News

Charities and Investment Matters - updated guidance

Friday, 18 November 2011 13:13

The Charity Commission has published updated guidance on the legal requirements and principles that apply to charity investments and the risks that trustees must consider.

See also latest newsletter

New Apprenticeships Launched for the Third Sector

Thursday, 17 November 2011 11:04

New apprenticeships have launched which are designed specifically for the third sector

The apprenticeships develop practical skills in three key areas:

• Campaigning
• Fundraising
• Volunteer Management.

The programmes can be tailored to meet the particular skills that your organisation needs.

You can find out more about apprenticeships on the Skills Third Sector website here, including who to contact if you are interested in employing an apprentice.

There is another article about the launch of the apprenticeships and what they mean for the third sector here.

Extra Funding from BIG

Wednesday, 16 November 2011 13:50

The Big Lottery Fund (BIG) has announced an extra £50 million of extra funding to support the voluntary and community sector deal with funding cuts.

The extra funding will be made available through the existing Reaching Communities and Awards for All programmes. BIG has said it will make an extra 650 awards, and in the coming weeks will be offering grants of up to £10,000 to around 1,000 eligible BIG grant holders who have received more than 12 months funding from BIG and are in the last 18 months of their project. These grants will allow projects to review the way they work and explore ways of becoming more sustainable.

The BIG blog says “the National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO) has estimated that the full effects of funding cuts is still yet to hit the sector, and has estimated voluntary and community groups will face a reduction in public funding of over £900 million by 2016, losing a total of £2.8 billion in that period”. This extra funding is aimed at helping to support the sector during this time of funding cuts.

You can read about the extra funding on the BIG blog here.

Hurd announces review of law relating to charities

Tuesday, 15 November 2011 11:02

Nick Hurd, minister for Civil Society, has announced that Lord Hodgson of Astley Abbotts will lead a full review of the law relating to charities in England and Wales. Lord Hodgson will report to Parliament by summer 2012.

The Charities Act 2006 made a number of changes to the legal framework for charities. Parliament agreed that the Act should be reviewed after five years to test its effectiveness. The review will consider a broad range of issues, including the definition of charity, and the role and status of the Charity Commission as the sector’s regulator. It will also look at further reducing the burden of regulation whilst preserving safeguards that protect the public interest.  Read more

Young People's Innovation Labs

Monday, 14 November 2011 09:47

Do you believe in the potential of digital technology to help people?

Do you want to help find solutions that support young people's mental health and wellbeing?

Are you interested in young people's  mental health and wellbeing?*

*this does not mean you need to have first-hand experience of a mental health problem

A series of events and online discussions to explore how digital technology can be used to support and improve young people's mental health and wellbeing.

Who for?

- young people (ages 16-25) or professionals

- able to attend the two labs in London on Dec 10th & Feb 26th (tbc)

- able to give feedback and develop ideas on our lab forum

- have an interest in young people's mental health and wellbeing

- have an interest in technology (apps, websites, mobile phones, social networking, anything!)

What will you get out of it?

- meet and work with professionals in the gaming, computer, design, youth work sectors

- brainstorm ideas and work with a team to produce a prototype (there is also potential for some ideas to be fully developed and produced later)

- chill-out space and full support (with your wellbeing, mental health or practically!) to help you enjoy the day

- opportunity to have an informal chat with mental health professionals

- certificate of attendance

- travel expenses reimbursed (for young people), lunch provided

The Labs will be fully facilitated by a multidisciplinary team of professionals experienced in running innovation events and working with young people with a range of needs.

Read more

Royal British Legion and Combat Stress Inaugural Healthcare Policy e-Newsletter

Thursday, 10 November 2011 14:16

If you have not already signed up for the Legion and Combat Stress’ quarterly Healthcare policy e-Newsletter please see the first edition on the link below and subscribe through the ‘subscribe now’ boxes on the bottom right hand side of the website page. Please do also share this resource with your networks and if you have any specific healthcare policy news items for publication, please get in touch by emailing This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

http://www.armedforceshealthpartnership.org.uk/news/legioncs-inaugural-newsletter

Proposal for Expressions of Interest

Wednesday, 09 November 2011 12:07

Suicide Library

CALM, the campaign against living miserably, is seeking to develop a project aimed at developing a ‘suicide library’, where members of the public will be encouraged and assisted through a supported and structured process to leave online accounts of suicides of people known to them.  This library will provide a means of documenting and learning about the causes of suicide.  This it will be a focal point for future action to improve services and policies to limit this tragic loss of life, most notably by young men for whom suicide is the leading cause of premature death.

The overall project has an action purpose, but it must be based on data that will stand scrutiny and be handled in a manner that fulfils good research practice and be ethically sound.  While the aim is for this to be done to meet the requirements of sound and credible social research, it is essential that this should be an open minded search for data, one which looks beyond the confines of the world of mental health and works with a language and an approach which is accessible and understandable to all.  We expect this project to take between 3-5 years, with a budget of between £50-£75K and CALM have secured ‘in principle’ backing for this specific initiative. 

With a view to fleshing out this project, we invite those interested in leading this project to send in expressions of interest and provide the following;

• Statement (between 500 – 1000 words) setting out the key elements and issues you believe the commissioning process must address
• Brief CVs of those to be involved in this process and details of relevant experience of similar projects.
• Indication of experience with suicide
• Fee for undertaking this work
• Indication of availability to complete this within the timetable set out below

If you are interested please email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it for further details.

The deadline for expressions of interest is 19th December 2011.

CALM is a registered charity no 1110621

NHS Commissioning Board Authority goes live

Tuesday, 08 November 2011 10:23

The NHS Commissioning Board Authority, a special health authority and the shadow form of the NHS Commissioning Board (the Board), is now in operation.

Subject to the successful passage of the Health and Social Care Bill 2011 through Parliament, over the next 12 months the Board Authority will focus on designing an innovative business model for the Board, which puts patients and clinical leadership at its heart.

It will also work in partnership with clinical commissioning group leaders, GPs and the Department of Health to agree the method for establishing, authorising and running clinical commissioning groups (CCGs).

In addition, the Board Authority will create the infrastructure and organise the resources to allow the NHS Commissioning Board to operate successfully as an independent body from October 2012 (subject to the successful passage of the Health and Social Care Bill 2011 through Parliament).

Read more

Improved mental health therapies for children

Thursday, 03 November 2011 09:47

One in ten children aged 5-16 years has a clinically diagnosable mental health problem. At any one time, more than a million children will have a diagnosable mental health disorder and mental illness in childhood and adolescence costs up to £59,000 per child every year.

The Government is now investing £32 million in psychological therapies, including talking therapies, for children and young people with mental health problems.

Giving children the right help early on can provide better chances of finding a job and reduce the likelihood of them ending up in prison.  Read more

Developing the NHS Commissioning Board

Wednesday, 02 November 2011 12:35

Initial thinking on the design of the new NHS Commissioning Board has been published with the launch of ‘Developing the NHS Commissioning Board’.

The document aims to give a sense of direction to stakeholders, partners, pathfinders and staff who may potentially work for the Board. Read more