To release the pressure we need a holiday

Rose, HVAs volunteer organiser won the lyric competition of a few posts back. Genuinely impressed that Rose could identify a fairly obscure Elvis Costello song (Everyday I write the book) from the 1983 Punch the Clock album. Or so I thought, until I was told that Rose had simply 'Googled' the lyric: an act a little similar to Ben Johnson's 100 meters in the Seoul Olympics methinks. Must be stricter about the rules in future!! Still Rose does have a good taste in music so is let off just with a yellow card this time.

Madonna sings us out of the blog for the next couple of weeks. A final flurry of activity to ensure that I have done everything I need to do, that others know what they need to do when I am away and those who do not know what they are doing in the first place are left well alone. Blogging activity is now curtailed until my return.

Anyway to see and hear Elvis Costello sing Everyday I write the book simply click on this link
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=QsxZjLVQraM

Blog Soon

S

The Birds Will Still Be Singing

I feel I should have introduced him earlier but HVA is probably the only CVS is the country with its own mascot. Basically, Leonard the Seagull (see picture on right side) was previously the mascot for a - now abandoned - Passport To Leisure resident discount scheme run by the Borough Council. Unfortunately a new administration combined with a series of budget cuts did for Leonard who was made redundant. Through the involvement of our volunteer bureau Leonard became a volunteer with Hastings United Football Club and leads out the team during home games. So grateful was Leonard for the volunteering opportunity given to him by Hastings Voluntary Action he agreed to become HVAs mascot as well. Commenting on his new position, Leonard said:- "If it wasn't for HVA I don't know where I would be. I was devastated when I lost my job with the Council and was at risk of descending into a vortex of daytime TV, crack addiction, meaningless one night stands and petty crime. I now feel I have regained my purpose in life and wake each day with a smile on my beak." Leonard is now working towards his Level 1 Certificate in Community Volunteering as part of HVAs Local Enterprise Growth Initiative (LEGI) programme.

Take it to the Top

have just e-mailed Kevin Curley Chief Executive of NAVCA (our national body) to get the message out to other CVS Directors about the blog and how it might be a strand of a more general information strategy for a CVS. If Kevin checks out the site he will also feel right at home to see himself mentioned and to know that seconds after sending an e-mail he can also feature in the blogging world.

And yes I am sad enough to remember the obscure 1981 New York disco hit which gives us our lyric reference. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fefrF9ngwOo

Consider Yourself Part of the Furniture

Another Service Level Agreement negotiated this time with the Hastings Furniture Service - a local charity recycling furniture and making it possible for those on low incomes to stretch their money when setting up home. I have a lot of time for the work they have done and it was nice that they have responded to an advert in Hastings Community News to seek funding to offer some accredited training to their volunteers via our LEGI programme. As a result volunteers can get their Health and Safety "ticket" which is an essential item if they want to work in related industries. We are also upping the amount who are appointed first aiders as part of this process. through this they can complete most of the entry stuff to then go onto the Certificate in Community Volunteering which we also offer. It is becoming clear to me that - in a Town where over 40% of the adult population have no formal qualifications - opening up some unusual yet relevant pathways to learning becomes ever more important. The link betwen volunteering and learning is proving a positive starting point and interest in the LEGI programme is growing.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_LzmdovYoAI

All your compliments and your cutting remarks are captured here in quotation marks

A special prize for the person who guesses the lyric! Anyway a lengthy interview took place with the Government researcher in which I was asked to review the Neighbourhood Renewal approach warts and all. In a nutshell there is quite a lot of positives I report including a greater resident involvement in service planning and exploring the nuances in different geographical areas which will need to be addressed in different ways. Data collection is more precise. On the negative side a bemoan the fact that a programme which was designed for the long term dwindled into another short term intervention with the same sustainability issues as all the others. I criticise the process for failing to resource neighbourhoods with resources from NRF to undertake their own mini-commissioning exercises to buy in those additiona,l services where and when they were most needed. On the community engagement side there is a mixed report some great ideas but a failure of delivery expressed in successive cuts to CEN funding and an elimination of the small grants process which made so much happen at a neighbourhood level. I speak about the importance of The Firm Foundations model as a basis for community activism and the attempts we have made to get others to adopt this as a fundamental principle to engender action at a neighbourhood level. I speak about the frustrations of hitting my head against that particular brick wall and the collective failure to understand the relationship between NRF and mainstream spending in such a way as to be precise. At the moment some core services are running towards the edge of a cliff without the slightest idea of what will happen next. On the LSP itself I explore the good the bad and ugly in terms of its performance - or otherwise - as the Towns strategic vehicle. At best there is a genuine will to form a partnership approach and at worst it is superficial and naive with political posturing and figure skating over the surface of complex and multi faceted issues. Not sure what difference submitting into these research studies is but maybe the message might eventually get through. Wasn't it Albert Einstein who said "if we knew what we wer doing it would not be called research would it!!"

