When all the Clowns that you have commissioned

The lyric is from a pretty obscure Bob Dylan track. It took a bit of finding (from the Highway 61 Revisited Album) and is the only one I know of which refers to commissioning or being commissioned. It commemorates the visit to HVA by Jocelyn and Jan from the Borough Council where we talk about their forthcoming commisioning process. It is a good discussion and I sense there is a real wish to make the process as VCS friendly as it can be. Moving from ghrant funding to a more commissioned approach sounds simple but raises quite a few complex issues. Peter (HVA's Funding expert) and I raise a range of issues from VAT to TUPE and some of the unforeseen implications of moving in this direction. It is really useful that the Council are using us to test out their plans before they are decided as we can often - hopefully - offer some useful insights. The other good thing about the meeting is that Jan - without prompting - says how much she enjoys reading the blog. I reply by saying that she will now feature in it. So thanks Jan nice to know that there are real people reading this.

Here is Bob Dylan.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y8CXskzlr2E&feature=related