The UK Government has introduced a requirement for voters to show photo ID when voting at a polling station at some elections.

This new requirement will apply for the first time at the local elections taking place in some areas of England on Thursday 4 May 2023. The requirement will apply to UK Parliament general elections from October 2023, and to UK Parliament by-elections and recall petitions from May 2023.

It is recognised that some groups are more likely to experience barriers in preparing for this change and may need support to access photo ID. The Electoral Commission has created guides on the introduction of voter ID, which includes details on what ID is acceptable and what to do if you do not have any photo ID. It has also created separate guides for groups who may need additional support to prepare for the new voter ID requirements. These are available in a variety of languages.

Organisations working directly with voters, including local community groups and charities, can play an important role in supporting voters to ensure they have photo ID ahead of the elections. Please share this information with your communities.

Information is also available on the Nottingham City Council website.

Those without photo ID, who want to vote at a polling station, will need to apply for a free Voter Authority Certificate. People should do this as soon as possible by going online here.

If anyone requires assistance with their application, they can contact Electoral Services at Nottingham City Council. Email elections@nottinghamcity.gov.uk or call 0115 876 4111.

Alternatively, they can apply to vote by post instead, where no photo ID is required.

Important Dates to Remember:

Registering to Vote Deadline – Monday 17 April

Postal Voting Application Deadline – Tuesday 18 April

Voter Authority Certificate Deadline – Tuesday 25 April

NCVS Community Engagement Coordinator, Kashmeera Gorecha, is working on a new project collaboration with Nottingham's universities. This grew out of an International Student Welcome Event held last year, where Kashmeera highlighted NHS mental health support.

The new visual arts project - "Inside out: portraits of emotional resilience" - aims to be an exploration of living with mental health challenges in Black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) communities

The project is a collaboration between the University of Nottingham (Dr Helen Frost at UoN), Nottingham Trent University, NCVS (Kashmeera Gorecha at Nottingham Community and Voluntary Service) and a local community centre, The ICCA (The Indian Community Centre Association). It is part of an NHS and NCVS drive to raise awareness of mental health in Nottingham BAME communities, and better promote access to NHS Talking Therapies.

University students and staff, who are part of the BAME community and who have experienced mental ill health, are invited to participate.

It is hoped the completed artwork, with accompanying texts, will be exhibited in community locations in Nottingham and online.

The FSI team and its trustees are sorry to announce they have taken the difficult decision to formally wind up the charity. It has proved increasingly challenging to balance delivering the training and support they provide to members with the funding received from the multiple streams pursued by the FSI’s leadership.

The FSI was the charity behind Small Charity Week, an initiative that expanded to become a sector-wide event. They reached nearly 9,000 small charities with member offers and trained thousands of individuals across the country.

It is extremely disappointing that yet another infrastructure charity must close at a time when supporting small organisations is so vital. The aim is to close the charity responsibly in spring 2023, and the trustees will look to secure ongoing support for small charities through other means.

This is the eighth year of the Summer Roadshows for unpaid carers and patients, after a forced three-year Covid gap. Each year the Shows offer even more options for different types of free support.

The Shows are there to help with the full range of issues that unpaid carers and the people they are caring for may be experiencing, such as cost of living, how to get a Blue Badge, and support around specific health conditions. Across the year, you can expect to find 400 stalls populated by 90+ local organisations and charities dealing with health and social care issues.

Please share this information with your networks.

The first Shows of the year will be in May 2023. All take place from 10am to 2pm and everyone is welcome to drop by.

• Friday 12 May at Newark Market Place NG24 1DU
  
  
• Wednesday 17 May at Bulwell Riverside NG6 8QJ
  
  
• Friday 19 May at Mary Potter Health Centre, Hyson Green NG7 5HY

More dates are already planned throughout the summer months at venues across the city and county.