Interview, who's interviewing who

A very old Carly Simon tune that one. Anyway today I am being interviewed as part of a research study for the Department of Communities and Local Government or whatever their called this week, It is a large research study about the effectiveness of the national strategy for neighbourhood renewal which is a programme tackling deprivation in the 88 worst areas in the country. I will blog my thoughts later when I know what questions they want to tackle. After that I have the joys of the LAA review group, a monitoring visit to a project delivering part of the LEGI programme as well as a lot of admin to go through. When I started this job I used to make myself a list of things to do the following day. I now make a list of which lists I should look at!!

The future's here catch me on computer software

A really really obscure lyric from Wu-Tang-Clan (80's rap band) gives us our theme and I have just spent an interesting 40 minutes or so being trained by our information worker on the use of the new database. Got to hand it to John who is bringing our management of information up to speed and enabling us to make sense of our contacts in a meaningful way. We have spent a lot of effort building a mass membership but this brings with it some information flow issues. We are developing an approach to build relationships with individuals within groups rather than just the groups themselves. This is useful because people tend to wear a number of hats in the VCS and understanding the range and scale of their involvement is key. Anyway I feel on top of the process - or at least sufficiently so to ask the right questions!!!

And in their most unadulterated form here are Wu-Tang-Clan (usual hip-hop/rap parental advisory sticker applies to this post by the way) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bMkOEtOR2GU

Footballs Coming Home

A pleasant evening last night at the Pilot Field where, as the guest of sponsors Hastings Heritage, I watch Hastings record a satisfying 4-0 victory over Maidstone in the first home game of the new seaon. A bit of a treat sitting in the Directors box with a cup of tea at half time in the boardroom and a drink after the game - how the other half live eh? Actually what is rather impressive is the amount of voluntary effort the club harnesses at all levels. There is a good community feel to sport at this level and the boardroom actually doubles as a study centre during the week deliverying basic skills and ICT programmes. All the youth teams are all run by volunteers and that involves a lot of effort. It was also rather nice to catch up with a couple of former HVA staff and trustees. Paul - formerly a PPI Development Worker is a regular at the Pilot Field and has also been known to double as Leonard the Seagull the clubs mascot when the mood takes him. Also Steve Thorpe a former trustee of HVA was acting as Chief Steward so it was good to have a chat with them. Hastings United have their own website which is regularly updated if you want to check out their progress during the season http://www.hastingsunitedfc.co.uk/ And just in case you forget why football is called the beautiful game just watch this...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o2TY-hN8x0s

Slave

Slave was, I think - dredging the memory cells - a Rolling Stones tune from about 1966. This year, marks 200 years since the abolition of slavery and locally I have just taken a decision to offer a small amount of sponsorship to the Friends of Africa and the Caribbean group to help them put on an exhibition reflecting slavery past and present. I got a message throuigh the Council's BME Development Worker that they had raised 90% of the money but had faced some unforeseen costs. I then ran into James Johnson the Chair of FACE who has put a great deal of work into setting this up and offered to help. For those reading this who are local to Hastings the exhibition runs from 14-16 September at the Friends Meeting House with a Guest speaker at the launch event @ 7pm on 15th September. We will probably carry a feature on this event in the next Hastings Community News.

