development, support and liaison - rother voluntary action web view · 2016-06-24we have...

NAVCA QUALITY AWARD

Workbook

NAVCA member name: RVA (Rother Voluntary Action)

1NAVCA Quality Award Workbook Revised June 2013

Foreword

NAVCA and the Commission share a commitment to providing good quality support to voluntary sector organisations. We work together within the Commission’s Partnership Strategy which aims to strengthen the resilience of the sector by taking a lead in co-ordinating, and better targeting and signposting the collective support resources of the Commission and other key players.

Organisations which actively seek out and act on the support they need are demonstrating the characteristics of self-reliance, and an engagement with a process of continual improvement. We believe both will lead to a more resilient sector, particularly where organisations are using tools to monitor and improve their performance. Quality systems like NAVCA’s Quality Award are playing an increasingly significant role in providing assurance of performance – in the first place to the organisations themselves, but also to funders, service commissioners and users. The Commission takes a special interest in sector-led quality systems, since they help provide a framework, tailored to the needs and ethos of the sector, which can embed good practice at the heart of organisations.

Therefore, I am delighted to welcome this new edition of the NAVCA Quality Award. NAVCA’s members are prominent in the landscape of support for the sector. These performance standards assess the effectiveness of the support and development they provide for local voluntary organisations and community groups. Those of NAVCA’s members which meet these standards aren’t just demonstrating their commitment to quality, or even the effectiveness of their individual organisations in providing good services, though both are true. Perhaps more importantly, they exemplify the sector’s commitment to the development of its own sources of specialist support.

Sam Younger

Chief Executive

Charity Commission


Introduction to the NAVCA Performance StandardsThe NAVCA Performance Standards and Quality Award were launched in 2006. They are a set of outcomes-based quality standards for NAVCA members delivering support and services to local voluntary organisations and community groups.

Our Members use the NAVCA performance standards to provide shape and direction for their work. They are unique in that no other quality mark provider assesses performance against the support and development provided by infrastructure organisations.

The standards reflect the essential functions of a local support and development organisation and help them to demonstrate how the services they provide make a real difference to their local voluntary and community sector. The outcome of a successful audit should be shared with local commissioners, elected members to public bodies, local MP and other significant stakeholders as a real demonstration of their ability to make a difference in their communities.

Our experience has shown that NAVCA Members get the most from using the standards when their work, including the development of strategic and business plans, is mapped against the performance standards and the measurement of quality is integrated into the delivery of services. Organisations who have gained the NAVCA quality award have found that not only does it help them to improve the delivery of services but the process also helps to strengthen the organisation, increasing its credibility with partners because of its visible commitment to quality.

The NAVCA Performance Standards do not cover areas such as governance, finance or other internal areas of a local support and development organisation. However, for the effective delivery of core activities, a NAVCA Member must be well governed and managed. NAVCA therefore requires a member wishing to gain our quality award to have achieved an appropriate quality assurance system and signposts members to PQASSO; ISO 9001; Matrix as suitable systems.

Excellent service for local groups

Our quality award is a rigorous, externally audited evaluation of the quality of services offered to voluntary organisations and community groups by NAVCA Members. Once awarded, the certificate is valid for three years. During these three years we expect the award holder to seek to maintain their standards as well as demonstrate continuous improvement against them in order to improve products, services or processes. We would expect an award holder to identify any continuous improvement activity that they are undertaking as part of their annual work plan or as a discreet piece of work as evidence.


Revised edition 2013

After a few minor changes over the last 18 months, it became apparent that the award needed a major review to ensure that it remained fit for purpose in the new political and economic climate. The standards have remained much the same, as the essential functions of a NAVCA member. However, we have made the standards more outcome-focused, easier to follow whilst maintaining the rigor of the audit system.

These changes aim to provide you with a stronger evidence base on which you can develop your tender and grant applications as well as placing you in a stronger position to demonstrate the real difference that quality local support and development can deliver to local communities. The changes we have made to both the standards and the process are outlined in the guidance notes below.

N.B. NAVCA is planning to move from a paper based report and audit process to a fully interactive on-line version. To that end we have made only minor changes to the workbook at present but we will be requiring, wherever possible, all evidence to be submitted electronically to your auditor.

Changes to the process

As you work your way through this new edition of the self-assessment workbook you will notice a number of changes. These have been made to help improve the assessment and audit process, preventing the duplication of evidence, a common issue in the previous process.

We have reduced the number of standards from 5 to 4; this has been done by combining the old standards Four and Five. The rationale for this has been simply that the methods and opportunities for influencing external stakeholder and decision makers have changed.

We are introducing a change to the assessment process. The previous process asked for evidence or data collection, with a brief explanation to support it. We are now asking for outcomes-focused case studies that clearly indicate the benefits and differences made as a result of the LSDO activities and outputs.

The outcomes and suggested evidence in the revised standards have been simplified and in most standards reduced whilst maintaining the rigour of the process.

The reduction of outcomes and evidence listing has been achieved by introducing a new section; Baseline Activities. The baseline takes into account the areas of activity (or outputs) that are common to all LSDOs and are the building blocks of effective and successful organisations. The assessment for the baseline activities is a self-assessment process with a few requests to see some evidence. The baseline activities will need to be completed / fulfilled before moving onto evidencing the outcomes-based standards.

We have refreshed the use of language and labels to reflect the environment we currently work within.


The NAVCA Quality Award – Questions and answers


I want to apply for the award for the

first time

When you are applying to undertake our Quality Award for the first time, you use our application

form found on our website.

The application form tells you about the need to complete an ‘internal’ quality assurance system.

An appropriate system (PQASSO; Matrix; ISO 9001) needs to have been undertaken by the

time you submit your workbook.

A deposit for the Award is also required as part of your application

What do you send me?

If you are a first-time applicant we send you a pack that includes the self-

assessment workbook with guidance; an example of a filled in Standard; guidance on how to collect evidence for your case

studies.

We will also send you an invoice for the deposit of the Award and a completion

date. You will be given a year to complete and submit the workbook.


What do I do if I already hold the

award and wish to renew?

If you have already gained the Quality Award we will notify you 10 months in advance that it will be

due for renewal. This is because we give you 9 months to complete the renewal should you wish

to go ahead.

At this stage you need to fill in a renewal application form (sent with your renewal reminder

letter) and return to us.

What do I do when I receive

the pack?

Once you have received your pack for your first award and completion date you can plan what and how you will collect evidence to demonstrate the performance

standards by using case studies.

The Baseline activities are a tick box exercise, but you will still need to evidence them so we can audit these.

Once you have completed writing up the workbook you can email it to us along with your latest annual report and published accounts. You do not need to

supply us with any other evidence at this stage.

If you are a renewal applicant we only require you to self-assess against the Baseline activities,

eleven of the performance standards as well as the ‘areas of development’ from your first audit

report.

We will write to you identifying 10 outcomes that we want to audit. We will also send you a pack including the self-assessment workbook

with guidance; an example of a filled in Standard; guidance on how to collect evidence for your case studies. We will also send you an

invoice for the deposit of the Award and a completion date (9 months).

What do you send me for the renewal?


Regardless of first audit or renewal, NAVCA will contact you a month before your submission is due to check all is going well with your evidence collection and workbook write up

that you are on track to submit on time.

What happens when we send you

our completed workbook?

