Here you can keep up with the latest from Reading’s 900+ voluntary organisations and other voluntary sector news from around the area.
Covid-19 Government updates – what your charity or community group needs to know
29 September 2020
There have been a number of announcements from the government in the last week. Here is a summary of the key changes that may affect your charity or community group. The situation continues to evolve so please continue to check for updates or contact the Advice Service for specific advice if you are unsure. New legal ...
Disability Action Covid-19 Fund – applications open until 5 October
29 September 2020
Disability Action has launched a fund to support grassroots Disabled People’s Organisations (DPOs) across the UK, who have found it difficult to access funding and to respond to the COVID-19 needs of disabled people. The minimum that can be applied for is £1,000 and the maximum £25,000. Who can apply? Any DPO in the UK can apply ...
Hoarding training for volunteers – now fully booked
29 September 2020This free online training is aimed at volunteers who may come across or support people that hoard. It has been funded by West of Berkshire Safeguarding Adults Partnership Board. The 90-minute session will cover: What is hoarding? – mental health classification Dos and don’ts Myths and truths Language Tips and techniques Understanding traits and triggers Delegates will need to have access to a ...
NHS Test and Trace at youth sector venues
24 September 2020
Berkshire Youth have sent out a reminder that from 24 September, all youth sector venues are required by law to display a QR code linked to the NHS Test and Trace mobile app. Apply for your venues code here: https://buff.ly/2RRzf2b
Older People’s day – virtual event on 1 October 2020
24 September 2020
Live virtual coffee morning at 10:30 am 2020 has been a difficult year for all of us. Coronavirus and lockdown have sadly made it impossible for us to meet with you all to celebrate in person, but we are so excited to welcome you to our brand new online celebration event, being held on video calling ...
Reading Town Meal online – workshop line-up revealed
24 September 2020
Who’s getting excited?! Not long to go now until this year’s town meal on Saturday 3 October 2020, 11am until 4pm We are pleased to announce that RG2 radio will be broadcasting the event live from Reading College for everyone to tune into at 12pm–2.30pm Saturday 3 October. Don’t forget to sign up if you haven’t already ...
Safeguarding children – Berkshire West Thresholds Guidance
24 September 2020
At RVA, we strive to make certain our partners have the tools and training available to achieve their goals and meet the needs of residents across the town. All practitioners that work with children, young people and families are responsible for Safeguarding and Early Help. Both RVA and the local authority host safeguarding training for professionals to attend ...
Berkshire Better Health Fund 2020 – grants of £1,000 to £5,000 available
16 September 2020
Sport England are providing Get Berkshire Active (GBA) with funding through the Tackling Inequalities Fund (TIF) to distribute to community organisations who support the following priority groups to be active: people with disabilities people with long-term conditions BAME communities lower socio-economic groups. GBA want to utilise some of this funding to support health-specific projects and use the momentum of the ...
Census 2021 team looking for Community Advisers to work with the Pakistani community in Reading
15 September 2020
Community Advisers working with the Pakistani community in Reading The Census 2021 team are currently encouraging applications for the role of Community Advisers working with the Pakistani community in Reading. The role involves positively engaging with the Pakistani community to support and encourage everyone to complete their census questionnaire. Advisers need to speak Panjabi or Urdu ...
Introduction to the Outcomes Star for charities and community groups
14 September 2020
An introduction to using the Outcomes Star, an evidence-based tool for supporting and measuring change – for the voluntary and community sector in Reading The Outcomes Star offers an holistic approach to supporting and measuring change in people’s lives. It is visual and user-friendly, enabling people using the tool to have strong ownership of the change ...
New government guidance: meeting others safely (social distancing)
11 September 2020
Following the announcement on 9 September, the government has now published new guidance on meeting others safely. This guidance covers: social distancing seeing friends and family Rules in other venues and activities From Monday 14 September, it will be against the law to meet people you do not live with in a group larger than 6 people (unless you are ...
Charity Finances 101 – online self-paced course – reduced price offer
10 September 2020
Take control of your charity’s finances (even if you want to run a mile) Our training partner, Holy Brook Associates are launching a new self-paced online course for charity trustees who would like to take control of their finances and spread the learning over a period of time online. This course is a more general finance ...
Building a new stop smoking service for Reading, West Berkshire and Wokingham
9 September 2020Reading, West Berkshire, and Wokingham local authorities are working together to refresh the way residents access stop smoking support. Smoking causes 17% of all deaths in people aged 35 and over. Smoking harms nearly every organ of the body causing lung cancer, respiratory disease, and heart disease as well as numerous cancers in other organs. If ...
RBC coronavirus advice in Bengali, Hindi, Nepali, Polish, Punjabi, Urdu and Konkani
9 September 2020
In the interests of reaching as many residents as possible with important coronavirus safety messages, Reading Borough Council now have a webpage that brings together locally produced information and signposting to national resources in different languages: www.reading.gov.uk/coronavirus-translations They have created an easy-access version of the national coronavirus test and isolate messages with an infographic that is ...
Older People’s Day 2020 – call for submissions
9 September 2020Older People’s Day unfortunately can’t take place in person at the Broad Street Mall this year due to the Covid-19 restrictions. However, we still think it is really important to commemorate the occasion. This year we are planning on making a video and a leaflet with messages from the organisations that would usually be there ...
Introduction to Measuring Social Impact – workshop
9 September 2020
Understanding our social impact is important for organisations and practitioners. It allows us to evidence value to funders and other stakeholders and, more importantly, to adapt and improve projects so that they have the best outcomes possible for all participants. Building on work undertaken as part of Reading, Place of Culture, we are offering an introduction ...
Changes to the social distancing rules from Monday 14 September 2020
9 September 2020There have been announcements in the news this morning that the government intends to bring in tighter social distancing rules from Monday 14 September, restricting the number of people who can meet inside or outside to 6 individuals. As a charity you may be wondering if/how this will affect the running of your services. It is ...
Free safeguarding training from NCVO for managers or trustees
9 September 2020
NCVO is hosting a free 1 hour webinar on 17 September at 10.30am in partnership with Zurich to look at how organisations safeguard their own staff and volunteers.Find out more here. This training is open to everyone but as it will be exploring safeguarding from the perspective of looking after your staff and volunteers, it ...
Reading Town Meal 2020
8 September 2020If you love food, enjoy spending time with family and want to learn about how you can eat more sustainably, then you will definitely want to join us for this year’s Reading annual celebration of locally grown and healthy food on Saturday 3 October. You can sign up now. We can enjoy the day together (albeit ...
Your Digital Family – host a community event
7 September 2020
Your Digital Family is a new online quiz event, helping families enjoy a more positive digital life. If you are affiliated to the Connection Coalition, you can receive training, tools and support to host this event in your community, plus £1,000 in funding for you to take part. What is Your Digital Family? Tech has become a vital part ...