National Health

Who remembers this little known 1960's track from The Kinks eh? Not HVAs funding adviser that's for sure. Anyway this morning saw a meeting of the Health and Social Care Forum a network facilitated by HVA to ensure a strong voluntary sector voice on the Healthier Hastings Partnership Board and other Social Care bodies. In a packed agenda they examined LINks - the new public involvement process being brought into being by our esteemed Govt, the PCT's own involvement strategy, their own AGM, Transport, the CVS Partnership and the future of the Expert Patient programme. probably in need of an asprin after that little lot. The whole issue about public involvement in health is proving to be alittle contentious at the moment with the need for some serious joining up to be done. We have seen the creation of the Commission for Public Patient Involvement, the development of Public Patient Involvement Forums accross the country, the abolition of the Commission for Public Patient Involvement and the stripping of many of the formal powers which the forums had. It appears that LINks (Local Involvement Networks) are the answer but having lived through the last ill-thought out attempt we will wait and see. At a local level though it was good to see some collaborative work being done between the Public Patient Involvement Group and the Health Forum. I then left the meeting to get back to the office as the Heavens absolutely opened and got soaked. Coincidentally I took shelter in the SHELTER charity shop and in return bought a strange CD I had never heard of before "Anne Von Otter Meets Elvis Costello" goodness alone knows what this collaboration will actually sound like mind you but 99p was a small price to pay for the experiment.

Special Delivery

P Diddy provides our lyric today proving how street cred and hardcore we can be in the old voluntary sector. For our purposes the special delivery refers to the contribution made to public service delivery by the voluntary sector. In this regard we have always argued that VCS involvement in service delivery makes it more efficient and improves its reach - particularly to parts of the community which have not previously taken up services. Well this view is supported by new Government research quantifying the impact of Voluntary sector involvement and suggesting that the long term effectiveness of service delivery, value for money and efficiency would all be enhanced if Local Government embraced a real creative approach to the Voluntary and Community Sector. The research Improving the Delivery of Mainstream Services in Deprived Areas: The Role of Commuinity Involvement is available from the Neighbourhood Renewal Unit by clicking on this link www.neighbourhood.gov.uk/publications.asp?did=1561

Contagious...its just Contagious

Who remembers the Isley Brothers Contagious was one of their lesser known hits from the 1960's. For our purposes it refers to one thing being kind of infectious and leading to another. This blog is having a strange and infectious effect on those who read it. A number of people have commented on it and 2 have stated their intention to start their own. Rose, HVA's volunteer orgasniser is beginning a blog called "Volunteering is Good for the Soul" so when it has a link we will publish it here. So we seem to be starting a blogging revolution within the voluntary sector.

(Not)...OK Computer

The miserable Radiohead provide us with our lyric link and computer are very much the issue. HVA are having a new server fitted by our computer boffins so we are off line temporarily. Also, my home computer got kind of ill a few days ago and is now in computer hospital being repaired so all blogging activity is being coordinated from work.

Monday morning was a quick update with everyone, a communication meeting + visit to the printers with John HVA's Information Worker. This was followed by a pleasant conversation as members of the team we folded and despatched the monthly newsletter. This was followed by induction meetings with the new coorindator of the Childrens Centre and the Health manager from the PULSE project. I will blog in detail about PULSE as a seperate item as it is a really interesting health initiative which HVA were instrumental in helping to create to improve health outcomes for young people under 25 and has brought in over £2m worth of funding to Hastings during its lifetime. Anyway we are looking towards equipping groups of young people with skills and qualifications to become peer mentors as part of the LEGI programme and we discuss how this might work. Seems to me common sense dictates that young people will probably prefer to get information from other young people and all the research backs this up. There is a really good group of volunteers doing workshops in schools etc which we might expand on - we shall see.