Once we have received your workbook we will identify and let you know who your auditor will be.

Our auditor will then contact you shortly after this to arrange a mutually convenient date for your audit

visit.

The auditor will read through your workbook thoroughly and send you a request of what evidence

they wish to see and who they would like to interview on the day of your audit. It is at this point that the plan for the audit day can be organised and

agreed with our auditor

How is the audit visit planned?

Having spoken with your auditor, you can go ahead and plan the audit day - we will expect you to arrange when interviewees can speak to our auditor – this will be a mix of staff, trustees, statutory agencies, the groups that you have

worked with and any representatives from your local voluntary and community sector.

You will need to pull all of your evidence together for our auditor to see – this will include looking at the governance, finance and management aspects

of PQASSO level 1 or similar. Your auditor will provide guidance on how to submit the evidence

required


What will happen at the audit visit?

Don’t panic! We try to make this day as good an experience as possible. Do be prepared for

lots of conversations and questions – we will be trying to find out how you work and will no

doubt want to clarify things that we have read in your workbook.

What happens after the audit

visit?

After the audit day your auditor will write up an audit report. They will then meet with a moderator and agreement will be made for

awarding the Quality Award or not.

We will then let you know the result.We will send you the audit report, a certificate for the Quality Award and an invoice for any

balance due.

Will NAVCA help to promote our

award?

Once you have gained the Quality Award, we want you to be able to show your credibility to deliver a good standard of service wider than

the walls of your organisation, so you can send us contact details of people you would like us to write to. This might include local statutory

agencies and your local MP

We will write letters from our Chief Officer to the contacts you provide us with. The letter

describes the performance standards and the benefits of having our Award

Evidence collection and assessment of the Baseline ActivitiesThe baseline section takes into account the areas of activity (or outputs) that are common to all NAVCA Members and are the building blocks of effective and successful organisations. Although the assessments for each of the baseline activities are a self-assessment process, your auditor will review this section. We will require some examples of mandatory evidence (see list below) and may request to see some further evidence to support the score you have given. We have listed below some examples of the kind of evidence we would expect to from the baseline activities. The mandatory items are highlighted in italic bold text. There is also space for you to record reflections on self-assessment scoring process you carry out.

Please note, the baseline activities will need to be completed / fulfilled before moving onto evidencing the outcomes-based standards.

The following definitions are how we would expect you to score yourself and how NAVCA will score you at audit.

Suggested evidence for Baseline Activity

Governance and leadershipo Structure and make-up of the board of trusteeso Organisational objectiveo Strategic plan (M)

Strategyo Evidence of how the board share the vision and mission with the teamo Evidence of the board responding to changeo Evidence of sharing strategic priorities with the team

Incomeo Income generation strategy / business plan (M)o Annual accounts (M)

People and skillso Organisational skills audito Training and development plano Supervision and appraisal policy / performance management framework

Internal systems and infrastructureo Samples of internal policieso PAQSSO cert and portfolio (M)o Example of intelligence gathering activityo Overview of database o Overview of web site, social media and email networkso Samples of newsletters


1. To some extent some of the time

2. To some extent most of the time

3. To a greater extent some of the time

4. Fully, all of the time

o Evidence of systemic monitoring activity and the use of that evidence to change or adapt services (M)


Evidence collection and assessment for the performance standards

Collecting evidence

In Appendix 1 you will see guidance on how to collect evidence for your case studies. These are specific to each Standard and within Standard 4 there are separate questions for Outcome statements 4.3 and 4.4.

Submission of supporting evidence

The bulk of your outcome based evidence should be via the case studies. However we do appreciate that there will still be a need to submit supporting documents, etc. For efficiency purposes we request that that this is undertaken electronically wherever possible. Evidence can be send by email, CD-ROM or data stick to your allocated auditor.

Scoring

At the bottom of each outcome evidence collection box, you will find boxes that allow you to self-assess your performance against each outcome. These are self-check boxes, just click the box you think applies to your score and a cross will appear.

The outcome statements for each standard are written to equate to the score of three – this is the level we would expect most organisations to be achieving. The following definitions are how we would expect you to score yourself and how NAVCA will score you at audit.


1 Not enough information or evidence to be able to make a valid decision on performance

2 The evidence submitted demonstrates that the organisation is working at a level below that expected of the outcome

3 The evidence submitted demonstrates that the organisation is working at the level expected of the outcome

4 The evidence submitted demonstrates that the organisation is working at a level above that expected of the outcome

Collecting evidence for your case studies

The following notes provide general guidance on collecting evidence for your case studies. At the end of each standard there are specific notes that relate to that standard. It is intended to provide you with a guide to collecting qualitative data in a way that provides evidence of outcome achievement. The guidance contains the types of questions you will need to ask to collect data about outcomes. They will need to be tailored to your local context and you may want to include some additional questions to cover specific local issues.

Key stages in the case study process


Identifying your case studies

Your case studies should be selected to illustrate a particular outcome or series of outcomes that have been achieved under each Standard. For some Standards your case study might be an organisation or groups of organisations that you have supported but for other standards they may focus on a particular policy development or process. You can choose as few or as many case studies as you like but the more case studies you have the greater your depth of evidence will be.

Collecting case study information

You will need to collect case study data through qualitative interviews with various people. This will include people (employees and/or volunteers) from the voluntary/community organisations benefiting from the outcome but it may also be appropriate to include other stakeholders such as key public sector officials (particularly for standards 1 and 4).

Qualitative interviews can be undertaken over the telephone or face to face and there are advantages to both approaches. Telephone interviews take less time and can be easier to schedule with busy participants but face to face interviews can provide greater opportunities to go into more detail. For most case studies you will probably need to use a mix of both approaches.

Analysing case studies

Once you have undertaken your case study interviews you will need to write up and analyse the results. As a first step you should write-up the interviewee's answers to each question. Next you should collate all the interviews for each case study and write a short report.

Baseline Activities

1. Governance and leadership

Our board has a good mix of skills, experience and commitment and reflects the profile of our local beneficiaries and communities.

Our trustees ensure we have a clear sense of purpose and direction and that we are working to long-term objectives and strategic priorities which relate to fulfilling our mission, vision and values.

What we have done to meet these expectations: Directors are required to complete a skills & training needs audit and any areas of

weakness are identified and Director’s with these particular skills are sought/training arranged.

Because there is a definite ‘split’ in the local community between coastal/urban and rural communities we also seek a mix of Directors across the geographical area

Directors engage with senior staff to develop the strategic plan which is then shared with the wider staff and external stakeholders for consideration before adoption.

Work is reported back against our strategic aims and objectives through Board meetings

Regular reviews of current demographic/statistical information and analysis shared with Directors

Regular away days are held where staff and Directors can discuss our long term aims/strategies etc

Directors play a full and active role in the work of RVA – especially in supporting events and training and participating in projects where there skills support the work of the organisation Eg 2 directors are engaged in a project to develop social media and support RVA

marketing 1 director engaged with managing local health and social care representation

processes 3 directors supporting local projects in areas of deprivation

Self-Assessment Score 1 2 3 4


Scores for Baseline Activities1. To some extent some of the time

2. To some extent most of the time

3. To a greater extent some of the time

4. Fully, all of the time

2. Strategy

We have a clear sense of our mission, vision and values that are shared and owned by trustees, staff and volunteers.

