Here you can keep up with the latest from Reading’s 900+ voluntary organisations and other voluntary sector news from around the area.
Earley Charity £200,000 Bicentenary Fund – Capital Grants
13 May 2019
Celebrating 200 years of active philanthropy: The Earley Charity Bicentenary, 1820 to 2020 The Earley Charity will be celebrating 200 years of active philanthropy in 2020. To mark this significant milestone, the Trustees have set up a £200,000 Bicentenary Fund. The fund is aimed at capital projects being undertaken by local organisations which work in and/or ...
23 May – RBC invite you to explore new ways of navigating care and support.
13 May 2019Reading Borough Council is developing new ways of responding to people’s enquiries about care and support. The aim is to think community first and link people into neighbourhood support which maximises their independence, dignity and enjoyment of life. We plan to increase our investment into local community services as part of this programme of work. Please ...
Rooms for hire at RCLC during the summer
8 May 2019
From 11 July to 7 September 2019, Reading Community Learning Centre offers three bright, well-equipped rooms for hire to voluntary and community groups at subsidised rates. The rooms can also be hired at competitive rates by public bodies, private organisations and individuals, and are suitable for conferences, training, meetings. Download the leaflet for further information.
The benefits of arts, culture and physical activity
8 May 2019Many of you will be aware of Arts on Prescription, Museums on Prescription, and Exercise on Prescription. These are all initiatives designed to support and improve our health and wellbeing. Two local events last week gave some of the evidence of how physical activity, arts and culture can benefit us. Physical activity in Social Prescribing On Wednesday, ...
Supporting clients with increasing needs
2 May 2019
From recent referrals to our Social Prescribing service, we are seeing clients who have higher levels of mental health problems, dementia, alcohol problems or social care needs, and it is not always possible or appropriate to try and support them in the voluntary sector without some additional support from statutory agencies. I suspect that this ...
Are you interested in becoming a MECC Trainer locally?
1 May 2019There are some spare places on the upcoming Making Every Contract Count (MECC) training sessions in June in Reading. The MECC Train the Trainer course is for people who want to become a MECC Trainer for this area – meaning you will be able to go out and train other front line teams in how to ...
CQC want to know how to work better with you locally
1 May 2019The Care Quality Commission (CQC) is the independent regulator of all health and social care services in England. They monitor, inspect and regulate hospitals, care homes, GP surgeries, dental practices and other care services to make sure they meet fundamental standards of quality and safety. The CQC is in the process of creating guidance for local ...
Find out how horticultural therapy and community gardening can help improve mental health and wellbeing
1 May 2019
Being outside, surrounded by plants and nature, doing physical activity can all help us feel better about ourselves. And the potential benefits for people experiencing mental health difficulties can be even more significant. As part of Mental Health Awareness Week (13 to 19 May 2019), Reading Gardening Health and Wellbeing Network is offering professionals the ...
Reading’s Windrush Day events announced
1 May 2019First national Windrush Day on 22 June 2019 Four exciting events are to be held in Reading to celebrate the contribution of the Windrush Generation to the town’s economic, social and cultural life. A consortium of local community groups and Reading Borough Council have been awarded a £10,000 grant from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local ...
Join Launchpad’s Big Sleep Out at the Abbey Ruins
1 May 2019
Booking has now opened for Launchpad’s Big Sleep Out 2019, which is taking place on World Homeless Day and in a brand new location – the iconic and historic Reading Abbey Ruins. Launchpad would love you to join in on Thursday 10 October 2019 to brave the outdoors for the night, so people facing homelessness in ...
Wellbeing Forum 4 July 2019 – hold the date
30 April 2019The next Wellbeing Forum for the Voluntary and Community Sector will be on Thursday 4 July 2019 from 10am to 12.30pm at RISC, London Street, Reading. Refreshments will be available from 9:30am. We are still finalising the programme which will include: An update on the new format for Reading’s Joint Strategic Needs Assessment (JSNA) and how voluntary ...
Befriending Forum – toolkit, transport and celebrating friendship volunteers
30 April 201916 May 2019 is the date of the next Befriending Forum on the third floor of Central Library from 12.30 until 4ish. It’s open to anyone wanting to reduce loneliness and social isolation in Reading – community groups, organisations and individuals. Launch of the Ready Friends toolkit We’ll be launching the new Ready Friends toolkit, with hard ...
Health Passports for 14+ people with learning disabilities
24 April 2019
Anyone aged 14+ with a learning disability, and living in Reading and West Berkshire, can now fill out a Health Passport. Talkback have offered Health Passports to adults over 18 since 2013, but are extending the scheme to encourage people to start talking about their health sooner, maintain their wellbeing and live healthier lives. The scheme offers ...
Watch an interview with RVA’s Sarah Morland about social prescribing
24 April 2019
RVA’s Sarah Morland recently spoke to Thames Valley TV about the social prescribing service in Reading. Watch the video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dU4InZEv-rE&feature=youtu.be
Small charity trading limit increased to £80k
24 April 2019The government has increased the upper limit on trading activities that small charities can engage in, before incurring a tax liability, to £80K, effective from 6 April 2019. You can read the full HMRC guidance here. There is also further guidance and worked examples heres on the Charity Tax Group website.
Gift Aid Small Donations Scheme – limit has risen to £30
23 April 2019From April 2019 the Gift Aid Small Donations Scheme (GASDS) limit has increased from £20 to £30. This means charities and community amateur sports clubs can claim top-up payments on small donations. You do not need to know the identity of the donors or collect Gift Aid declarations for small donations. For more information about GASDS ...
Artist-led workshop on volunteering – at RVA
17 April 2019As part of this year’s Volunteers’ Week (1 to 7 June) and the Reading Volunteer Awards 2019, Reading Voluntary Action will be working with partners to curate an exhibition on the theme of volunteering. We are seeking creative representations of what volunteering means to those involved in, or benefiting from, voluntary work. Find out more about ...
Resilience: the biology of stress and the science of hope – WAVE Trust film screenings
17 April 2019On 2 April 2019, twenty-five of us met at RVA to watch the film, ‘Resilience, the biology of stress and the science of hope’ and following this, to discuss its implications for our work. The event was organised by the WAVE Trust who are running the 70/30 Campaign, aiming to decrease childhood abuse by 70% by ...
Do you provide services for children and/or families?
17 April 2019The national Troubled Families Programme comes to an end in March 2020. The principles of the programme are to promote and embed whole family working including family assessments and plans that link directly to the Reading Troubled Families Programme. Due to the Troubled Families programme timeframes Brighter Futures for Children (BFFC) now need to target resources ...
Silent Generation – free community performance
17 April 2019StrikeUp Theatre invite you to attend the free community performance of their debut Arts Council funded show, Silent Generation – at South Street Arts Centre, 4pm, Thursday 25 April About Silent Generation The play emerges from interviews with Reading residents born between 1925 and 1945; an era when children should be seen-and-not-heard, and when it often felt ...