debates
----------------------------------------
Two items of interest:
-- A speech to a European Parliament public hearing by
the Vice-President of the European Commission responsible
for Administrative Affairs, Audit and Anti-Fraud on NGO

transparency in lobbying 'Non-Governmental Organisations:
What is at stake?'. Online at eGov Monitor at
http://www.egovmonitor.com/node/20968 or
download the speech (pdf, 68KB).

-- The European Parliament has just (17th September) launched
EuroparlTV, a multilingual online TV service with programmes in
over 20 EU languages on the people, the debates, the big issues,
including live coverage. It is aimed at those affected by or interested
in EP decisions in politics, government, and lobbyists, experts and
students. http://www.europarltv.europa.eu.

PDF note: to be able to read pdf files, download Adobe Reader
from http://www.adobe.co.uk/products/acrobat/readstep2.html, f
or accessibility matters see http://access.adobe.com. Or for an
alternative, try Foxit Reader.

51. The role of community enterprises in tackling poverty
----------------------------------------------------------------------
A Viewpoint report published by Joseph Rowntree Foundation l
ooks at early findings from work carried out by the Development
Trusts Association, which aims to explore the extent to which
local, community-based development trusts can contribute to
efforts to tackle poverty. It argues that community-led enterprise
organisations can act as a driver for positive change, creating a s
elf-help and problem-solving culture, and helping individuals move
out of poverty. http://www.jrf.org.uk/knowledge/findings/housing/2299.asp

52. Research into social accounting
-------------------------------------------
Social Audit Network has produced 'Really Telling Accounts', a r
eport on a Social Accounting and Audit
Research Project. This explores to what extent social accounting
and audit has been used by social economy organisations in the
North East of England, Cumbria, Merseyside and Scotland, and i
ncludes a set of recommendations. Available as a pdf, 767KB - n
ote that the links to appendices don't work. This will also be part
of the SAN conference on 7th November in Edinburgh, http://www.socialauditnetwork.org.uk/PAGE1text.htm.

53. Creating a learning and development plan
-------------------------------------------------------
A workbook about how to create a learning and development plan
for a third sector organisation has been produced by sector
~upport umbrella body NAVCA. The Get Skilled Workbook
is aimed at those working with local groups, and can be
downloaded from http://www.navca.org.uk/services/learningopps/skild/getskilled -
workbook is 1.59MB pdf, with worksheets in Word format.
(workbook is based on 'A Practical Guide to Planning Training and Development Strategies' by Greater London Enterprises and Gowland Taylor Associates.)

54. Graduate pathways into the voluntary sector
----------------------------------------------------------
Research which aimed to build a picture of the nature and
range of opportunities for graduates in the voluntary and
community sector has led to a booklet 'Career pathways
for graduates into the voluntary/community sector' for a
dvisers and also for students and graduates at universities
and Higher Education Institutions. Could also be a useful
resource for others who want an overview of jobs in the sector.
A large (4.12MB) pdf download available from http://www.hecsu.ac.uk/hecsu.rd/research_r
eports_273.htm. (Source: UKVPM list)

55. Evaluating major software systems
-----------------------------------------------
A significant new article on the American nonprofit software
resource site Idealware is 'The Perfect Fit: A Guide to Evaluating
and Purchasing Major Software Systems' - and they do mean major.
How to find software options, evaluate them, make a good decision,
and then purchase the system in a way that protects you. http://www.idealware.org/articles/purchasing_
major_systems.php,

56. New and updated on VolResource
----------------------------------------------
-- Lobbying - transparency and PR:
Alliance for Lobbying Transparency is comprised of civil society
groups concerned about the growing influence of professional
lobbying on Government decision-making and life in the UK, http://www.lobbyingtransparency.org. (A guide to the lobbying
industry is being launched at a Labour Party conference fringe
event on 22nd September.)
Also Spinwatch, http://www.spinwatch.org.

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61. Civil Society and freedom of information
----------------------------------------------------
An event on 30th September at University of Strathclyde launches a research project to explore how Scottish civil society engages with freedom of information (FOI). Only four per cent of appeals received by the Scottish Information Commissioner come from voluntary groups and campaign organisations, indicating that it is not being used to its full potential. Jointly hosted by the Scottish Information Commissioner and the Campaign for Freedom of Information, limited places at no cost. See http://www.itspublicknowledge.info/civilsociety
seminar/ on how to book. (Source: Third Force eNews)

-- Awareness weeks from Count Me In,
http://www.countmeincalendar.info, week commencing 20th September: Children's Hospice Week (http://www.childhospice.org.uk).

We accept limited 'paid for' job ads: a guaranteed web site spot and trailing, plus basic details here. See http://www.volresource.org.uk/jobs/1.htm for opportunities/details.

** Newly listed: ENRgI (East Northumberland Regeneration Initiative), New LEADER Co-ordinator.