We have the capability to anticipate change and develop strategies and plans to respond to opportunities arising from change.

All people in our organisation have a good understanding of our strategic priorities and the contribution they make to achieving them.

What we have done to meet these expectations:Our mission, values and vision are widely published and referred to through our work (website, annual report, promotional literature, recruitment/induction literature). Over the last year we have undertaken an in depth marketing review (led by a Director with expertise in this area - engaging all Directors, staff, volunteers and members) to rebrand giving a much simpler message with new strapline; refreshed website; branded literature etc.In undertaking this review it has supported the people within RVA to consider in depth our core values and messages and reinforced their importance to us all.

The CEO focuses on the long term objectives of RVA and plans activities with our core aims in mind. Plans are based on a realistic appraisal of our capabilities and strong knowledge of developing trends both locally and nationally. We are developing an organisational culture which is responsive to change. We run a stringent risk assessment programme that identifies where sudden change would cause an issue and plan accordingly.

We believe that understanding and acting on our strategic aims are at the heart of our work ensuring that:All our staff and volunteers understand the strategic aim of RVAWe have open and frequent communication across all levels of the organisation; Encourage engagement of staff, volunteers and partners within strategic planning developmentEnsure staff feel appreciated and listened to through these processesRefer back to our strategic aims in monitoring and evaluation processes to ensure the core values of the organisation are followed(Strategy attached)



3. Income

We are able to identify and generate income from a diverse variety of sources which enables us to fulfil our mission and strategic priorities effectively.

We plan and manage finances effectively to deliver our strategic priorities and maximise the resources dedicated to serving our beneficiaries

What we have done to meet these expectations:Have clear processes to identify and assess opportunities; Have a clear understanding and knowledge of where opportunities may present themselvesAre willing to develop innovative solutions to meet local needs; Have clear understanding and processes for considering whether to compete for contracts or working in cooperation with partnersFollow structured mechanism to undertake opportunity appraisal Have strong financial procedures and protocols followed by Financial Officer supported by an identified DirectorManage budget through quarterly Executive meetings and full Board meetings with cash flow; budget v actuals and future forecastMaintain strong relationships with external stakeholders including funders


4. People and skills

Our staff, trustees and volunteers have the knowledge, skills and confidence to fulfil their roles effectively within a professional and supportive working environment.

We regularly review the skills needs of our organisation and invest in the personal and professional development of our staff, trustees and volunteers.

What we have done to meet these expectations:We undertake a robust induction process with all new staff, directors and volunteers. This includes an introduction to the values of RVA; the strategic plan; our structure and our policies and procedures. All staff are given a copy of our employment handbook which clearly states processes for highlighting concerns. Similarly all Directors have a Director’s Handbook.We have regular appraisal process, learning and development planning or staffOur last staff satisfaction survey showed staff outside the senior management team wanted to develop a better understanding of the Board work – this was addressed through staff team meetings; the Chair of the Board holding 1:1 meetings with new staff; opportunities for project managers to report directly to the Board when appropriate and a review of the running of the AGM to give Board members a more hands on role. Both staff and Directors have responded positively to these changes.


The schedule of Board meetings is set annually, specific time is set for agenda items. There are a number of standing items on the agenda to ensure the Board are regularly appraised of progress against operational plans and working of the organisation.

Board member are allocated specific responsibilities against named areas of work (HR, Health and Safety, Safeguarding, Financial, Media & Communications) and specific project work.

The Board runs with an Executive Committee whose meetings are set in line with the full Board. Roles and responsibilities of individuals and terms of reference of sub committees are documented and regularly reviewed.

We undertake skills audits with Board members to identify our mix of skills, knowledge and experience and to ensure any weaknesses can be addressed. With staff and volunteers we have developed learning plans to support them I developing their skills


5. Internal systems and infrastructure

We understand and implement relevant policies and procedures. We have the internal systems and infrastructure which enable us to gather intelligence

about needs in the local community which informs the development of our support and services.

We have a comprehensive database of contacts which gives us a deep insight into the nature, scope and scale of groups working within our area of benefit and enables us to communicate effectively with them.

We have good channels for communicating with our stakeholders and periodically review their effectiveness.

We routinely and systematically monitor our performance against our agreed strategic priorities and use this to adapt and improve service provision.

What we have done to meet these expectations:We hold a comprehensive range of policies and procedures which are reviewed annually and ratified by the Board every 3 yearsWe run Civi as a CMR system which allows us to hold a comprehensive data base of our contacts; their activities (gathered through regular surveys); our interactions with the groups and additionally enables us to collect and collate ‘soft information’ about their issues and perceptions of our local community.Our work regularly enables us to undertake community engagement exercises using asset based approaches (both with local VCO’s and with the wider community). Staff have been trained to use participatory appraisal approaches. This is the basis, together with statistical analysis of our local intelligence. Our stakeholders receive our E Bulletin and are signed up to our Twitter account. Quarterly meetings are held with stakeholders together with an annual review. We also undertake stakeholder surveys to record their views in our work.


We undertake an annual review process which links to the needs of our funders for monitoring purposes. We regularly report back to the board on our work against our strategic priorities and have an annual awayday to enable in depth consideration of our service provision.



Development

Standard 1The organisation supports the identification of needs in the local community and facilitates innovation and improvements in service provision to meet those needs.

Outcome statements

1.1 Identification of needs – as a result of the organisation’s activity, local voluntary organisations and community groups are more knowledgeable about needs in their community.

1.2 Reviewing and adapting activities - as a result of the organisation’s activity, local voluntary organisations and community groups review and adapt their own activities in response to emerging needs and priorities in their community.

1.3 Influencing policy and funding - as a result of the organisation’s activity, relevant local public bodies and funders are informed about emerging needs and priorities in their community.

Guidance on evidence requiredYou need to be able to demonstrate the following types of evidence to support your self-assessment:

These apply across all three outcomes for this standard. They can be done directly by you or by partnering and/or supporting other organisations to undertake these activities.

1a How you consult and gather intelligence on emerging needs within communities and neighbourhoods;

1,2

1b How you inform local voluntary organisations and community groups about external factors which may have an impact on their beneficiaries;

1,2,3

1c How you involve people and groups in those communities and neighbourhoods in identifying needs and designing solutions;

1,2,3

1d How you support the involvement of people from marginalised, excluded and vulnerable groups and communities and address barriers to their participation;

1,2,3

1e Methods used to analyse and present this intelligence in ways that are appropriate for the intended audience.

1,2, 3


Additional evidence/activitiesPlease identify any additional evidence/activities you deliver to achieve this standard.

(Please allocate a no. as shown below).

1f

1g

1h

1i


Development


Self-assessmentPlease tell us through the writing up of case studies how you have made a difference in relation to this standard and how you know that you have made a difference (please show the evidence reference number from the previous page in the final column below). Please type in the boxes – the space will expand to fit your entry. The final box (1.4) provides space for you to add your own additional outcome(s) relevant to this standard, if appropriate.


Methods you might use to evidence outcomes

Membership Survey Questions

Standard 1 Case Study see page 35

Scores for Performance Standards





OutcomeState the work and the difference that has been made by writing a short case study to illustrate this outcome – please include the methods you’ve used so you can evidence the case study.

Evidence ref. no

1.1 Identification of needs – as a result of your organisation’s activity, local voluntary organisations and community groups can describe how they are more knowledgeable about needs in their community. See guidance 1a – 1e.

