This project aims to support small and medium community organisations in areas of capacity-building needs identified by the groups themselves. As part of our 2008 progarmme. we are now in the process of recruiting 10-15 community groups to provide them with free1-2-1 targeted technical support to build up their governance and operational structures, help them with business and project planning and management and increase their access to resources and funding. The groups will be selected on ‘first come, first serve” basis. If you wish to be considered for support please fill in the online form: Outreach Capacity Building Support. (Click here )

Are you new to a management or leaderhip position in a voluntary or community organisation and require a boost of support in your new role? Are you from a BAMER (Black, Asian, Minority Ethnic or Refugee) background and live in London? LVSC's Mentoring and Training Programme is a fantastic opportunity to increase your skills and knowledge to become a successful leader.

The Mentoring and Training Programme is an ideal programme for Londoners who are active in voluntary and community organisations. It is open to a range of leaders, from paid First- Time Managers to individuals who are members of Management Committees who are unable to access structured professional development programmes.

It offers a FREE flexible tailor made learning and development approach that will form part of your leadership development. The programme has two purposes:

• You will receive a series of one to one mentoring support over a four months period (for example guidance with developing interpersonal and leadership skills, as well as practical help with producing a business or operational plan, a fundraising strategy);
• You can access a £700 training bursary to fund short training courses that compliment your leadership development.

Applicants will be accepted to:

• Demonstrate how the programme will contribute to their organisation as well as to their own professional development;
• Be available to receive a minimum of four one-to-one mentoring sessions over a four months period from August to end of November 2008;
• Meet the programme's monitoring requirements

Below are the short courses LVSC will be running in September 2008.

• 9 September - Effective business planning
• 10 -11 September - Managing for the 1st time
• 10 -11 September - Newsletters: writing for print
• 12 September - Effective minute taking
• 12 September - Understanding financial systems in voluntary organisations
• 15 -16 September - Introduction to staff supervision
• 15- 16 September - Advanced supervision skills
• 17 September - Managing volunteers
• 17 September - Effective time management
• 18 September - New to fundraising
• 19 September - Dealing with difficult people
• 22 September - Coping with workplace stress
• 22-23 September - Effective presentation skills
• 23 September - Dealing with violent and aggressive behaviour
• 24-25 September - Project management
• 26 September - Managing your administrative responsibilities
• 29 September - Health & safety risk assessment
• 29 September - Writing better fundraising applications
• 30 September - Influencing skills
  
  
  For further information click here or call the Learning Team on 020 7700 8113.

9 and 11 September 2008

AdviceUK London Team is holding 2 free seminars in September for advice organisations looking at workforce sustainability and governance issues. Please distribute this information to your members and feel free to advertise it in your mailings, website and other media.

Workforce sustainability - Getting the balance right
How can advice centres invest in workforce development in the current funding environment?

The Sustainable Advice Project (S.A.P.) and the Governance Project will host a joint seminar on workforce sustainability. Advice organisations and Trustees will have the opportunity to meet together with other members and at the same time hear from a range of speakers that will seek to address questions on how members can meet the challenges and opportunities presented by workforce sustainability.
The sessions will focus on the following issues around workforce development:

• Attracting the right people - skills recruitment and retention
• Overcoming barriers to staff development
• Addressing skills and training needs
  

Click here to download info and booking form. If you are interested in attending or have any queries please complete the Booking Form and return to: Siobhan Hogan, Advice Services Development Worker, tel: 020 7407 662 or email: siobhan.hogan@adviceuk.org.uk for further information.

From August 1st 2008 CQM Learning will have LIMITED availability to fully fund Level 2 qualifications to anyone who is currently over qualified for Train to Gain funding. For example, if someone has a BTEC, a Degree, an NVQ Level 2 in another subject or over 5 GCSEs, as of August 1st we will be able to place them onto an NVQ Level 2 with full funding.

(They must be over 19 and have been an EU resident for 3 years).

Only a small percentage of funding will be allocated to this initiative, therefore the places are strictly first come first served. We are now scheduling August assessor availability so please act quickly to avoid disappointment.

You can also register your staff on the following qualifications:

ITQ – Computer user qualification
Customer Service
Team Leading
Management – Level 3
Business Administration
Retail
Advice & Guidance
Health & Social Care Level 2 or 3 (level 3 will have full funding)
Cleaning & Support Services
Food Processing
Professional Cookery
Youth Worker
Support Services in Health & Social Care
…and many more

For further information, call Tim now on 0114 281 5781 or email info@cqmlearning.co.uk.

Closing Date for Application Forms: Friday 29 August 2008, 5 pm. Applicants will be informed of the outcomes in mid December 2008, with projects to commence on 1st April 2009.

Age Concern invites applications from third sector organisations which provide services for older people. The maximum amount of grant available is £35,000 per year for up to 3 years grant funding with proposals that improve the profile and diversity of volunteers as well as improving the range and quality of volunteering opportunities in health and social care. Successful projects will be able to demonstrate how they contribute to the Department of Health’s Strategic Objectives and Age Concern England's priorities of:

• Better health and well-being for all Helping people to stay healthy and well, empowering them to live independently, and tackling health inequalities;
• Better care for all The best possible health and social care, offering safe and effective care, when and where people need help, and empowering people in their choices;
• Better value for all Delivering affordable, efficient and sustainable services, contributing to the wider economy and the nation.