Our House...In the Middle of Our Street

The song is Madness and the topic is housing where I have had a meeting with the Bond Board to discuss their role and how to ease access to private sector accommodation by those on benefit or very low incomes which are rarely landlords favourite given the number of "no benefit" signs you see in letting agents windows. It's always good to talk to Melanie the manager of this charity to get a briefing on housing issues and a particular problem which is going to hit Hastings in January. Basically, the Government are on a drive to make indivisduals take more responsibility for the transactions the state makes on their behalf and wish to scale down the amount of direct Housing Benefit payments which go directly from Local Authorities to Landlords. Therefore after Jan 08 the payments will be going directly to tenants with very few exceptions. This is causing some considerable consternation among landlords - amny of whom rather like the direct payments as a way of avoiding rent arrears and may make access to accommodation more problematic. Additionally whilst there is nothing intrinsically wrong with making tenants more responsible some are particularly vulnerable or may face other problems which may make it difficult to manage money. I guess if you are a heroin addict a regular sum of £250 or £300 might make them think about prioritising their little bags of fun rather than paying the rent. The most vulnerable can be exempted but it is a complex process and noone is quite sure how vulnerability is going to be defined. With Melanie I explore what kind of intervention might assist this and we agree to meet with SHELTER and the Hastings Representation and Advice Centre to pursue this. Off to the Dentist and then onto the staff BBQ this afternoon. Once a year we have a get together and the weather is being kind for us. For those who have an interest the run over the Country park this morning was accompanied by the first Stereo MCs album. Coincidentally running in the opposite direction was the person who sent such nice comments about my blog so we wave knowingly. Amazing who you meet when you run. About 2 months ago I ran, almost literally, into Johnny Depp over the Country park.

Art for Arts Sake...Money for God's Sake

The music is 10cc and for our purposes it refers to an embryonic meeting held at the Borough Council to review the evaluation of the Coastel Currents Arts festival. As a result of the restructure (see below) arts/culture is now part of regeneration and the discussion had a distinct economic impact edge to it. There is thought going into the creation of an Arts Commission for Hastings along similar lines to the body which exists in Brighton. A bit too early to say but we shall see. I leave early and head back to the office to see Fran our Community network Development Officer about a range of things. Fran tells me she is bailing out of a Local Area Agreement review meeting which means that I will need to attend in her place. Suffice to say these are not the most riveting of meetings. Despite Frans grovelling a price will be exacted and the precise nature, scale and extent of the favour Fran now owes me for the two hours of my life I will never get back will be disclosed to her in the fullness of time.

Meet the New Boss...Same as the Old Boss

Ahh!! The Who what a band and what as song ("Won't get fooled again"). This is the closest lyric I could remember as strangely no rock song has ever been written entitled "Hastings Borough Council Restructuring Ends" which is a strange oversight on the part of Lennon/McCartney and others methinks.

For what seems an eternity the Borough Council have been in the throes of an enormous restructuring which has reshuffled people, responsibilities and functions in a "new broom" kind of way. It's been difficult to get clarity on a number of strategic issues issues of late as no one knew who was going to be responsible for what and which issues - like voluntary sector accommodation and the funding review - would fall in whose lap.

Anyway we are reliably assured that the restructuring light is seen at the end of the tunnel and representatives of the Community Network will shortly be meeting the Chief Executive and Council Leader soon to discuss it. I don't envy the architects of the restructure - these things are always difficult and from those who I speak to morale has taken a significant knock as people have been unsettled for a long long time as the different stages of the process took their course.

As to the results. Not cheap certainly. If savings were the intention it will take time for those to be achieved but we shall see if it genuinely creates the kind of Local Authority which is genuinely fit for the towns future. All restructurings throw up their own outcomes some foreseen - some less so. I am reminded of a friend of mine who was a personnel specialist helping to manage two major restructurings in the private sector. When he was e-mailed about the new leadership in the company his reply was simple:-

"a mix of the genuinely talented together with some who resemble those who got lucky when they wrote to Jim'll Fix It"

The Message

The Song is Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five released in 1982. The song's lyrics were some of the first in the genre of rap to talk about the struggles and the frustrations of living in the ghetto. For our purposes, the subject is communication and the voluntary sector playing catch up with new technology in its attempt to get its message across. It's been good to have John join us as our new(ish) Information Worker as it has really helped us embrace new methods like Wikis a better web presense and I guess this blog is part of that process. I had hoped that we might become the first vol sector organisation to release our own podcast (downloadable audio file for the uninitiated) but we have been beaten to it it appears. The first podcast aimed at the UK voluntary sector, was produced about a year ago produced by the Fundraising Technology blog

The link is http://re-focus.blogs.com/fundraising_technology/2006/05/nfp_247_edition.html

NFP 24/7 Edition #1: 24 May 2006
We're pleased to announce the first edition of what we hope will become a regular and useful podcast for anyone interested in what is happening in the non-profit sector in the UK and beyond. This is our first foray into podcasting (and it shows!) so please bear with us. We hope to get better with your help.
Show notes for 24 May 2006:
Welcome to NFP 24/7, a 17-minute podcast on non-profit issues recorded in London, United Kingdom.
Download the file (MP3, 17Mb) or sign up for the RSS feed to get this and future editions automatically.