N/A


1.2 Reviewing and adapting activities - as a result of your organisation’s activity, local voluntary organisations and community groups can demonstrate how they reviewed and adapted their own activities in response to emerging needs and priorities in their community. See guidance 1a – 1e.

RVA has a long history of researching community need, both geographically in wards and parishes and with communities of interest. Two senior members of staff have experience of consultancy and research.

We undertake direct research and also work with groups to develop their own research. Our ethos is that the development of services should have an ABCD approach.

We work directly to gather information and prepare briefing papers that are used by both our statutory partners and local VCOs

We engage with our local community to consult them directly through our VCO networks; local forums and participatory appraisal work.

We also support local groups to enable them to undertake consultative work to


identify local needs eg working with the Heart of Sidley to develop a Community Profile for Big Local funding – where formal techniques applied included questionnaire composition; focus groups with more hard to reach in the community; stakeholder meetings and more informal open events and street interviewing. The work with Heart of Sidley is grassroots development of a large range of community action in a previously under resourced area. (Case Study 1)

RVA offers an analysis service for such information or can also support groups to help them analyse responses.

RVA has also led work to develop solutions for areas of great need (Case Study 12)

Much of RVA’s work is to develop local insight that enables our local VCOs to understand the changes which are occurring in both local need and how changes in statutory services impact on the demands on the sector. This may be done through our e-bulletins; community networks and forums or in 1:1 discussions with small groups.

In contrast RVA supported a more light touch piece of consultative work was undertaken in a small village, Udimore, where they wished to renew their Local Action Plan taking into account a number of changes that have been happening locally, concern following a long (10 days) without power over last Christmas; and a recognition that the available help from statutory agencies was reducing which meant they needed to consider how to better help and support the more vulnerable people in the village. In addition to working with the Parish Council to deliver a consultation event and look at opportunities to develop local volunteering, RVA were also able to introduce the Parish to local VCOs who offered services they had identified as being needed in the village (Case Study 2)

RVA also works with strategic partners to identify changes which are going to impact on local groups. Three areas where this was shown (and are case studies in other parts of this report) are the work we undertook with Adult Social Care to develop resilience and capacity in local communities to help support more vulnerable people (Case Study 10); the work we undertook with the Transport and Environment Department to ready local Community Transport Operators for a forecast cut in subsidies (Case Study 4); the work we are undertaking to improve health and wellbeing through local community activism (Case Study 17)

RVA has also changed our own offer to meet needs identified by local groups such as provision of DBS checks (Case Study 7)


http://www.rva.uk.com/wp-content/uploads/Community_Profile-21-11-13-final.jpg.pdf

http://www.rva.uk.com/wp-content/uploads/Community_Profile-21-11-13-final.jpg.pdf


1.3 Influencing policy and funding - as a result of your organisation’s activity, relevant local public bodies and funders report that they are better informed about emerging needs and priorities in their community. See guidance 1a – 1e.

The work RVA has undertaken has been key in enabling public bodies and funders to gain a better insight into local needs. RVA has found in that there is often a lack of VCO activities in areas where we have identified high levels of need and this has been reflected by a lack of grassroots local intelligence. This means that RVA need to support the development of community action at the same time as we are identifying needs in the area. This approach underpinned our work in Sidley and more recently we have undertaken a similar process in Central Bexhill – which we had identified as an area falling down the IMD rankings where there was a growing number of HMOs; social isolation and people living with both physical and mental health conditions. RVA’s work has identified the problems and developed briefings on the needs which has led to Bexhill Central ward being identified as an area in need of additional support both locally and nationally through Our Place (Case Study 12) Similarly RVA worked in partnership with a local housing association and regeneration partnership to support the local community and enable the re-opening of a redundant school as a community centre in Rye (Case Study 3).

RVA’s work to support the development of good neighbour schemes in the rural areas has been used to develop the East Sussex Building Stronger Bridges scheme. (Case study 10 and 19)


1.4 Please describe any additional outcomes which you feel relate to this standard.


Development


Please identify areas of strength in relation to this standard.

RVA: has a good understanding of local demographic information and understand how

changes can impact on local groups; has senior staff members with strong backgrounds in consultancy and research is able to share this information with local groups in a meaningful & understandable way; works closely with statutory partners to be able to engage groups in proposed changes

and work with local groups to respond to such changes influences strategic and funding decision through our work follows an ABCD approach (Asset Based Community Development) which puts our

communities at the heart of the work we do

Please identify areas for development in relation to this standard.

RVA recognises there are local groups who are not recognising the demographic changes around them - often small and led by elderly volunteers – they reject the issues raised through our consultation processes and changes they are seeing around them preferring to see Bexhill (in particular) as a place of middle class gentility – we need to continue to work to include them, hear their issues and enable their engagement in responding to changing needs and priorities.

There is greater demand for this work than we have the funded capacity to deal with. Occasionally we are able to work with local groups to identify funding that can support these processes – but often this is not the case and we are working to resolve these issues by promoting more online opportunities for communities to respond and where we are identifying that groups have real issues with the written word and formal reports are doing an increased amount of social media led consultation.


How to collect evidence for Standard 1

Approach to data collectionStandard 1 requires a different approach to collecting evidence than the other standards as it does not lend itself to quantitative data collection in the same way as the other standards. It therefore involves a primarily qualitative approach to data collection supported by a smaller quantitative element.The process requires you to reflect on your own practice in this area before providing examples of how it has worked in practice and how effective it was. The process is laid out in the boxes below


a) How does your organisation ensure that new and emerging needs are identified in the local communities (of place and interest) that it serves?

This might be through direct engagement with local people but it might also involve supporting other local organisations to identify needs themselves. An example of a new or emerging need might the impending closure of a local community resource centre, or gaps in the provision of mental health services created by local or national policy decisions

b) Can you provide some specific examples of how your organisation, or the organisations it has supported, has/have identified these needs?

What need was identified and for who (i.e. specific community of interest or place)?

What role did your organisation play in identifying that need? How did it raise awareness of that need (i.e. with local public/voluntary

sector organisations and local people)?

c) Following from b) above, did this lead to changes in the types of services available locally to meet those needs

How did you support local voluntary and community organisations to review/change their services in response to this emerging need?

What, if any changes did these organisations make to their service provision?

How did your organisation ensure that local statutory partners were aware of this information about emerging needs?

Are there any examples of how they changed their own service provision in response to this?

Where possible testimonials from the local people, organisations and statutory bodies involved in the process should be obtained. These should include their responses to each of the above questions and their views about your organisation's role in the process. This approach should provide you with a series of narratives around the processes and nature of change, and your organisation's role in affecting that change.

In order to provide verification, the qualitative approach described above should be supplemented with a series of quantitative questions, to be asked of the organisations and/or individuals involved in the process, about how effective your organisation's approach to each aspect of the process was.

Example questions


Voluntary Action Big Town was recently involved in raising awareness of (describe the emerging need/issue). How would you rate the following aspects of their involvement in the process?

Their approach to involving and consulting local people in identifying the nature of the need/issue?

Their approach to involving and consulting local people about possible solutions to the need/issue?

Their approach to raising awareness of the need/issue with local public sector bodies and service providers in the voluntary and community sector?

(Use scale: excellent, good, average, poor, very poor)

Following this process (outline changes that occurred to meet the needs/issues identified).

