The Bigger Picture in Healthcare

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The Leicestershire Partnership and Northamptonshire Healthcare Group are working towards their healthcare strategy for 2025.

Views about this potential new strategy are being sought from staff, carers, volunteers, patients, service users and key stakeholders.

Contained within the Bigger Picture Strategy Correspondence is a series of questions about what works well, and what could be improved.

To access the questionnaire, click here

Alternatively, you can E-Mail their Group Director of Strategy and Partnerships at David.williams96@nhs.net

Counsellor Wanted

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VIN are looking to assist the wellbeing of staff at HMP Five Wells by employing a qualified counsellor to deliver one to one sessions, one day a month onsite at the prison. If you are interested in this opportunity please contact callum.bentley@voluntaryimpact.org.uk

VIN’s Executive Membership ends

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VIN’s Executive Membership Product has come to an end, and we would like to thank those organisations that subscribed and supported the programme.

The new West Northamptonshire Infrastructure Contract means that Executive Membership is no longer the right way in which to support organisations with their extra needs.

The Membership Portal will be made an open resource bank free to all in the next few weeks, and through the life of this next contract award we will be adding templates, toolkits, and policies.

We will continue to provide 6 free Training Courses per year, and 6 network sessions which will include 2 specific events for charity CEO’s in September 2024 and March of 2025.

The new contract will not allow us to support organisations with all their needs, and so we will be looking to add more bespoke support offers to our paid for consultancy products and any paid for training above our core offer where appropriate.

On a final point, the new Infrastructure contract is a partnership approach through VIN, SNVB and Daventry Volunteers.

 

The Lloyds Bank Foundation continue to support charities

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For ten years, the Lloyds Bank Foundation has been investing in helping small and local charities to build on their strengths and grow more resilient so they can thrive over the long term.

The Foundation wants to share their organisational development support offer with charities they cannot fund. This will include the full range of tailored support together with guidance from their Regional Managers. The support could include working with a specialised consultant, a mentor, or a skilled volunteer, participating in peer networks, members and delivering or facilitating events.  Through this programme the Foundation will help charities to identify and prioritise their development goals, building on what they are already great at and supporting them to respond to and overcome challenges.

This year, the Foundation will be  supporting up to 60 charities that help refugees and asylum seekers through this Organisational Development Support Programme:

https://www.lloydsbankfoundation.org.uk/funding/organisational-development-support-programme

This offer is only available to charities with an income between £25k and £500k PA. This programme does not come with a cash grant, but all the requisite support provided is completely free of charge.

VIN’s Strategic Plan 2024 – 2026

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VIN’s new Strategic Plan entitled VINFRASTRUCTURE can be viewed by clicking here

It covers the next 2-year period (from 2024 – 2026) and correlates with the 24-month award given by West Northamptonshire Council for Infrastructure services.

In many respects it addresses the new world that Infrastructure charities and the wider VCSE are now part of: A world of challenge, competition but opportunity.

Like most other community-based organisations, VIN must stay true to its Mission Position whilst diversifying its income portfolio, which is never easy.

Russell Rolph, the VIN CEO states:

I hope you enjoy reading the contents of this plan. In compiling this, we have looked at our historic strengths and the work we still need to do to profile Infrastructure at its best, whilst supporting as many grass roots organisations as we can. In order to do this, we have formally partnered with South Northants Volunteer Bureau (SNVB) and Daventry Volunteers, ensuring coverage across the whole of West Northamptonshire. We know we must find new and innovative ways of providing advice and guidance, much of which will be resourced based and gain the most from digital platforms which community organisations can access at a time of their choosing. The sector is being asked to deliver more with less, and Infrastructure is no different. Our strategic plan is a pragmatic approach to the world we see.

Have a say in Safeguarding

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The Northamptonshire Safeguarding Children Partnership (or NSCP) are in the process of redesigning and creating a new website.

To get the views of leaders, managers and practitioners working with Children and Young People in Northamptonshire they have created a survey to establish both the type of information and format which partners view as important.

The survey can be accessed by clicking here: https://forms.office.com/e/vbRicE4UPJ and should take between 5 and 10 minutes to complete

Freelance Activities Coordinator – Job Description

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At the moment Northampton Mencap operates fortnightly social clubs at their purpose built centre in Ransome Road for people with learning disabilities. These clubs are held in the evenings of Monday, Wednesday and Friday every other week, each from 7pm to 9pm.

