Welcome to another packed Volunteering and Mentoring e-bulletin on our first birthday - the 12th edition. We are launching our 4 new guides that support network members do what you do. We announce the launch of a brand new campaign, Gatemate, to support the mentoring and befriending of offenders throughout the UK. We introduced a new item called ‘Project Launch’ so if you have a new service to shout about then email us and we’ll advertise it. We also have a new survey on service user involvement, so get involved with that.
NETWORK NEWS: Guides launched!
Clinks have launched four new guides to support organisations involving volunteers or providing mentoring services. Funded by the Ministry of Justice and in partnership with Volunteering England, the Mentoring & Befriending Foundation, and Charities Evaluation Services these new guides provide clear and concise information on setting up a project, managing volunteers, demonstrating your effectiveness and attaining quality standards. These are the first Volunteering and Mentoring Network products that are available for free on the Clinks website.
Link:Download all four guides for free HERE or contact nathan.dick@clinks.org for more information
NETWORK NEWS: Gatemate – the new online campaign for mentoring
The GateMate campaign aims for all young adults leaving prison to be supported by a mentor and to be met at the gate on their release. The campaign is led by a consortium of partners: The Prince's Trust, Clinks, St Giles Trust, Catch22, The Mentoring & Befriending Foundation and The Bonita Trust. The campaign is striving to give every young adults leaving prison the chance to have a mentor meet him or her from at the prison gate. To support this aim further the Gatemate website is mapping all existing mentoring and befriending services across the UK – it’s free to register so make sure that your organisation is listed by completing the simple application form. This will ensure that we can map and show the significant work going on in this area.
Link:Go directly to the Gatemate website: www.gatemate.org
NETWORK NEWS: Clinks Manifesto Launch (8th March, London: FREE)
'A community focus for criminal justice – where next?' is our Spring conference which will include the launch of our manifesto. A change of administration in 2010 will provide the opportunity to look afresh at the rehabilitation of offenders and the important role communities could have. By attending this conference you will hear from experts and also be able to contribute to panel discussions and workshops. Workshop topics include commissioning, diversity, localism, volunteering, and there's an exclusive performance from Clean Break. This event is a unique opportunity prior to the General Election, and as such places are filling quickly.
Link: Book your place HERE
NETWORK NEWS: Volunteering in the recession
Volunteering England have released a statement in the run up to their recession summit around volunteering to highlight the major increases in volunteering that they have seen in recent times with 90% of volunteer centres noting an increase in enquiries they receive, however, funding for volunteer centres has remained or static or in some instances been reduced. Volunteering England have released a statement with detail around the key issues and concerns in relation to this news.
Link: To read the full Volunteering England statement go HERE
SURVEY: Unlocking Potential – your experiences of Service User Involvement
Clinks want to hear about your organisations experiences of service user involvement and how you may have involved your service users as, for example, volunteers, peer researchers, peer advisors, steering group members or future employees. As part of a new piece of work on supporting service user involvement Clinks would like to hear from you about your experiences (positive or negative) and perhaps to get in touch to use your organisation as a case study for future work.
Link: Complete the short survey HERE
TRAINING: Volunteering with Offenders (16th & 17th March, London: £64)
There are only a few places on 'Volunteering with Offenders in the Community', a 2-day modular ‘train the trainers’ course designed to support the training of staff and volunteers in the Voluntary and Community Sector who are working with offenders in the community. We will explore some of the issues faced by volunteers, and the organisations that manage them. This is a really popular course, and will be the last time we offer this course for a while.
Link: Read more and book HERE
TRAINING: Assertiveness and Confidence building (March/April, Cheshire)
Treasures Training and Consultancy designs and delivers personal and professional development programmes. The training programmes encourage and enable people to become more self-aware, more assertive and build their self-confidence. A variety of teaching methodologies are used including experiential learning using the arts as forms of communication and outdoor activities. Forthcoming events include Assertiveness Training Course (27th & 28th March) and a Confidence Building Course (24th & 25th April). Both courses are run in the Cheshire area.
Link: To book a place email TreasuresTraining@yahoo.co.uk or visit www.treasurestraining.co.uk
RESOURCE: Institute for Volunteering Research Bulletins
The Institute for Volunteering Research (IVR) collate summaries of the research that they have undertaken on their website for free download. These are a great introduction for organisations into a number of different policy areas in relation to volunteering. A resource that can help you identify why volunteering matters and what impact it can have on your service users and the wider community.
Link: Visit the website page HERE
RESOURCE: Understanding Participation: A literature Review
Supported by the Lottery Fund, NCVO, involve and the Institute for Volunteering Reseach Pathways through participation aims to explore how and why people get involved and stay involved in different forms of participation over the course of their lives. This new review on participation brings together diverse literature, including literature on community development, volunteering, public participation, social movements, everyday politics and ethical consumption. It looks at the historical and current drivers of participation, the activities and actors of participation and different theoretical approaches that contribute to a better understanding of participation. Some short summaries on different aspects of the review are currently being produced.