To what extent to you agree that (the need/issue identified) is now being addressed more effectively?

(Use scale: strongly agree, tend to agree, neither agree nor disagree, tend to disagree, strongly disagree)

Overall, what extent has the work undertaken by (organisation name) influenced this change?

Support Standard 2The organisation supports local voluntary organisations and community groups to fulfil their missions more effectively.

Outcome statements

2.1 Diagnosing development needs - as a result of the organisation’s activity local voluntary organisations and community groups are more confident in using tools and techniques that assess their performance and identify development needs.

2.2 Performance improvement - as a result of the organisation’s activity, local voluntary organisations and community groups are able to access high quality support, advice and facilitation to help improve their performance.

2.3 Learning - as a result of the organisation’s activity, local voluntary organisations and community groups benefit from learning opportunities that support the personal and professional development of their workforce.

2.4 Leadership and governance - as a result of the organisation’s activity, local voluntary organisations and community groups benefit from opportunities to develop high quality leadership and governance in their organisation.

2.5 Income generation - as a result of the organisation’s activity, local voluntary organisations and community groups are able to identify and access a variety of sources and types of income.

2.6 Volunteering - as a result of the organisation’s activity, local voluntary organisations and community groups have effective practices to recruit and support volunteers.

Guidance on evidence requiredYou need to be able to demonstrate the following types of evidence to support your self-assessment:

2a The Diagnosing development needs outcome examines how you support groups to assess their current performance and identify how they need to develop to fulfil their missions more effectively in the future;

4,6

2b The Diagnosing development needs outcome examines tools and techniques you promote and support groups to use can include organisational

4,5,6


health-checks and more formal performance standards and quality marks;

2c The Performance improvement outcome is examining your work on organisational development which may result from the diagnostic work conducted for outcome 2.1;

2d The Learning outcome is examining your work on signposting or providing personal and professional leaning and development for the paid staff, trustees and volunteers of the groups you support;

4,5,6

2e The Learning outcome is examining the methods used to access learning needs and how you tailor the learning support accordingly. Learning opportunities may include: training; peer-to-peer support; coaching/mentoring; consultancy assignments;

4,5,6

2f The Leadership and governance outcome examines how you support groups to develop leadership and governance within their organisations. Leadership can be aimed at all roles including opportunities for paid staff, trustees and volunteers;

2g The Leadership and governance outcome examines the types of opportunities on offer – these may include peer-to-peer support, mentoring, leadership coaching or programmes that enable the growth of leadership;

2h The Leadership and governance outcome examines the Methods and support mechanisms used to improve the governance of organisations – opportunities may include those aimed at trustee boards;

2i The Income generation outcome examines how you support groups with:

Identifying routes of income/funding

Building their capacity to write good funding applications/tender submissions Identify new routes of business

You can give some indication of the amount of funding that has brought into the sector as a result of your funding advice;

4,6

2j The Volunteering outcome examines how you work with groups to improve their practice on volunteer involvement and volunteer management including recruiting and supporting volunteers.



2k

2l

2m


2n


Support Standard 2The organisation supports local voluntary organisations and community groups to fulfil their missions more effectively.

OutcomesPlease tell us through the writing up of case studies how you have made a difference in relation to this standard and how you know that you have made a difference (please show the evidence reference number from the previous page in the final column below). Please type in the boxes – the space will expand to fit your entry. The final box (2.7) provides space for you to add your own additional outcome(s) relevant to this standard, if appropriate.

OutcomeState the work and the difference that has been made by writing a short case study to illustrate this outcome – please include the methods you’ve used so you can

Evidence ref. no.



Monitoring forms Training Evaluation forms Membership survey Monitoring of media coverage Monitoring and evaluation data Standard 2 Case Study see page

37






evidence the case study.

2.1 Diagnosing development needs - as a result of your organisation’s activity, local voluntary organisations and community groups can report an increase in confidence in their ability to use tools and techniques that assess their performance. See guidance 2a – 2b.

RVA works hard to build relationships with voluntary organisations and community groups working in our local area and uses a range of tools and techniques to support them to assess, and address, their performance. This includes:

Providing links and information in our regular communication with groups (website; ebulletin; twitter; networks and forums);

Providing both formal and informal learning opportunities; Enabling groups to access specialist support eg RVA is a partner

organisation in Volunteer Centre East Sussex and signpost groups to specialist support for volunteer involving organisations; supports local network and forum events ; developed local brokerage;

Developing appropriate responses to issues raised by groups eg development of a digital media social enterprise that supports groups to provide videoed evidence for groups to provide as monitoring and evaluation evidence

Development of toolkits to support groups in starting up or developing a specific service (see BSB Toolkit attached)“The toolkit was invaluable to us as we were establishing our group, we have taken some of the information from this and created our own guidance document that we give to all our volunteers. The toolkit is a “bells and braces” document which is good but we felt we didn’t need to go into as much detail for our own scheme. We would also say that if it hadn’t been for the support and guidance of RVA the group would not have got off the ground. This would mean, for example, that the 54 tasks that we undertook in the last 10 weeks for people in the village would not have taken place, most of these tasks being to help people with transport to health appointments, shopping or social activities.”

Cllr Sue Prochak, Chair Salehurst & Robertsbridge Helping Hands

RVA offers 1:1 support that is tailored to the needs of a specific organisations and is highlighted in Case Studies for Rye Museum Association (Case Study 5) and Peasmarsh Memorial Hall (Case Study 6) BDAA (Case Study 8)

RVA may identify performance issues through an unrelated enquiry to us and have shown this through the development of support that has been a direct result of RVA providing a DBS checking service (Case Study 7)

RVA also responds to emerging needs:

By working with East Sussex County Council, who had identified major


changes (cuts) to bus service subsidies in the county, RVA was commissioned by the county to work with Community Transport Operators to develop their services to meet the emerging need and support those willing to undertake the CTA Quality Mark (Case Study 4)


2.2 Performance improvement - local voluntary organisations and community groups can demonstrate an improvement in performance as a result of the high quality support, advice and facilitation they have received from your organisation. See guidance 2c.

N/A


2.3 Learning - as a result of your organisation’s activity, local voluntary organisations and community groups can describe the benefits they have gained from learning opportunities they have accessed to support the personal and professional development of their workforce. See guidance 2d – 2e.

RVA has created a programme of learning opportunities based on our local insight after we had identified and researched a long term resistance to participating in formal training in Rother. Barriers identified through research included a reluctance to travel to training (the lowest in the county at 1.5 miles– especially highlighted in rural areas), elderly volunteers resistant to change; two extremes of educational attainment – the highly qualified (often retired incomers) and those with low skills (especially in coastal and rural areas).

RVA staff who deliver training have, or are working towards, accredited training qualifications. In February 2015 RVA is working with a local education charity to promote a local (and affordable) PTTLS course the first in over 7 years.

RVA provides a regular training programme to support voluntary groups including: health & safety; food hygiene; first aid; bookkeeping; finding funding; role of Trustees; using social media etc (Case Study 5)

RVA provides bespoke training for organisations as requested eg supporting CTO’s to obtain the CTA Quality Mark (Case Study 4)

RVA works with local private companies to deliver specialist training eg Understanding Insurance; payroll and tax payment changes at HMRC; pension changes. Of 20 organisations undertaking the training it was categorised as good or


very good by all.

