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Community & Voluntary Service aims to bring you published reports of relevance to the Voluntary & Community Sector in Mid & North Bedfordshire. These include:
State of the Sector Report 2010/2011 - Bedford Borough
This report, produced by the Voluntaryworks Consortium, provides an overview on the size and shape of the local voluntary and community sector in the Bedford Borough
Council area:
- There are at least 1181 voluntary and community organisations operating in the Borough of Bedford. We believe that the figure is higher but this cannot be verified without additional resources to map the locality.
- There is a diverse range of voluntary organisations and community groups operating in the
Borough, tackling a range of issues, from domestic violence to daycare
services for the elderly,
from community cafés to counselling for young people. 27.3% of organisations reported that
they are working with children and/or young people, making the children's and young people’s voluntary and community subsector one of the largest.
- The sector is a major employer, employing over 5400 people.
· Thousands of local people are volunteering their time to make their community a better and safer place to live and work. 20% of the local population volunteers for at least two hours a week, and 35% volunteers at least once a month.
- The majority of local voluntary and community groups are not registered as charities, either because they are not wholly charitable in the eyes of the Charity Commission, but mostly
because they are too small to be required to register. At least 429 organisations operating in the local area are registered as charities.
- The organisational needs vary dramatically, ranging from advice on health and safety to charity accounting. Support to secure funding, and finding and managing volunteers remain popular.
- The sector’s income source is diverse; the larger organisations are often in receipt of a grant or contract from one or more local authority (including the local NHS), but the smaller
organisations rely on fundraising, fees and donations to keep them going.
Bedfordshire and Luton Third Sector ICT Survey Report
In 2007/8 the VoluntaryWorks Consortium of Voluntary Infrastructure organisations in Bedfordshire and Luton posed the questions in the Bedfordshire and Luton Third Sector ICT Survey:
- What Happens When Your Computer Breaks Down?
- What are your groups ICT Needs?
The ICT Survey was filled in by 157 organisations with participants entered into a prize draw for some computer goodies. The winner was Bedfordshire Historical Records Society who won a Hewlett Packard all-in-one printer, scanner and copier. Four other winners picked up either a 1-Gig flash drive or web camera.
A summary report can be downloaded below, but here are some general findings:
- 55% need help in identifying sources of funding to improve their computers
- 47% could do with more computer training
- 47% need a computer support service that is more aware and in tune with the needs of the voluntary and community sector
- 42% are interested in joining an ICT purchasing group.
The results from the survey are helping in planning delivery of future support services and training workshops. One hoped for result is the setting up of a Circuit Rider Project.
What is a Circuit Rider?
The term ‘circuit rider’ originated in the USA and referred to those who travelled around a sparsely populated area dispensing law, medicine and religion. It has now been adopted as an umbrella term for ICT professionals who work mainly with the voluntary and community sector. A circuit rider might:
- repair and fix hardware
- install and configure software
- train and support staff
- manage existing ICT resources more effectively
- advise project managers on ICT development and implementation
- help draw up an ICT strategy
Download: Summary of Bedfordshire and Luton Third Sector ICT Survey Results
You can request a copy of the Full Report from mark@yourcvs.org
Strong Communities
Voluntary and community sector infrastructure organisations in the Milton Keynes & South Midlands growth area – including Community & Voluntary Service (CVS) – have recently published important research on the social infrastructure needs of new communities. Their report – Strong Communities – includes proposals for planning, implementing and resourcing the delivery of social infrastructure in the region’s six growth areas.
State of the Sector
From 2005 to 2006 every voluntary organisation or community group in Bedfordshire and Luton should have received a Community Mapping Questionnaire to assist infrastructure organisations (like Community & Voluntary Service - Mid & North Bedfordshire) develop a better understanding of the diversity and size of the sector. The findings from these questionnaires have now been published in a new report ‘State of the Sector 2006’.
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