We held our Annual General Meeting on Wednesday 5 November 2008 at our base in Bossard House, Leighton Buzzard. Following the meeting we celebrated Voluntary and Community Action’s 10th birthday with a cake after a short speech made by Liz Bagshaw, one of our trustees. The following is an edited extract.

“It is now ten years since the Dunstable and Leighton-Linslade Council of Voluntary Organisations were united as one organisation to cover South Bedfordshire and ten years ago there were two part-time members of staff – a development worker and a Volunteer Bureau manager. As trustees, we spent hours or even weeks writing funding bids to try to build enough capacity to train and support our local voluntary groups, so that they could achieve their ambitions for their clients – the people of South Bedfordshire, and eventually it began to take shape.

The capacity of the organisation has grown hugely - our initial push enabled us to appoint John Gelder as Director and he has taken the organisation forward in leaps and bounds. The timing was right as both central and local government have come to recognise and support the growth of infrastructure organisations such as ours as the means of promoting the growth of the voluntary and community sector - and because there is finally real recognition of the contribution the sector makes to our society.

Now our task is to sustain that level of work and it’s proving especially hard, as the funding climate changes yet again. But our aim is to improve the lives of our local residents using voluntary effort to its maximum.

“When one looks back at the changes that have taken place in the lives of our members and clients; how, with support and help, groups can really change the lives of people in their communities; and the difference that our sector – third, voluntary and community – call it what you will – makes, then we look back with huge pride on our achievements! Thank you, to you the staff, and trustees, and members for all you have put into the organisation and the community - here’s to the next ten years!”