RVA works with training and specialist organisations to promote a range of opportunities. Eg Sparknetwork (CYPVS) and the county council provide Child Protection and Safeguarding training,

“Thankyou so much for telling me about the Sparknetwork. I went along to the last meeting and it was very useful, I also met a lot of other people working with young people, although not with learning disabled young people and we found we had a lot in common. I have also signed up for Child Protection training with them for some new volunteers I wouldn’t have known they existed without RVA.”

Lee Dunn, PitStop

RVA also works closely with HVA to ensure a range of governance training is provided eg Committee skills, role of a treasurer

RVA participates in the Hastings & Rother Adult Learning Forum to ensure we are up to date on opportunities available and aware of new opportunities. In addition we have held local sub groups in Rye and Bexhill to facilitate cooperative work between providers (Case Study 9)

RVA works with employabilty schemes to provide training that enables clients to become involved in volunteering.

“We had a number of younger volunteers who came to us through the Rural Employability programme. RVA suggested the possibility as they were working with the programme to encourage people to build their skills for work through volunteering. It was lovely to have new young volunteers – the only problem is they have all found jobs now!”

Barbara Partridge, Chairman Tilling Green Community Friends

RVA is now providing training to the volunteer sector workforce in eg health behaviour change; getting more physical active (Case Study 17);

“Skilled for Health has been a wonderful resource for us to begin using with our clients.” Sarah FSN

RVA is developing a range of toolkits and videos to support informal learning opportunities (Case Study 4) (Case Study 10)


2.4 Leadership and governance - as a result of your organisation’s activity, local voluntary organisations and community groups can describe the benefits they have gained from opportunities they have received to develop high quality leadership and governance within their organisation. See guidance 2f – 2h.


N/A


2.5 Income generation - as a result of your organisation’s activity, local voluntary organisations and community groups can report that they have increased their incomes as a result of identifying and accessing a variety of sources and types of income. See guidance 2i.

RVA provides information on and links to funding sources through our website, ebulletin, social media, networks and forums

RVA has an identified funding officer who is accredited and attends the countywide funding advice forum with other CVS Partnership staff, the county council, Sussex Community Foundation, Big Lottery and other funders.

“This is a really useful meeting where funding advisers in the three VAs can meet and we also meet directly with representatives from funding bodies. The meetings were started through TIES (Big Lottery Transforming Local Infrastructure funded project). It was working so well that we have kept it going after the funding finished.”

S Stone, Funding Advice worker RVA

Working with the Forum we both promote countywide funding advice sessions and workshops and deliver these across the District, often linked to our community network meetings.

RVA encourages additional funding opportunities through working with fund holders; administering small grants schemes; supporting the setting up of local new grants schemes through Sussex Community Foundation (eg Rye Fund, Bexhill Fund)

RVA has administered a range of local small grants schemes; and supported 2 local Community First grants schemes which have distributed in excess of £50,000 in the last 3 years in the 2 most deprived areas of Bexhill (Case Study 14)

RVA sits on the Rother Small Grants committee which distributes approximately £60,000 per year.

A wide range of groups access small funds – from lunch clubs, through uniformed and other children and young people’s groups, to community halls, arts and heritage groups. Bringing approximately £100,000 pa


RVA has undertaken survey work to quantify the effect of funding changes on local groups that has shown the importance of giving groups both the confidence to make bids and the capacity to both complete a bid and undertake the monitoing process. Because so many of the groups we have introduced to funding opportunities in the last 3 years have been in areas of high level deprivation and are very small and entirely volunteer led this has influenced the skills training provided both by RVA and working with other local learning providers.

RVA has supported groups to successfully access larger funding pots including a Community Buildings application to Big Lottery, and associated funders (£387,000) (Case Study 6) and an HLF bid (£380,000) (Case Study 5)

RVA also acts as Local Trusted Organisation for a Big Local area and is running their small grants programme (Case Study 1)

Very locally we support small local charitable trusts and parish councils and to promote their grant funding programmes. RVA supported a local CIC we worked with to access DECC funding and acted as reference for a number of groups (Case Study 13)


2.6 Volunteering - as a result of your organisation’s activity, local voluntary organisations and community groups can describe the effective practices they have learned to help them recruit and support volunteers. See guidance 2j.

N/A





Support

Standard 2The organisation supports local voluntary organisations and community groups to fulfil their missions more effectively.


Focus on encouraging groups to reach accredited quality status Supporting groups in bidding for commissioned services Engaging small and local community groups to gain skills, capacity and confidence to

make funding bids Provide effective communications with groups concerning things they need to know

through networks, emails and ebulletins Focus on 1 to 1 support for trustees, committee members and directors where they have

indicated they would like assistance in becoming more effective Focus on support to groups at times of transition and crisis Developed close working relationships with statutory agencies to enable us to help

groups to understand their priorities Championing diversity and accessibility


Continue work through the CVS Partnership to deliver accredited quality status for community organisations that need it.

Work through the CVS partnership to extend the training offer within Rother for countywide training opportunities which tend to occur in either Lewes or Eastbourne, both of which cause accessibility issues for local groups

Developing groups confidence to use more online resources



Approach to data collection: Information for this standard should be collected through interviews with key people from the organisation/s supported although some information may be available through, for example, your internal contact records etc. The interviews should be carried out with individual/s directly involved in the support received but it might also be useful to interview other key members of staff (i.e. CEO/senior managers) to discuss their perspectives on the impact of support received. It might help you to record the interviews in order to capture quotes, testimonials etc.Don’t forget to check whether the organisation is happy to be mentioned by name in reports or whether they would rather remain anonymous

Suggested questions


What was the overall objective of the support delivered?

What were the main issues facing the case study organisation prior to support?

What did they hope to achieve through the support provided?

How and why did they approach your organisation for support?

How did they find out that your organisation could support them in this way, and were they aware of the range of support available from your organisation and other similar organisations in the area?

in the area?

What work was undertaken by the NAVCA Member?

Was a specific support programme agreed? If yes, what did it include? If no, what types of support were provided?

Who was involved in delivering the support (i.e. individuals, service teams, partner organisations etc.)?

What was the duration of the support provided?

Were any recommendations for further support made? If yes, would this be provided by your organisation or were they signposted to another support provider (who?)?


What was the outcome of the support provided?

What changed for the organisation following the support intervention?

Has the organisation experienced any of the following changes following support, and if so, what is the nature of those changes?

o Greater effectiveness and efficiencyo Better quality serviceso More skilled, knowledgeable and experienced workforceo More fundingo Improved approach to quality, performance management,

monitoring and evaluation

Is there any specific evidence of the changes experienced (i.e. facts, figures, testimonials from service users)?

Have there been any improvements in the outcomes experienced by the organisation's service users/beneficiaries? If yes, what are they and what evidence is there for this?

What was the overall contribution (i.e. impact) of your organisation to the changes described?

Would the changes have happened without the support provided?o If no, what were the key factors in bringing about that change?o If yes, did the support help to bring these changes forward (i.e. did

they happen sooner?)?

Are there any ways in which the support could have been improved? In particular, do they have any support needs that remain unmet?

Would the case study recommend your organisation to other organisations experiencing similar issues?

Collaboration

Standard 3The organisation facilitates effective communication and collaboration amongst local voluntary organisations and community groups and between different sectors.