In this edition:
00:00 Welcome to the show - how to contact us01:05 Reaching supporters with podcasting05:43 Saving money with Skype08:28 Round up of US blogs09:19 Mark reports on the launch of new UK lottery, Monday13:13 Outro and music from Amplifico

As one contributor to the blog wrote "Lets get the sector reaching out via blogs & podcasts..less navel gazing and more sharing and learning." I’m up for that.

You know today I stayed on the bus

The song is The Kooks and, not surprisingly our subject today is buses, the accessibility of them, the reliablity of them and the cost of going on them. My role as Director of HVA takes me into a diverse collection of meetings including the formal consultation group which looks at bus travel and reviews the Quality Bus Partnership - the agreement which makes them more efficient reliable cost effective and customer friendly (or not depending on your point of view). Together with bodies like Save Our Services, Disability Forum, Seniors Forum and others we sit down with Stagecoach, the Borough and County Councils and a representative of the drivers union to look at issues. I think I am fairly good at some of the strategic stuff but I have to hand it to some of the other reps who have an absolutely encyclopedic knowledge of every bus shelter, drop curb, turning circle in the whople Borough. I leave much of the detail to them but my ears prick up when we discuss an increase in the number of 'incidents' on buses and the risk to drivers. I then learn something which absolutely amazes me. Here it is... If a driver is assaulted, breaks down or needs to summon help, contact his garage or call the emergency services THE BUS COMPANY HAVE PROVIDED NO MEANS THROUGH WHICH THEY CAN DO SO!! I always thought that this would be such a basic thing but apparently not. Unless a driver carries a personal mobile phone which I guess they pay for they are completely isolated. I say to the meeting that I am outraged and that I want an input from the health and safety executive on this one. I am informed by the drivers representative that they have been asking for a walkie talkie system or mobile phone communication but nothing has happened. Given that most vehicles are driver only now seems like a serious issue to me. It might also interest you to know that the profits of STAGECOACH rose 11% last year to a whopping £140million so if cost is raised as the excuse I will be hitting the roof!!

Joining You

You really are scraping the barrel when you have to use an Alanis Morrisette song for a link. The "joining you" in this case is our membership drive through which HVA maintains a strong membership base and gathers key data about local groups. We've done really well to develop a membership of almost 400 which I am realiably informed is one of the highest in the country. John our information worker has recently had the task of gathering information from each of our members and we will be using this to publish a State of the Sector statement which will quantify the size and impact of the local voluntary sector. For all sorts of reasons having a strong and diverse membership is at the heart of what a CVS should be about. SO if you are reading this from a voluntary organisation in Hastings and have received your membership renewal form please get it back to us as soon as you can.

Called Careers Information...Got Yourself an Occupation

Yes I know the song-references are getting a little tenuous but it's not that easy you know. Had some really nice feedback from the operations manager of careers service who found the blog "fascinating". Not had much to do with the careers service before - as I have never had anything which could be described as a career!! But thanks for the feedback it proves that I am not just prattling away into the internet ether like some kind of Ancient Mariner figure talking randomly to anyone who will listen. Back to drafting a Service Level Agreement now as we are funding some volunteer training being delivered by a local Furniture Recycling Charity.

Run to the Hills

The morning run was a bit damp - the heavens having seriously opened last night. I usually run to some reasonably gentle music but this morning my ipod was on "shuffle" mode which randomly throws up any album in the collection. So this morning we had the less than gentle 2004 comeback album from the Beastie Boys "Back to the 5 Boroughs". Three men with what the psychiatrists would probably call 'unresolved anger management issues'. A little bracing for a morning run methinks. So if I am little more 'hardcore' during the team meeting or during my frank exchange of views with Richard Peters (Hastings Borough Council) and Alison Horan (East Sussex County Council) where we review the HBC/ESCC/GOSE LAA funding debacle don't say you weren't warned!! Tomorrow we welcome 2 new employees to HVA - or rather the workers for another project who we are providing employment and payroll support for. Becoming an employer is a big step for a community organisation and we sometimes provide some support by taking on this role (tax, NI etc) whilst simultaneously helping the organisation develop their own policies and knowledge about this complex area. In this case the organisation is a local social enterprise distributing low cost fruit and veg as part of the national 5-a-day initiative.