Job Title : Freelance Activities Coordinator

Hours: 10 hours per week (working hours vary each week)

Salary: £15 per hour

It is expected that applicants will have some experience of working with adults with a learning disability and be able to manage a budget.

Key Tasks:

  • Have creative ideas for fun and stimulating activities.
  • Interact with members to help build their trust and confidence.
  • Support and mentor volunteers, line manage, supervise and motivate them.
  • Provide an interesting and varied programme for clubs.
  • Make advance preparations for sessions, which may include contacting parents/carers and organising transport. Sessions can include outings and occasional trips.
  • Ensure that detailed registers are kept of members, carers and volunteers at each session.
  • Ensure that all monies taken for sessions, such as subs, transport, tuck and raffles are recorded and passed to the Centre Manager after each session.
  • To be qualified in Emergency First Aid at Work and act as a first aider in the session.
  • To have patience with new volunteers and ensure they feel welcome and ensure that their onboarding paperwork, induction and checks are completed in a timely manner with support from the Centre Manager.
  • To ensure that volunteers have refresher training on relevant policies as appropriate.
  • To ensure that Clubs comply with best practice regarding Health and Safety.

Personal Qualities

  • The ability to work and create friendly, relaxed and constructive relationships with people with a learning disability and their families and carers. Be able to motivate those with a learning disability to reach their full potential.
  • Be a very organised individual with excellent record keeping skills
  • Be a good communicator
  • Have a commitment to your own and others training and development

COVERING LETTER REQUIED.

Job Types: Part-time, Freelance

Pay: £15.00 per hour

Expected hours: 10 per week

Benefits:

  • Free parking
  • On-site parking

Work Location: In person

Reference ID: Freelance Activities Coordinator – Northampton Mencap

 

To apply, please send CV and covering letter to Suki Bassi, manager@northamptonmencap.org.uk

Collaboration in Health Inequalities Report: 1st May 2024

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Here is our report on the Collaboration in Health Inequalities Event which was funded by NHS Partnerships England and took place on the 1st May 2024.

The Report is a synopsis of the rich and broad discussions which took place.

Thank you once again to all the keynote speakers that attended, and to the LAP Leads for facilitating the Peer Circles.

 

Carer Strategy

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West Northamptonshire Council (WNC) are asking for local carers or someone supporting a carer to share their views and feedback on the newly drafted five-year Carer Strategy.

The draft strategy is for all unpaid carers that live in, or care for someone that lives in West Northants, and has been developed together with local carers, ensuring their voices drive forward progress over the next few years to provide the right support and information for them.

Chosen by our local carers, 17 priorities have been identified to focus on improving over the next five years as well as specific measurements to track progress which the Council would like to seek views on. Each priority has a set of actions that will support achieving the priority over the five-year period. More details on each of the priorities and how they will be achieved can be found in the strategy.

Please tell West Northamptonshire Council your views by completing this online questionnaire via the online consultation survey. The council will review all feedback with our group of local carers and make any necessary changes, before taking it to Cabinet for final approval.    Your feedback will be part of reports with other people’s feedback, so you will not be personally identified.

The survey will close at midnight on Thursday 30 May 2024.

If you have any queries, comments or would like a copy of this questionnaire in another format you can contact by email or post, alternatively call 0300 126 7000.

Email address:  carerstrategyfeedback@westnorthants.gov.uk 

Postal address: Draft Carer Strategy Consultation Response, West Northamptonshire Council, The Guildhall, St Giles’ Street, Northampton, NN1 1DE.

West Northamptonshire launch a new phase of Community Grants

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The grant scheme is open to local registered charities, not-for-profit and VCSE organisations that operate, or are prepared to operate, within the geographical area of West Northamptonshire.

Eligible applicants must address an identified local need, and support, enable or facilitate the achievement of one or more of the Council’s strategic aims, objectives, or priorities.

Applications for this round of funding should be submitted no later than 5pm on Wednesday, 26 June 2024.

For more information on how to apply click here:  Fresh grant funding available for West Northants Voluntary and Community Sector | West Northamptonshire Council