Future city venues include:

• Wednesday 7 June at St Ann’s Valley Health Centre NG3 3GG
• Friday 23 June at Cornerstone Health Centre, Clifton NG11 8EW
• Wednesday 5 July at Bulwell Riverside NG6 8QJ
• Friday 7 July at Mary Potter Health Centre, Hyson Green NG7 5HY
• Wednesday 16 August at St Ann’s Valley Health Centre NG3 3GG
• Friday 18 August at Cornerstone Health Centre, Clifton NG11 8EW

There are opportunities for organisations to be part of the Roadshows by signing up as a stallholder. There is no charge for this. You must complete a stallholder booking form and return this to Trevor Clower to have your request considered.

Trevor is an unpaid carer and the volunteer Director of the Roadshows. Email trevorclower@hotmail.com for further information.

From 1 April 2023, Vita Health Group will be the new provider of Talking Therapies (previously called IAPT) across Nottingham city and county.

The City Place Based Partnership (PBP) Mental Health Programme Group had previously reviewed data which identified issues of both access and completion of talking therapies for people from Black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) backgrounds. Meetings have been held to understand what Vita, as the new service provider, will be doing to reduce health inequalities.

As part of these developments, Kashmeera Gorecha, NCVS Community Engagement Coordinator, has been working with South Asian communities in Nottingham for the past 12 months to understand some of the barriers to accessing mental health services.

Deadline for Round One applications is 12 noon on Friday 31 March 2023

The Make Notts Safe Community Chest provides seed corn and other funding for third sector community based organisations to enable local delivery against Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) priorities in the Make Notts Safe Plan.

Organisations can apply for up to £10,000 of funding. However, it is anticipated that awards of between £5,000 and £10,000 will only be given in exceptional circumstances and the majority of grants awarded will be up to £5,000. Any grant which is successfully awarded must be spent and delivered by the end of the financial year (March 2024).

Deadline: You can apply when you’re ready. The programme is expected to remain open until at least December 2023, but it will depend on when and how many others apply for funding.

The National Lottery Community Fund is inviting organisations to apply for a share of a new £10million fund to support community-led projects that can address climate change while tackling the energy challenges through community-led climate action.

You can apply for this new Energy and Climate funding. Or you can still apply for Nature and Climate funding (applications ongoing), for projects that use nature to encourage more community-led climate action.

In the last e-bulletin, we asked if you have a one-off project for a team of volunteers from a company. While our Volunteering Development Officer, Dave Thomas, is delighted that two organisations responded with some great ideas for team projects, he was also a little disappointed that there were only two.

Since the last bulletin, we've received requests from more companies who are flexible about the dates that they can volunteer over the summer months. Companies like Specsavers or Maximus UK would love to support your project, but they need to know about it.

Corporate volunteers bring enormous potential that goes beyond team challenge volunteering. However, like we do with all volunteers, Leaders of Volunteers need to form meaningful relationships with these businesses and teams in order to unleash the skills and experience that they can bring. The team challenge is really just the start.

NCVS would like to encourage businesses to engage more with VCSE groups and organisations, but this must be a two way process. Please let us know how this could work best for your organisation.

Email davet@nottinghamcvs.co.uk or call 07564 040767 with your thoughts and ideas for potential projects.

Our next Leaders of Volunteers Network (LoVN) meeting on Thursday 27 April 2023 will have a twin focus on Corporate Volunteering and Social Prescribing. Both of these topics relate strongly to volunteering in ways that can be both positive and negative.

In our network meeting, we’ll hear from people with experience in both areas of activity as well our usual lively breakout sessions where we can discuss our own experiences and opinions.

This where we ask for your help. If you have any experience of working with employee volunteers and would be willing to talk about it for a few minutes at the LoVN, please get in touch with Dave Thomas. Email davet@nottinghamcvs.co.uk or call 07564 040767

To attend the meeting, please register your place to ensure you are sent the Zoom meeting link.

Green social prescribing is a way of connecting people to nature-based activities and green groups, projects and schemes in their local community for support with health and wellbeing. Often this will be through a referral from a Link Worker based at a GP practice or another primary care professional.

Our scheme in Nottingham and Nottinghamshire, called GreenSpace, is one of seven government Green Social Prescribing Test and Learn sites. It's all about improving people’s mental health. Green providers, social prescribers, voluntary organisations and community initiatives will help connect many more people with nature-based activities, helping everyone to feel better.