• Demonstrate how the project will address health inequalities
• Improve the profile and diversity of volunteers
• Improve the range and quality of volunteering opportunities in health, well-being and social care service provision
• Develops advocacy support in the improvement of health, well-being and social care services that enables individuals to exercise control and choice

Applicants will also need to liaise with relevant local authorities and PCTs to look at how their proposed project fits local strategic priorities for example, agreed LAA targets, for supporting volunteering in health & social care.

For further information and an Application Pack from Age Concern England please contact The Grants Unit on grants.unit@ace.org.uk or these may be downloaded from the Grants Unit webpage on acknowledge in the near future. Please keep watching as details will be made available shortly.

Closing Date to apply: 31 October 2008. Decisions will be made by April 2009 in most instances.

City Bridge Trust want to support work which minimises violence and helps young people recover from violence or bullying where they have been the victims. Parents need more help in supporting their children if they have been victims, but equally need help with what to do if they suspect their children are involved in violence or bullying. They will fund organisations for up to a maximum of three years for work which meets at least one of these priorities and where you can demonstrate a track record in the field. This programme will be carefully evaluated and the learning from it disseminated widely.

The priorities are:

• Work with young people aged up to 21 years which provides practical alternatives to using or experiencing violence including ‘bullying’. This might be personal safety training, self-defence techniques, anger management, conflict-avoidance skills and peer-group support.
• Services supporting parents with practical information and skills to support their child as a victim of violence or bullying.

Or:

• Services advising parents on how to deal with a young person on the periphery of, or involved in, violence or bullying.
• Work which gives emotional and practical support to children affected by crime including domestic violence.

Projects will then be expected to commence within six months of a grant being awarded.

For further information please contact them on 020 7332 3710 or citybridgetrust@cityoflondon.gov.uk

Closing date: Monday 4th August. Interviews: in the week beginning the 11th of August.
Salary: £19,000 pro rata. Part time, 3 days per week, until June 2009

The Council for Assisting Refugee Academics (CARA) is looking for a person to assist and support the administration of the CARA refugee academic grant programme and the employment advice service.

Responsibilities will include (but are not limited to):

• Supporting the overall administration of the grant programme including organising call for grant application mail outs, processing grant applications, preparing for grant Allocation Committee meetings, assisting with follow-up work after meetings, tracking grantees’ progress throughout the re-qualification process, providing advice and support to grantees on a range of issues
• Supporting the administration of the European Refugee Fund grant including maintaining accurate records, maintaining information about performance against targets, providing and analysing data for project reports and monitoring returns, support in the preparation for monitoring visits and audits by funders
• Maintaining and regularly updating electronic and hard copy information systems
• Financial administration including: processing grantee payments, ensuring grantees provide receipts and maintaining accurate financial records
• Regularly communicating, dealing with enquiries from and developing relationships with a range of individuals including refugee academics, academic institutions, refugee organisations and the media
• Organising events including training workshops for refugee academics and participating in external events related to the grant programme
• Supporting the development of information resources on higher education and employment for refugee academics
• Developing an understanding of relevant policy and practice relating to refugee and higher education issues

For further information and a detaield job description please contact CARA on 0207 021 0880 or email: info.cara@lsbu.ac.uk

To apply please send an up to date copy of your CV (including contact details of two referees) and a covering letter, explaining why you are interested in applying for this post and outlining how you meet each of the criteria listed in the person specification, providing specific examples from your experience, skills and knowledge gained in employment, voluntary work or elsewhere.

Please send these documents by post to: 90 London Road, Technopark, London South Bank University, London SE1 6LN or email to: waite.cara@lsbu.ac.uk

• Refugee Researcher - Job description (July 2008)
• Refugee Researcher - Terms & Conditions (July 2008)

Closing date for receipt of applications: Wednesday 30th July

Following their success in tendering for new projects Islington Voluntary Action Council is recruiting to three new posts:

Head of Services and Capacity Building: £39,031 p.a. Hours 35 pw

This is the senior management role at IVAC with responsibility for a programme of work providing capacity building to third sector organisations and supporting voluntary action by individuals. The post holder will work closely with the Chief Executive to develop IVAC as an organisation and our services to communities in Islington.

Head of LINk Services: £33,777 p.a. Hours 35pw

IVAC has successfully tendered to host the Local Involvement Network in Islington. We are looking for somebody to lead on supporting the network, ensuring that the views and experience of service users and communities shape the development of health and social care services.

Support Officer: Islington LINk £26,928 p.a. Hours 35pw

Reporting to the Head of LINk Services you will support the LINk to enable service users and communities to shape the development of health and social care services in the borough. This will include collection and collation of information, taking responsibility for database, website content and other communications and organising meetings and events.

IVAC is adjacent to the Angel shopping centre with excellent public transport links. They provide 30 days annual leave plus public holidays and have negotiated substantial discounts on use of borough leisure facilities for our staff.

For an application pack please download from the web site www.ivac.org.uk or call or write to our recruitment advisor, Anne Gadson, on 01494 478801, email ivac@hradvantage.co.uk