Outcomes

3.1 Networking – as a result of the organisation’s activity, local voluntary organisations and community groups benefit from networking with each other.

3.2 Collaborative working - as a result of the organisation’s activity, local voluntary organisations and community groups deliver their missions more effectively by working collaboratively through formal partnerships and consortia.

3.3 Sharing resources - as a result of the organisation’s activity, local voluntary organisations and community groups work more efficiently through sharing resources and good practice with each other.

Guidance on evidence required

You need to be able to demonstrate the following types of evidence to support your self-assessment:

3a The Networking outcome examines evidence which illustrates how you: Create and promote formal networking opportunities; Record the tangible benefits for those that participate; Use insights gathered to inform future planning and practice;

3b The Collaborative outcome examines how you focus on demonstrating your role in brokering these relationships. Examples can be collaborative working within the sector and with organisations from other sectors;

3c The Sharing resources outcome examines how you include information to groups on the benefits of using the facilities you own or run.




3d

3e

3f

3g


Collaboration

Standard 3:The organisation facilitates effective communication and collaboration amongst local voluntary organisations and community groups and between different sectors.




Reports on liaison/collaboration Service user feedback on

development support Standard 3 Case Study Guidance

see page 38







Evidence ref. no.

3.1 Networking - as a result of your organisation’s activity, local voluntary organisations and community groups can describe the benefits of networking with each other. See guidance 3a.

RVA facilitate regular community and interest networks across the District. Each of the community networks has a distinctive character shaped by the issues within the local area: Rye, at the far east of the county: tends to be concerned with the relative isolation of the area; distance to and difficulty in accessing the main service centres in the county and how they can best have local needs met. Bexhill, as the largest local town and service centre spends a lot of time looking at how groups and services can best work together; identifying the needs of the large elderly population and considering the issues of deprivation in this coastal community. Battle has a large rural hinterland and interests are around transport; supporting small rural groups and identifying how information on the range of services can be best communicated to very small and isolated communities. This diversity means that when we are encouraging networks to respond to consultations there will often be very different views expressed across the District which needs to be reflected in the response we make on behalf of the local sector. Monitoring show these events are well regarded and supported (see case study). Groups consistently identify the opportunity to make contact and share information with other groups as the most important role of the Networks. (Case Study 16 & Dashboard 16a)

RVA also engages with other local networking opportunities on behalf of the sector such as regularly attending RALC (Rother Association of Local Councils) meetings and Bexhill Town Forum. Both are seen as an opportunity to highlight both the work and issues faced by local groups.

RVA is an active participant in a number of interest networks across Hastings & Rother. In many cases we have supported the development of these Networks in the past and that are now user led. This includes the Health and Social Care network; provider networks; identity networks and the volunteer involving organisations forum. Our role is always to ensure information shared within these networks reaches the wider voluntary sector where appropriate and that we are identifying specific issues within interest areas to support the work undertaken by voluntary and community organisations whilst supporting groups with an interest in these specific interest networks to participate

“I was new in post and coming to meet with RVA gave me a real insight into who was out there, what they were doing, where we may be able to collaborate with other organisations and what networking opportunities are available. I have come from a business background and found some of the local groups are very traditional and insular. It was refreshing to meet a group like RVA who are challenging those


attitudes and have a real can do attitude. I look forward to us working together and challenging the preconceptions people have of working with our learning disabled clients”

K Southon, Work Placement Manager, Little Gate Care Farm

RVA works within the East Sussex CVS Partnership and Speak Up to encourage local groups to contribute to discussions around issues of interest at a county level eg Better Together consultation; and the annual Big Event. Also at a countywide level we have taken the lead in supporting the Community Transport Operators Forum.(Case Study 4)

RVA has built our AGM as a go to event with opportunities for groups to get together and think about new opportunities and how they can respond to them. (Case Study 17).

Reflections:RVA should continue to run Community Networks and ensure they are regularly reviewed to remain relevant to organisations

The role played by RVA in ensuring that local information is shared with more specialised forums and countywide strategic forums and vice versa is both much better understood and supported than in our last QA review meaning that our local groups are more engaged in the whole planning process

We have worked to encourage groups to consider community networks as peer support opportunities and we are seeing the development of this process and mr willingness for groups to look to each other for help and support

We should not forget that there are group who never attend the meetings but say the note are very valuable to them and continue to seek ways to engage them further.


3.2 Collaborative working - as a result of your organisation’s activity, local voluntary organisations and community groups can describe how they deliver their missions more effectively by working collaboratively through formal partnerships and consortia. See guidance 3b.

RVA works in a number of ways to support collaborative work and also gives groups support to develop the framework agreements for formal partnerships.

We use our networks, AGM, newsletters and local forums to encourage groups to learn about each other. In the case study showing Community First Responders the local leader talks about how this opportunity to support their work led to the successful installation of a number of new PADs (Public Access Defibrillators) and the training of people to use them. (Case Study 15)

We use our knowledge of local needs and gaps to support the development of 45

NAVCA Quality Award Workbook Revised June 2013

appropriate local responses. Some 6 years ago we helped to establish a Hasting and Rother Adult Learning Network, which transformed the way providers worked together across the area. However in the last 2 years it became apparent that smaller sub groups needed to be set up to ensure that on the ground delivery was meeting the need of local communities. This led us to hold specific meetings to look at training opportunities and who was delivering in both Bexhill and Rye. (Case Study 9)

Our work, over the last 3 years, to develop new ‘helpful neighbour schemes’ saw us start by bringing together the local groups to meet and offer peer support to each other. This has developed to regular meetings where a range of small groups supporting people within their own, mainly rural, communities also have a slot at their networking meeting to learn about other more specialised services which are provided.

“It really helps to have the opportunity to meet with other people doing the same sort of thing as us. We realise we all have similar issues, get new ideas, and generally have a good chat.”

Volunteer Ticehurst Helping HandsThe results from this work saw the development of the Building Stronger Bridges pilot which not only continues to support local groups to work together but has also seen the development of more formal partnerships at a county level and with the Adult Social Care Department (Case Study 19 and attached BSB evaluation, March 2015).

In supporting the development of contracted opportunities through the East Sussex Commissioning Grants Prospectus opportunities have been provided for groups to meet together to form partnerships and consortia. However groups report back that although this is what is requested though the CGP guidelines the reality is that commissioners tend to prove risk averse at the final hurdle revert to single provider bids finding the consortia bids more complex and therefore more likely to fail. “It take ten times as long to put together a consortium bid and then it is just dismissed out of hand” Working collectively with Speak Up (the countywide network of voluntary organisations facilitated by the East Sussex CVS Partnership) the concerns of the sector as a whole were addressed with commissioners through our quarterly liaison meeting with senior officers at ESCC leading to the current review of the Commissioning process:

1. The cost of the whole process both in the time of ESCC staff, applicant time etc compared to the budgets being managed. Is this process ever scrutinised for value for money in relation to what we all put into it?

2. How the different negotiation approaches of different commissioners sit within the overarching policy of Full Cost Recovery and where this leaves FCR as a concept within ESCC

3. The effect on partnership working of an effective ‘purdah’ period that now spans half the year.


4. The absence in the process of any real opportunity for co-design, especially where multiple outcomes can be achieved by wisely developed single programmes.

5. An apparent failure on the part of commissioners and procurement staff to understand the implications of treating relationships as grants rather than contracts – devil being in the detail of service specifications, ownership, IPR, TUPE, VAT etc….