Wednesday 29 March 2023, 5.30pm to 7pm (refreshments served from 5pm)
Room 1002 Chaucer Building, Nottingham Trent University City Campus, Goldsmith Street, Nottingham NG1 5LT
Free to attend

The Sentencing Academy, in conjunction with Nottingham Law School, has organised this event to broaden the understanding of sentencing with the general public and key stakeholders.

The Sentencing Academy is a research and engagement charitable incorporated organisation dedicated to developing expert and public understanding of sentencing in England and Wales. It encourages the Government to implement effective sentencing practices and informs public debate about sentencing, acting as a bridge between those with expert knowledge of sentencing, the public, and policy makers.

If you are unable to attend, but would be interested in finding out more about the work of the Sentencing Academy, further resources, or to discuss ways to work in partnership, please contact Cynthia Akinsanya, Engagement and Outreach Lead. Email c.akinsanya@sentencingacademy.org.uk.

Saturday 22 April 2023, 11am to 3pm
The Salvation Army, 7 King Edward Street, Nottingham NG1 1EU
Free to attend

This event is one of nine being held across the country to celebrate The Salvation Army Anti-Trafficking and Modern Slavery Unit's volunteers. All are welcome to attend.

The event will consist of the following:

• To start, celebrating and championing current volunteers
• A break for some food and drink. This is a chance for everyone to mingle, chat and get to know each other
• Then, a 'What is Modern Slavery' workshop to raise awareness. During this session you’ll be able to learn more about what modern slavery is, hear from some of the current volunteers and learn about the work The Salvation Army does to support survivors of modern slavery.

Please register to attend.

Email Daniel Weaver, Volunteer Programme Manager with any questions: daniel.weaver@salvationarmy.org.uk.

Saturday 22 April 2023, 6.30pm to 11.30pm
The Carousel, 25 Hockley, Nottingham NG1 1FH
Tickets: £10

The 30th anniversary of the racist murder of Stephen Lawrence falls on 22 April 2023. This event is being held to commemorate the short life of this innocent teenager.

There will be live music, DJs, and more.

Wednesday 29 March 2023, 11am to 12pm
Online, free to attend

NCVO is launching a brand-new campaign, championing the actions we can take as a sector to tackle climate change.

Hear from inspiring activists, campaigners, and charity leaders as they talk about their actions to secure a more sustainable future for their communities.

Wednesday 12 April 2023, 10am to 12.30pm

An online course giving a basic understanding of roles and responsibilities in the safeguarding of adults and how to respond to concerns.

Cost: £25 per participant

Tuesday 25 April 2023, 10:30am to 1pm

An online course giving a basic understanding of roles and responsibilities in the safeguarding of children and young people and how to respond to concerns.

Cost: £25 per participant

Wednesday 31 May 2023, 10am to 12.30pm

An online course giving a basic understanding of the roles and responsibilities of the Designated Safeguarding Lead Person.

Cost: £25 per participant

Thursday 18 May 2023, 10.30am to 12 noon

An interactive online session for Trustees (or members of Management Committees) of organisations whose activities put them in contact with vulnerable adults or children.

Cost: £15 per participant

Tuesday 18 April 2023, 10:30am to 12:30pm

This two-hour online session covers the basic information for all trustees, whether you are new to the role or long-established.

Cost: £20 per participant

Tuesday 16 May 2023, 1pm to 3.15pm

A new interactive hands-on workshop for organisations and community groups who want to practice their skills and would welcome constructive feedback to further develop their skills in writing successful funding applications.
Cost: £20 per participant

Monday 12 June 2023, 6pm to 8pm

Do you manage a space, office or building? This new two-hour online session will take your Fire Wardens and/or Fire Marshal through the basics. As a result, they will be better equipped to carry out these very important roles.

Cost: £20 per participant

Tuesday 16 May 2023, 10:30am to 12:30pm

This two-hour online session is intended for trustees who have completed our 'Being a Trustee' course, who want to further develop their involvement and awareness of trustee duties and improve their personal skill set.