At the Library...

Reading an interesting book by sociologist Robert Puttnam which has some interesting links to the work we do and made me think about the future of small local organisations. In Bowling Alone: America's Declining Social Capital Putnam surveys the decline of "social capital" in the United States of America since 1950, which he feels undermines the active civil engagement a strong democracy requires from its citizens. Putnam discusses ways in which Americans have disengaged from political involvement including decreased voter turnout, public meeting attendance, serving on committees and working with political parties. Putnam notes the aggregate loss in membership of many civic organizations and points out that membership has not migrated to other organizations. To illustrate why the decline in Americans' membership in social organizations is problematic to democracy, Putnam uses bowling as an example. Although the number of people who bowl has increased in the last 20 years, the number of people that bowl in leagues has decreased. Since people bowl alone they do not participate in social interaction and civic discussions that might occur in a league environment.
Putnam then contrasts the countertrends of ever increasing mass-membership organizations, nonprofit organizations and support groups to the data of the General Social Survey. This data shows an aggregate decline in membership of traditional civic organizations, proving his thesis that the social capital of the US has declined. He then asks the obvious question "Why is US social capital eroding?" Putnam suggests closer studies of which forms of associations can create the greatest social capital, how various aspects of technology, changes in social equality, and public policy affect social capital. He closes by emphasizing the importance of discovering how the United States could reverse the trend of social capital decay. So there you have it!!

Country Roads Take Me Home

See how the introductions to each blog entry are starting to resemble pop tunes? Anyway I don't often single out a community group for specific attention over all the others but I did want to say how much I welcome the formation of the Friends of Hastings Country Park. The country park is, in my humble opinion one of the greatest pieces of real estate in the world and my morning run with the dog takes me through woodland cliffs and some fantastic views. It is now looking for some friends Hastings Country Park Nature Reserve is a stunning area of sandstone cliff, heathland, meadows, gill woodland and farmland and recently became the largest local nature reserve to be declared in the last 20 years. Now regular users of the park and the visitors’ centre have formed the Friends of Hastings Country Park Nature Reserve group, to help with the day to day running, one-off conservation projects and long-term management of the country park. Further details available from http://www.wildhastings.org.uk/news
This mornings run was undertaken - in the slight drizzle - to the sounds of Living Through chemistry the first album from Norman Cook (aka Fatboy Slim). Funny thing is I used to hate Dance music until I started to run - maybe it really is music that you have to move to to appreciate. By the way if you want to see what kind of music I am listening too at any time of the day or night you can go to my LASTFM page at http://www.last.fm/user/eclecticsteve/

Monday, Monday

Well what did Monday hold. A quick cup of tea and signing some cheques and then onto the weekly communications meeting with our information worker. This was followed by a review of a membership/representation paper and then a CVS Chief Officers meeting wherein we review the CVS Partnership a project designed to develop greater alignment between the Councils for Voluntary Service in East Sussex and develop joint activity. It is early days yet but this kind of work has potential providing people don't lose sight of the bigger picture. Back home to begin working on a paper for the regeneration company for Hastings "Seaspace" and the Borough Council in which we argue that HVAs relocation could provide a community anchor for the Town and assist new groups by providing incubator space to help their development. Basically sometime in 2009 a wrecking ball will crash through our office wall as HVAs home becomes Phase III of Lacuna Place - a mix of office and retail accommodation - the prospect of being demolished focusses the mind somewhat and after a bit of a struggle to get this issue onto the agenda SEASPACE and the Council are recognising the need to help support our relocation in a planned way. Working from home is a way of getting quality stuff done without distraction. It also means I can write the paper - and this blog - to the strains of Grandmaster Flash a seminal musical figure from the 1970's and 1980's credited with creating the first ever Hip-Hop record (White Lines-Don't Do it).

