London Plus updates

Greater London Volunteering (GLV) AGM and Networking event

The Greater London Volunteering (GLV) AGM and Networking event will be held at Toynbee Hall on Thursday 15^th November 13.30 – 16.30. This will be a great opportunity to network with other volunteer centres, CVS’s and civil society organisations. There will also be presentations on how to make better use of data and intelligence and London Plus updates. Please register for a free spot on Eventbrite. This will be the last AGM under the name of GLV, we are now trading as London Plus.

Croydon data hack 

This month we joined the Greater London Authority to deliver a session on the use of the London Datastore at the Croydon Data Hack. We really enjoyed the event which also included talks from Superhighways, 360 Giving, and local charities about their use of data. Superhighways have summarised the event, including slides and take away resources.

Useful datasets

A common question we have found is how to find data on specific topics.  Together with the GLA, we have put together a document with useful datasets which are open and can be accessed by all. Download our document on useful dataset sources (PDF).

London VCS’s picking up the pieces

Last week we attended 4in10’s launch event for their report London’s VCS: Picking Up The Pieces.

The report highlights how London’s voluntary and community sector is providing a vital lifeline for many families. However, if the sector’s concerns for the future go unaddressed – vulnerable families could be left without anywhere to turn.  The report calls for the government to:

• Protect families from poverty by placing an immediate pause on the rollout of Universal Credit

To ensure families continue to receive the support they need, they encourage all levels of government to support service provision and protect the voluntary sector in London by:

• Involving the community in strategic decision and policy-making at all levels
• Supporting the strength and expertise of the VCS through long-term, good grantmaking
• Mapping the changing geography of poverty against service provision to quickly identify gaps and ensure resources are distributed amongst all areas of need

Events and Training

Data essentials training

We will be running a session on Data Essentials at Impact Aloud. You can book tickets for the event, which includes a range of interactive sessions to help with the use of data and digital resources.

Volunteer Centre Camden: volunteer manager forum

Join Volunteer Centre Camden for their Volunteers Managers forum Tuesday 13^th November. Join them from 10am-1pm for invaluable networking and peer support covering a variety of topics. This event is open to volunteer managers pan-London.

IBM masterclasses

IBM are running are a series of masterclasses in conjunction with the small charities coalition with prices ranging from £30-40. Sign up for their Introduction to Project Management class or Basics of Brand Marketing (waiting list only) on Eventbrite.

Resources

Doomed to repeat? Lessons from the history of the NHS reform

Nuffield Trust published an essay collection on Tuesday, ‘Doomed to repeat? – Lessons from the history of NHS reform’

Since 2000 the NHS in England has seen at least 6 major national plans.  Now the NHS is once more being asked to draw up a master plan for its future – one which will last for 10 years and will be backed by £20b a year in extra funding on top of the largest budget of any public service.   The series of essays looks at what went right and wrong in the past – to encourage a wider discussion on the biggest decisions in health policy.

The titles of the essays gives a good indication of the reflections on past plans:

• Avoid the temptations of the grand plan
• Listen to the public and don’t pretend you will if you won’t
• Don’t treat the workforce as an afterthought
• Make sure the funding follows the plan
• Don’t overrate structural reorganisation
• You need a plan that staff can follow

Blackbaud

Blackbaud is an online resource hub with a vast array of e-books and video content. An example of what they have to offer is their downloadable end of year fundraising kit which is a basic guide to assist you in planning for your end-of-year fundraising campaign.

Online tools

As part of our re-branding process, our team have been on the lookout for free or low-cost tools that can assist us with marketing and presenting our data. Our favourites so far are:

Canva

You can design anything on Canva from stand out social media graphics to business cards. As a charity, you are able to get a free business account which enables you to upload your brand colours, share designs with team members and even make your posts into Gifs!

Tableau

Tableau is a great tool if you work regularly with data and would like to visualize it quickly and professionally. Additionally, Tableau offer free trials and charity discounts.

Did you miss our September newsletter? Find out about our new team member and resources we have been finding useful.