Cost: £20 per participant

Monday 22 May 2023, 6pm to 8pm

Are you acting as secretary or note taker, or do you need to record meetings? Learn how to take effective minutes and make your task easier. This two-hour online session replaces our previous face-to-face three-hour course and will take you through the process of producing a 'minute'.

Cost: £20 per participant

Wednesday 21 June 2023, 10.30am to 12.30pm

This new two-hour online session will explain the basics of health and safety, then take you through the process of carrying out a risk assessment in an organisational environment.

Cost: £20 per participant

Tuesday 21 March 2023, 10:30am to 12:30pm

What is the right structure for your organisation? This two-hour online session will explain your options and provide you with some useful tips to help you through the process of registration and beyond.

Cost: £20 per participant

Wednesday 22 March 2023, 10am to 11.15am

For organisations and community groups who are new to applying for funding, or for those in need of a refresher. Relevant for groups applying for COVID-19 funding and recovery support as well as other general funding.

Cost: £10 per participant

Thursday 29 June 2023, 10am to 11am

In this one-hour online session, we will identify some of the barriers that potential volunteers face to becoming involved in your organisation and share ideas to remove these barriers.

Cost: £10 per participant

Wednesday 14 June 2023, 10am to 11am

This one-hour online session aims to share some ideas about how best to deal with the inevitable disagreements, personality clashes and conflicts that arise from time to time among a team of volunteers.

Cost: £10 per participant

Tuesday 4 April 2023, 10am to 11am

This one-hour online session looks at methods that have proved to be effective in volunteer leadership, including the best ways to plan, involve, support and retain volunteers.

Cost: £10 per participant

Wednesday 24 May 2023, 10am to 12 noon

For some time, we’ve been asked about training that goes beyond the basics of managing and supporting volunteers. In this new two-hour online session, we’ll explore some of the real-life issues that you are facing.

Cost: £20 per participant

Tuesday 9 May 2023, 10am to 12 noon

A two-hour online course for Leaders of Volunteers to start to develop an understanding of some of the legal requirements that relate to your volunteering programme.

Cost: £20 per participant

Wednesday 12 April 2023, 2pm to 3pm

A one-hour online session to help your volunteer role descriptions stand out, ensuring you attract enthusiastic volunteers.

Cost: £10 per participant

The PDU aims to promote and facilitate collaborative learning and the sharing of good practice among professionals and volunteers from all sectors, in Nottingham and neighbouring areas, who work with people experiencing multiple disadvantage (understood as a combination of mental ill-health, substance misuse, homelessness, offending and domestic abuse, among other issues).

Contact Katie Hall, our PDU Programme Manager, for more information: enquiries@pdunottingham.org

Join our free online hub www.pdunottingham.org

Follow us on Twitter @NottinghamCVS #PDUNottingham.

Tuesday 16 May 2023, 1pm to 2.30pm
Online, free to attend

Join us for a free online workshop where we will be exploring modern day slavery and its intersection with severe and multiple disadvantage (SMD).

This interactive session, run by Nick Clare, Assistant Professor in Economic Geography at the University of Nottingham will include:

• An introduction to the concept of modern day slavery and it's overlap with severe and multiple disadvantage (SMD)
• A more in depth exploration of modern day slavery that includes preliminary findings about how this issue presents itself locally within Nottingham City
• A group discussion into modern day slavery drawing on the insights and experiences of attendees with the opportunity to contribute and shape ongoing research.

Audience: Anyone with an interest in modern day slavery who may also be keen to influence understanding of what modern day slavery looks like locally. We welcome individuals with lived experience of SMD to attend, as well as professionals and volunteers from all sectors.

Please download our event poster to share with your networks.

Attendance to this event is free of charge, but advance booking is essential. Registrations will close on Monday 15 May 2023.

Tuesday 21 March 2023, 9.30am to 11.30am
Online via Teams, free to attend for Nottingham City workers

Places are still available on this seminar which will provide an overview of Nottingham’s response to survivors of domestic abuse with multiple disadvantage, including strategic approach and pathways to additional specialised support. This will include presentations from: R2C Project, Equation, Wrap Around Multiple Disadvantage Team amongst others.