Link: Download the literature review HERE
RESOURCE: Forum for Change
“Network, develop, learn, contribute” is the slogan for the NCVO website called Forum for change. This website is a forum for those organisations and people involved in influencing policy and campaigning for change. This offers a wide array of support for people in this field of work including forums for those new to policy work, how to commission research around your policy area and a new section highlights consultations that are taking place.
Link: www.forumforchange.org.uk
PROJECT LAUNCH: Catch 22 launches a young Muslims mentoring project
This new mentoring project from young peoples charity Catch 22 aims to establish 20 new one-to-one mentoring relationships between young people aged 11-14 and their peers aged 16-25. Relationships should be focused on the needs of young people and in essence provide a high quality mentoring relationship. Mentors will act as role models and give valuable lessons in a diverse range of areas from discussing high educational attainment to dealing with peer pressure. (source: Voice4Change England E-Alert, www.voice4change-england.co.uk).
Link:For more information email Farhat Amin on farhat.amin@catch-22.or.uk
PUBLICATION: Offenders with Learning Difficulties
The British Dyslexia Association has published 'Good Practice Guide for Justice Professionals: Guidelines for supporting Clients and Users of the Justice System who have Dyslexia and other Specific Learning Difficulties'. The guide offers practical advice on the impact of Specific Learning Difficulties in police, court and tribunal settings.
Link: For more information and to get your copy email Melanie Jameson at dyslexia.mj@dsl.pipex.com
EVENT: Arts in the Criminal Justice System (8th March HMYOI Portland, 25th March HMYOI Thorn Cross: FREE)
The Arts Alliance Creative Resource Events aim to promote the use of the arts in the reducing re-offending pathways set up by NOMS, to explore the role that the arts can play in the rehabilitation process and to provide a platform for regional artist/art organisations working in criminal justice sector to promote their work. The events are a mixture of interactive workshops, presentations and discussions aiming of to explore criminal justice as a sector in which arts projects are run, to examine arts practices and to discuss the protocols, ethics and cultures in criminal justice settings in order to facilitate more effective arts based projects in future.
Link: Email Asia Wieloch to book a place at eventsandmarketing@apcentre.org.uk or call on 020 7735 6831
EVENT: The Fear Factory (1st March, London)
The public's fear of youth crime bears little relation to reality and the young are more demonised, more alienated and more easily caught in a self-fulfilling prophesy of our own making... A screening of ‘The Fear Factory’ documentary on youth crime and the current policy towards it is being held on 1st March in London. This is followed by Q&A with MPs and key stakeholders on the issues in the documentary. For more information on the film and the growing coalition visit the website below and email for more information about this one-off screening.
Link: Visit The Fear Factory website HERE and email info@thefearfactory.co.uk for booking information
EVENT: Green Citizens – nature or nurture (4th February, London)
Volunteering England is holding a series of free policy seminars to discuss key issues affecting the volunteering world. Hot on the heels of the Copenhagen Climate Change Conference in December, this event will explore the role that environmental volunteering has to play in changing people’s behaviour in relation to the environment. Does environmental volunteering nurture green citizens? Is a citizen-led movement the best way to tackle climate change? How inclusive is environmental volunteering – does it enhance the behaviour of the converted, or does it take green consciousness to a new audience? The event will draw on evidence from the latest research and insights from leading organisations and commentators.
Link: To book onto this policy seminar email events@volunteeringengland.org
FUNDING: Welsh code of practice for funding the third sector (Wales)
From WCVA's Network Wales 395: Welsh voluntary groups affected by the recession are being urged to make use of the "very important" Code of Practice for Funding the Third Sector. This sets out the key principles that underpin the Welsh Assembly Government's funding methods, including security of funding through longer term commitments.
Link: Download the PDF HERE
WEBSITE OF THE MONTH: Gatemate Campaign
The new interactive Gatemate website is a fantastic example of voluntary sector collaboration and innovation in supporting mentoring and befriending services to offenders. The website contains an online map of mentoring services across the UK, allowing you to search for mentoring projects using the google maps technology. Additionally the website hosts the stories of those who have been in prison and had the support of a mentor as well as advocating for increased services just like this. You can add your own stories to the website, leave comments about the contents, add your own project to the online map, and support the campaigns aims.
Link: www.gatemate.org
WEBSITE OF THE MONTH: New GwirVol website – youth volunteering in Wales
GwirVol promotes, supports and drives forward the youth volunteering agenda in Wales and has just launched its revamped website
Link: www.gwirvol.org
The Volunteering & Mentoring Network is informed by a steering group. If you would like to know more about the steering group, its membership, terms of reference, or notes of meetings please email nathan.dick@clinks.org
