CES' National Performance Programme has joined up with Collaboration Benefits to produce a new guide, Making a difference together? The guide covers collaborative working in the voluntary and community sector, and aims to help organisations to plan the measurement of positive and negative outcomes and reach their own conclusions on the likely or actual benefits of collaboration.
It is an essential resource for those who are considering, or who are already embarking on a collaborative venture. Split into five key sections – Prepare, Engage, Plan Together, Monitor and Evaluate; it covers all the steps and issues you need to consider when developing an effective evaluation framework for your collaboration.
With growing pressure for organisations to survive, collaborations are an increasing way to bring together resources and expertise to strengthen an organisation's service delivery and achieve shared aims.
Download a free copy here
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The North West Infrastructure Partnership (NWIP) is seeking to commission a piece of research costing up to £14,000 with the aim of assessing the social and economic case for equality within the Government's Big Society and Localism themes.
This work should provide solutions and make recommendations to policy-makers, strengthen the case for equality within the current debate around ‘fairness', and strongly promote the value of the equalities voluntary and community sector in the North West.
Submissions, in line with the research brief, should be submitted by: Noon, 17th January 2011
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Following the government's Spending Review, Local Authorities and Primary Care Trusts have to make difficult decisions about how to spend their budgets and deliver their services.
Following a meeting with the Minister for Civil Society, who asked us to tell him how this was affecting the voluntary and community sector, One North West is working with Voluntary Sector North West in collecting information about the experiences of Voluntary and Community Sector groups.
Are you being well consulted and included in discussions with your Local Authorities and Primary Care Trusts, or do you find that decisions are being made without your input?
Please use this short form to tell us of your experiences - are your partners listening to and valuing the third sector when making decisions about what to continue funding and what to cut?
The information you give us will be used to help us build a picture of how the sector is faring at the hands of its public sector partners, and will help us inform the Office for Civil Society of good and bad practice across the North West. We will also link into the work of Compact Voice to flag up examples of good and bad practice in work between the public and third sectors.
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For young women caught up in the criminal justice system, their health needs throughout childhood will have been left unmet. Research indicates that young people in custody have disproportionate levels of anxiety, depression and psychosis; a 2008 report by the chief inspector of prisons identified that 89% of girls in custody had self-harmed. They do not develop mental ill-health in prison, although the experience may exasperate this; they are often there because their mental health needs have not been met beforehand
For the full article please visit here
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Communities Minister Andrew Stunell today confirmed Government action to address antisemitism, four years on from the All-Party Parliamentary Inquiry's report into antisemitism.
The Government will today publish a report on the steps they've taken and the significant progress that's been made, including measures to increase security for Jewish faith schools in the state sector and improving the collection of data on antisemitic incidents.
Education Secretary Michael Gove last week confirmed up to £2 million to fund tighter security measures in Jewish faith schools in the state sector. This funding will ensure children and staff will have a school environment safe from antisemitic incidents.
Ministers have also secured agreement that all police forces must now record antisemitic hate crimes, with the first official statistics published last month. This greater transparency provides the clearest picture yet of where and when hate crimes are likely to occur, thereby making it easier to target security measures
http://www.communities.gov.uk/news/newsroom/1798546
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Urban Forum have produced a briefing note that reacts to the Localism Bill:
http://www.urbanforum.org.uk/comment-%26-analysis/
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The North West Women and Work Task Force was set up by the North West Regional Development Agency (NWDA) and 4 North West (4NW) to investigate the barriers to women achieving higher levels of leadership positions across all sectors in the North West of England.
Over a six month period the Task Force set out to understand the current position; to examine the economic case for greater diversity at senior leadership levels and to identify practical recommendations for change.
This report combines evidence from academic research with the experience of companies and business leaders in the North West. It also includes the voices of 300 men and women who completed the Task Force survey North West: Best for Women? and over 40 organisations (including One North West and our partners at the Women's Solidarity Forum) which responded to the consultation on the Task Force recommendations.
A strong evidence base has been put together which has allowed the Task Force to make clear recommendations.
Access the report here
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This July the UK Supreme Court ruled that lesbian and gay asylum seekers could no longer be sent back to places where they would face persecution based on their sexual orientation.
The ruling meant that the focus was now on lesbian and gay asylum seekers proving that they are gay, as opposed to proving that they couldn't live "discreetly" as lesbian or gay in their country of origin.
Last week, LGBT asylum seekers based in the North West came together with people who work for asylum agencies, to discuss the challenges that face them, both in terms of living in the UK and UK asylum system.
For a full report please follow this link
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This guide makes the case for a radical shift of power from the centralised state to local communities, and describes the six essential actions required to deliver decentralisation down through every level of government to every citizen. In particular, the guide focuses on the Localism Bill, which will provide the legislative foundation for change.
Access the guide here
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The poorest councils face the biggest cuts next year under a settlement announced today that left town halls claiming they are now powerless to protect frontline services from a wave of library, social services and leisure centre closures.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2010/dec/13/poorest-councils-face-biggest-cuts
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