Local runner Gustavo is running the Brighton half marathon to raise money for us!
We are a very small organisation, and every penny raised will help us run services for local community groups. A little can go a long way – just £50 could pay for a new piece of equipment, a one-to-one advice session with a group, or an update to one of our useful information sheets.
Can you sponsor him? Every little helps!
Donate at https://mydonate.bt.com/fundraisers/gustavoiriarte1
Community Works are running a free training course for small groups (inclome under £35,000) on attracting funding for health activities.
Lots of the activities small groups run make people feel better. Funders are interested in this, and want to hear more. But often the language of funding can be confusing.
Funders often talk in terms of ‘outcomes and impact’ but what does this mean for a small group? How can you measure and then start talking about your work to make it more attractive to funders and what can you do to improve your chances of meeting funders’ requirements?
This workshop is the opportunity to explore these questions and will:
This training is for groups:
They will prioritise places for groups whose health and well-being activities support LGBT people, younger people or older people in physical activity, arts, heritage, culture, food and nutrition, inter-generational work.
7 February 2017
5.30pm-8.30pm
Friends Meeting House, Ship Street, Brighton, BN1 1AF
For more information: 01273 234023 or info@bhcommunityworks.org.uk
Safety Net will be running monthly DBS surgeries, in partnership with Community Works, where you can get free advice about DBS (previously CRB) checks for your organisation. It’s also an opportunity to bring in completed DBS forms for checking and ID verification.
Surgeries will take place on the first Thursday of the month from 10.00am – 3.00pm at Community Base
The first session will be Thursday 2nd February.
You need to book an appointment in advance. Email dbs@safety-net.org.uk or call 01273 414981.
These sessions are only open to Community Works members. Membership is free to groups with an income under £35,000 per year. Information about how to join is on the Community Works website.
DBS ID verification is only available to groups that have already arranged to use Safety Net for their DBS checking. Contact Safety Net to arrange this.
Brighton & Hove Council will be setting its budget for 2017-18 soon. They are considering making a big cut to the pot of money that the Resource Centre is funded from (the Third Sector Investment Programme). The Council’s funding is central to keeping the Centre going. Any cut would make things extremely difficult.
We want to continue to support community in groups in Brighton & Hove, but we need council funding to do so. Together with our partners, we have written a joint letter to the leader of the Council, explaining why we think reducing this funding is a mistake.
Even the council’s budget papers say reduced funding ‘may result in less “active citizenship” in neighbourhoods and communities’. Community groups help people to be active and healthy, and to connect with others. If support for these activities is reduced, it could end up costing the council and the health service more in the long run.
If you agree with us, it would be a great help if you could let your local councillors know that you think the Resource Centre should continue to be funded.
We have postcards in the Centre which you can fill in and send. Or you can enter your postcode on the Write To Them website to send an email to all your councillors.
Friday 3rd March / 9:30am – 4:30pm / Friends Meeting House / FREE
Do you volunteer for a group or organisation that serves fresh meals for the community to enjoy together? We are offering shared meal/lunch club settings the opportunity to go on this essential training to learn about food safety and hygiene for free. This is a certified Food Safety Level 2 course delivered by David Taylor. http://www.davidtaylortraining.co.uk/ This is also a great chance to network and meet people who are working in a similar setting. There is one space available per organisation, let me know if you would like more than one person to attend and I will create a waiting list.
The course covers:
For more information
To book your place just email me on helen@bhfood.org.uk or ring me on 07850 002596
Our exhibition, which celebrates our 40 year history supporting small local groups, is now on display at the Jubilee Library.
It was launched by the Mayor of Brighton & Hove Cllr Pete West on 16th January, and will remain open until 4pm on 22nd January. The Mayor said ” I’m a big fan of the quiet, cooperative work the Resource Centre does, and proud to have them as one of my mayoral charities. I doubt we would have such an extensive and successful community sector in the city were it not for this organisation, it is an unsung hero, and I’m very glad to be able to help to celebrate and thank them for what they do”.
Kate Page, who has worked at the centre since 1982, said “Small groups create support networks and give people a sense of belonging, which cannot be matched by any top-down large organisation. For example, a street party run by a group of neighbours is much more than just a day’s entertainment. It gives people a sense of pride in their neighbourhood, and a feeling of achievement at having organised an event for their families to enjoy. It also helps residents build friendships with one another, which reduces isolation.”
Beryl Tucknott, a trustee, has been using the Resource Centre for 25 years.
She said: “I first came to the Resource Centre in 1991, when we set up Robert Lodge Tenants Association with the help of Mary Mears. Tenants didn’t have a voice, and we set up the Association to represent tenants’ interests. We managed to get community rooms and a laundry. The Resource Centre helped us with minute taking, bookkeeping and publicity. We wouldn’t have been able to set up the association without them.”
A big thank you to the Mayor Cllr. Pete West, Cllr. Leo Littman, Cllr. Dee Simson, Cllr. Mary Mears and Cllr. David Gibson, and to the Resource Centre trustees, for attending the launch to celebrate the work of the Centre.
The Foundation for Social Improvement is running a one day programme of fundraising courses for small charities and community groups. Full day, half day and workshops are available so that local small charities can access the skills they need to become self sustaining.
Venue: Ralli Hall, 81 Denmark Villas, Hove, East Sussex, BN3 3TH
Date: Wednesday 8th February 2017
Time: 9.30am-4.30pm (registration from 9.15am)
To book, you will first need to be registered as a member. Membership is free for charities with an annual turnover of less than £1.5 million. You will need to have access to details about your group, including information about annual income and expenditure in order to complete the membership form.
The cost of the workshops is £15 for members; a deposit of £50 is required.
Visit www.thefsi.org/services/training/brighton-february-2017/ for more information, and to book.
Keeping adults safe: an introductory course for community groups and voluntary organisations who work with, engage and deliver activities or services for adults
Take a strategic approach to fundraising: Taking time to think and plan effectively is the key to effective fundraising. Our one day strategic approach to fundraising course will take you through the key elements you will need to consider in developing your fundraising strategy.
Attracting funding for health activities: Lots of the activities we do make people feel better. How as a small group can we get funders to understand this?
To book your place or to find out more get in touch with Community Works on training@bhcommunityworks.org.uk or call 01273 234023.
Safety Net have spaces on the following courses running in January:
You can find out more about all of the above sessions and book your place via the training pages on their website: https://www.safety-net.org.uk/training/ , or by contacting Clare Topa at training@safety-net.org.uk
All sessions are running in Safety Net’s beautifully refurbished training room at the Emmaus complex in Portslade.
The Community Health Fund supports small community group initiatives, with an income under £35,000 a year, which improve the health and wellbeing of Brighton and Hove’s residents.
The fund is ending
The fund has run for a number of years and is now ending. So this is your last chance to apply for this money!
The deadline for applications to the fund is 13 January 2017.
If you’ve applied once for the fund already, then consider applying again. Groups may be able to receive funding twice.
Other information
Please note that Sussex Community Foundation manage the application process for the Community Health Fund on behalf of Public Health at Brighton and Hove City Council.
The fund particularly welcomes applications for activities that support LGBT, disabled, younger and older people.
You can also read more about the fund on the Sussex Community Foundations website.
To apply, go to the Sussex Community Foundation’s website, and scroll down the page to the Brighton & Hove Community Health Fund to download or complete an online application form.