The Nottinghamshire Youth Commission enables young people to support, challenge and inform the work of the elected Police and Crime Commissioner for Nottinghamshire and Nottinghamshire Police (Caroline Henry). The Youth Commission allows young people to get involved and have their say about policing and crime where they live.

Between March and July 2023, the Nottinghamshire Youth Commission is offering free workshops to local organisations to encourage young people to have their say. These will be youth led workshops and last approximately one hour. Two important workshop issues have been identified locally:

• Trust and Confidence in the Police
• Feeling safe in the Community

The aim of the workshops is to raise the awareness of these important issues and gather the views, experiences, and perceptions of young people in Nottinghamshire. The second part of the workshop will look at what young people think are the key solutions and how to address the issues within the topics.

To find out more or book workshops please contact Kelese Hyacinth, Project Coordinator at Leaders Unlocked: kelese@leaders-unlocked.org.

Throughout 2023, Equation will be working with partners to bring a series of seminars on Domestic Homicide Reviews (DHRs). These will explore key themes, recommendations and learnings from local and national reviews. Domestic Homicide Reviews enable lessons to be learned from homicides where a person is killed as a result of domestic violence and abuse.

The first of these takes place online on Tuesday 18 April 2023, 9.30am to 12pm and is free to attend for Nottingham city and county workers. The key focus of this session will be on the themes from DHR Operation Chaffinch. Register here.

This is followed by "Lessons Learnt? Domestic Homicide Reviews through a Sex Industry Lens" on Thursday 27 April 2023, 2pm to 3.15pm. The key focus of this session is the prevalence of involvement in the sex industry amongst publicly available DHRs. Register here.

You can nominate between Monday 20 March and Friday 12 May 2023

The concept for the National Diversity Awards arose when The Diversity Group identified an urgent need for more positive role models to be actively promoted, with the aim to empower and inspire the wide breadth of diverse communities across the UK.

Charities, role models and community heroes will be honoured at the 2023 ceremony on Friday 15 September 2023, showcasing their outstanding devotion to enhancing equality, diversity and inclusion

The Muslim Charities Forum is the UK network for British Muslim charities working for social good in the UK and abroad. The aim of the Muslim Charities Forum is to support, connect and represent the Muslim Charity sector.

They are reaching out to all Muslim-led initiatives in the UK, so far reaching over 450 charities/grassroots organisations and want to continue this outreach. They are particularly concerned with activity around the cost of living crisis, and connecting national and local organisations to work more effectively together.

The Muslim Charities Forum is especially interested in reaching Muslim-led organisations that are not registered as charities. Please get in touch with Baris Varli, National Emergency & Members Engagement Coordinator to find out more.
Email baris.varli@muslimcharitiesforum.org.uk.

Lloyds Bank Foundation and Barrow Cadbury Trust have launched a tender for the development and delivery of a pilot leadership programme. The programme is specifically aimed at Black, Asian and minoritised ethnic leaders of voluntary and community organisations supporting people in, or at risk of getting caught up in, the criminal justice system.     

Informed by conversations with leaders of Black, Asian and minoritised ethnic led charities, the pilot will aim to give organisations the tools to have their voices heard in the national policy debate, build personal and organisational resilience and develop networks with other criminal justice leaders.

The application process consists of two stages. The deadline for the first stage is 5pm on Monday 27 March 2023, with the preferred supplier appointed at the end of June.

EXCEED Study (Extended Cohort for E-health, Environment and DNA) is a longitudinal health study that looks at the causes of long-term health conditions by collecting information about genes and lifestyle. More than 11,000 people have already taken part in the research which is leading to discoveries that can improve and save lives.

Based at the University of Leicester, EXCEED is a uniquely valuable resource for health research as it combines genetic, environmental and lifestyle factors to offer researchers a detailed picture of how health is influenced by people's DNA as well as what's happening in their lives and the world around them.