Carnival Time

A quick visit to the Hastings Carnival which this year was really successful. After a number of times when it seemed a bit, well, flat and tired new groups seemed to have got involved. Nice atmosphere. Should also congratulate whoever led the Macabre Walk on Friday night which was excellent. Grim tales of ,murder, execution, wrecking ships, smuggling and murder in the Old Town. Learnt loads about the dark side of our fair town and excellent fish and chips to follow.

On the Road again...

This morning the executive of Hastings Community Transport met to discuss the future plans for the company. HVA have been involved helping to create the community transport service out of an older Dial a Ride service and make it sustainable. It has now become, I think the largest social enterprise in Hastings and caters for the needs of about 20,000 users per year. Although HVA is used to working in partnership to set up projects I had never worked on a transport service before. As a consequnece I now know about claiming tax back onm fuel and the licensing requirements of the Department of transport!! Anyway the company has got past its first year - always the most probloematic according to business advisers - and has won new contracts. This afternoon was spent discussing the funding implications of the LAA and a problem of baroque complexity involving East Sussex County Council, Hastings Borough Council and the Government Office of the South East - reminds you of one of those jokes about how many people it takes to change a lightbulb doesn't it. Tonight I am going on a ghost walk run by volunteers as part of Old Town week and hearing about some of the spookier happenings of the old towns past. One of them involves The Stag pub which has a mummified cat in the bar so I guess some intake of beer will be required to keep my nerves intact!!!

A bit of history

A few weeks ago I had a nice conversation with Dennis Collins of the Old THastings Preservation Society - among other interests. I have known Dennis swince I first moved to Hastings on the basis that he used to run a bookshop and I have spent half my adult life in them. He knows more about the history of our fair Town then anyone else I know and I always finish a conversation with him knowing something I didn't know at the start. Anyway I asked Dennis about the history of HVA and its predecessor incarnations and how long our history was. Lo and behold Dennis traces our history back to 1855 when the mayor of Hastings covened a meeting of all leading charities to work together and combat drunkenness poverty and bad housing. Amazing over a century and a half and never more than 12 months funding at a time. Not a bad record!!! Anyway the OHPS have opened the History House in Courthouse Street which is well worth a visit as they are dloing some interesting work interpreting local history.

Nice feedback

Nice call from the coordinator of an advice service in East Sussex praising HVAs reponse to the consultation about proposed changes to the Councils grants policy. Basically the Council are looking towards stopping core grants and moving entirely to a commissioning approach - we have been here before methinks! Less than 3 years ago the Council undertook extensive consultation with local groups and decided that core funding was the way to go. So why the change. I guess a new broom political administration. Often what appears a simple and straightforward idea is often more complex than it might appear and this is the case with the Councils proposals. Even the biggest commissioning devotee would have to concede that the Councils approach is timid and required more thought. We hope that this issue will be given the time and attention it deserves as there are wider implications (like VAT liability) which can come into play. For anyone interested our response and the Councils proposals are on the website at www.hastingsvoluntaryaction.org we wait and see!!

Audits and Monitoring

Well whats been going on this week? Audit city thats what. Like many other charities our work is monitored on a continual basis and regular audits form part of our work pattern. This time it was our Funding Adviser and our Volunteering Accreditation project which got the treatment. The person conducting the audit was really interested in HVA's work which makes a nice change and could really see what we were seeking to achieve with the project. Basically we are setting up a process through which volunteers can ger their skills formally recorded and then work towards a recognised qualification (Certificate in Community Volunteering Levels 1 and 2). Simultaneously we are doing some employer engagement work to encourage a behaviour change so that they recognise the skills obtained through volunteering when they recruit for paid staff. It also gets them to think about the contribution they could make to the community and how they might support members of their own staff who are volunteers. The monitoring officer was also a volunteer which made it easier to get over what we were doing and why. It must have worked because the poster advertising the programme now adorns the conference room in the Borough Councils regeneration unit which means we must have made an impact!!

A CVS Directors Blog

Hi,

I am steve Manwaring Director of Hastings Voluntary Action. I have decided to keep a blog to discuss some issues which arise in my work and create a platform to give an insight into some of the work which we do. I will be posting material as often as I am able to give a general slice of life view of HVAs work and some of the issues affecting the Voluntary and Community Sector in Hastings.