They are keen to develop meaningful relationships with local communities, groups and faith leaders across the East Midlands, to help better understand the issues that affect them, as well as provide a platform for engagement between local communities and the study team. They are currently mapping a directory of local stakeholders who can support, and be involved in the research at different stages of the study.

If you can help or are interested in finding out more, please complete a short form to answer some questions about your potential involvement.

Nottinghamshire Victim Care provides support to victims of crime (with the exception of domestic and sexual abuse and murder). They can support victims of crime such as burglary, violence, knife crime, antisocial behaviour, theft, fraud and hate incidents.

Their community drop-ins are a chance to speak to the team in accessible locations  across Nottinghamshire. This is an opportunity for members of the public, service-users or other services to discuss how the Victim Care service can improve. A key aim for these sessions is to better understand how the service can support victims of crime across Nottinghamshire and how it can be more accessible.

The next drop-in sessions will run from 10am to 2pm at the following venues:

• Friday 24 March 2023 - Bulwell Library, Main Street, Nottingham NG6 8QJ
  
  
• Friday 31 March 2023  - The Chase Neighbourhood Centre, St Ann's, Nottingham NG3 4EZ

There is also an online survey to gather participants’ thoughts on what they expect from a victim support service.

If you have any questions, please email admin@nottsvictimcare.org.uk or call 0800 304 7575.

This consultation is open until Wednesday 24 May 2023

Nottingham City Council is seeking your views on a proposed Additional HMO (houses of multiple occupation) licensing scheme. This licensing scheme would help to provide a greater choice of safe, good quality and well-managed accommodation in Nottingham.

The proposal is aimed at improving the quality of privately rented housing in the city; however, many landlords have portfolios which include properties across the greater Nottingham area. Licensing promotes good practice in private rented properties, and it is hoped that the benefits of this can be spread within the city and beyond its boundary.

If you want to discuss the scheme or the consultation further, require any supporting materials or information, please email hmo@nottinghamcity.gov.uk.

Nottingham City Council is inviting people with lived experience of gambling harm to participate in a one to one private and confidential discussion with a member of the public health team.

They aim to learn about personal experiences of gambling harm, the support that people use and need, and opportunities to prevent gambling harm. Findings will be applied to improve understanding of local need and experience, and inform plans to take a public health approach to prevent and respond to gambling harm. You will receive a shopping voucher for taking part, and you can continue to help shape local plans if you are interested.

To take part. you must be aged 18+, live, work or study in Nottingham City, and have been affected by your own or another person’s gambling. You can find out more and apply to take part by emailing gamblingrelatedharm@nottinghamcity.gov.uk. All email enquiries will be treated as private and confidential.

Individual discussions can take place online (on MS Teams or Zoom – you can keep your camera off if you wish), over the phone, or in-person, at your preference. The discussion is expected to last 30-60 minutes and will take place on a weekday and time to suit you.

If you need gambling support, call 0808 8020 133 (available 24/7 for free) or visit www.gamcare.org.uk.

The Association of Chairs is involved in a new research project looking at the essential attributes that charity Chairs of the future will need to embrace. The project recognises the rapid pace of change and the need for charity leaders to evolve over the coming years to meet the challenges and opportunities.

The project is being launched under the lead sponsorship of Bayes (formerly Cass) Business School's Centre for Charity Effectiveness (CCE). It is currently looking for "forward thinking" contributors who would like to offer their input by means of a short panel session or interview.

If you would like to register your interest, please do so by sending an email to CCE at cce@city.ac.uk, marked for the attention of "The Future Charity Chair".

The purpose of this survey is to know more about the community services available to support the mobility and wellbeing of people over the age of 60, from the role of Social Prescribing Link Workers (SPLW), health and well-being coaches (HWC), and Voluntary Community or Social Enterprise (VCSE) organisations.

The survey asks questions about your role, the barriers for people over the age of 60 to engage with your service, and the type of work you would do with a person over the age of 60 who has had a fracture.

The survey takes approximately 15-20 minutes to complete, and all responses are anonymous. This research is being carried out by King's College London.