6. A wider issue which relates to procurement generally and the extent to which smaller organisations may be disadvantaged because of the rules about PQQ and eligibility particularly as contracts become larger and the limitations on a single contract not making up more than a defined % of the turnover of an organisation

RVA is committed to fostering partnership work. To this end RVA have created 2 “community hubs” (Bexhill and Rye) for use by VCS organisations and partner agencies with office accommodation, hot-desking opportunities and meeting space .

ReflectionsOngoing support and encouragement to groups to consider their own services in the light of changing strategic priorities is paying dividends as groups are much more willing to engage in discussions and consider new ideas of what they can do.

Collaboration is often used by statutory agencies to mean the engagement in formal partnerships. Our groups are as likely to use the word to mean any joint working/cooperation they have with another group and perceive the present funding structures as causing competitiveness rather than cooperation. RVA will continue to engage with Commissioners to develop the trust and understanding between the sector and statutory agencies in developing partnership approaches


3.3 Sharing resources - as a result of your organisation’s activity, local voluntary organisations and community groups can describe how they are working more efficiently through sharing resources and good practice with each other.

See guidance 3c.

N/A



Collaboration

Standard 3: The organisation facilitates effective communication and collaboration amongst local voluntary organisations and community groups and between different sectors.


RVA has strong relationships with local voluntary organisations and groups and understand the needs of our local communities

RVA facilitates strong community and interest networks

RVA has built a relationship of trust with the sector and is seeing more cooperation and collaboration between groups

RVA has engaged local groups to be less suspicious local public sector motives and to understand the opportunities for the sector to show how their work supports many strategic priorities.

RVA works with local public sector bodies to help them better understand the sector


Continuing to build trust between the sector and statutory agency commissioners that collaborative bids are effective and not intrinsically more risky than single agency bids as the reaction by statutory agencies to partnership bids (despite asking for them) has caused the sector to take a step back from investing the additional time and effort to develop such bids.

Encouraging local VCOs to participate in more formal collaborations. Building on the type of work undertaken with training providers and through Building Stronger Bridges to promote better relationships between organisations and to promote opportunities for partnership working.



Approach to data collection: Information for this standard should be collected through interview(s) with an organisation/s involved in network/consortia activity although some information may be available through, for example, your internal contact records etc. The interview(s) should be carried out with individual/s directly involved in the network/consortia activity but it might also be useful to interview other key members of staff (i.e. CEO/senior managers) to discuss their perspectives on the impact of involvement. It might help you to record the interviews in order to capture quotes, testimonials etc. Don’t forget to check whether the organisation is happy to be mentioned by name in reports or whether they would rather remain anonymous.

Suggested questions


What is the key learning from this case study? (For reflection by your organisation following data collection - where multiple case studies have been undertaken notes should be compared)

What appears to have worked well?

What do you need to improve/expand on?

Are the findings consistent with any other case studies undertaken?

Are there any particular elements of the case study to celebrate or publicise? If yes, how will you do this?

What is the nature of the network/consortia with which they are involved?

Was/is it focussed on a particular issue/challenge, community of interest (i.e. health organisations) or community of place (i.e. a particular neighbourhood)?

How (and how often) does the network/consortia meet and communicate?

What did they hope to achieve through their involvement in the network/consortia?

How and why did they become involved?

How did they find out that (your organisation) facilitated this type of opportunity, and were they aware of any other similar opportunities?


What role does your organisation play in facilitating the network/consortia?

Do you provide a paid worker to facilitate the network or do they provide other support that enables them to meet/communicate?

Who from your organisation is involved in delivering the support (i.e. individuals, service teams, partner organisations etc.)?

Is any additional support provided outside of formal meetings/communications etc.? If yes, what does this involve?

What was the outcome of network/consortia involvement?

What changed for the case study organisation as a result of their involvement?

Has the organisation experienced any of the following changes following involvement, and if so, what is the nature of those changes?

o More regular opportunities to meet with similar organisationso Improved communication with similar organisationso Increased collaboration or partnership working with similar

organisationso More effective (i.e. shared) use of resources such as equipment,

premises etc.o Knowledge of local good practice


Have there been any improvements in the outcomes experienced by the organisation's service users/beneficiaries? If yes, what are they and what evidence is there for this?


Would the network/consortia exist without your support?

Would the changes described have happened without their involvement in the network/consortia?

o If no, what were the key factors in bringing about that change?o If yes, did the support help to bring these changes forward (i.e. did they

happen sooner?)?

Are there any ways in which your organisation's support for networks/consortia could be improved?

Would the case study recommend network/consortia involvement to other local organisations working in a similar area/field?






Influence

Standard 4The organisation supports local voluntary organisations and community groups to influence policies, plans and practices that have an impact on their organisations and beneficiaries.

Outcomes

4.1 Foresight – as a result of the organisation’s activity, local voluntary organisations and community groups are better informed about the potential impact of emerging policies, plans and practices on their organisations and beneficiaries.

4.2 Consultation - as a result of the organisation’s activity, local voluntary organisations and community groups have their views sought by statutory bodies in the development and implementation of relevant policies, plans and practices.

4.3 Accountable representatives - as a result of the organisation’s activity, local voluntary organisations and community groups have genuinely accountable representatives who are participating on behalf of the sector in policy and decision-making structures and processes.

4.4 Capacity for influence - as a result of the organisation’s activity, local voluntary organisations and community groups have increased knowledge and skills to be involved in the policy and decision-making structures and processes.

4.5 Working agreements - as a result of the organisation’s activity, local voluntary organisations and community groups benefit from working agreements, protocols and/or compacts with statutory bodies.

Guidance on evidence required

You need to be able to demonstrate the following types of evidence to support your self-assessment:

4a The Foresight outcome examines how you disseminate information and potential impact of emerging policies, plans and practices from local policy and decision-making bodies to the voluntary and community sector;

4

4b The Consultation outcome examines how you facilitate consultations between 4


statutory bodies and voluntary and community sector groups and organisations;

4c The Accountable representatives’ outcome examines on how representatives are selected and are supported to be accountable to the sector and relevant constituencies where appropriate. For example, what communication mechanisms do you use to enable representatives to feedback to the sector?

4d The Capacity for influence outcome examines how you support and develop the skills and knowledge of representatives to be fully involved in the voice work and influencing opportunities that you create;

4

4e The Working agreements outcome examines how you play an active part in the on-going development and maintenance of local working agreements, protocols and/or compacts;

4f The Working agreements outcome examines how you report information about the benefits of this work to the voluntary and community sector.



4g

4h

4i

4j


Influence





Membership survey questions Reports on liaison &

collaboration Standard 4 Case Study

Guidance see page 39







Evidence ref. no

4.1 Foresight - as a result of your organisation’s activity, local voluntary organisations and community groups can demonstrate how they are more knowledgeable about the potential impact of emerging policies, plans and practices on their organisations and beneficiaries. See evidence 4a.

RVA works at a range of levels to understand emerging policies, practices and plans. Working directly with statutory agency commissioners to discuss emerging issues through quarterly liaison meetings to assess such strategic changes and the impact on the VCS, similarly we regularly meet with the CCG through their Critical Friends programme. Such activity leads to a range of responses by RVA:Supporting the development of specific task groups to take forward strategic discussions on potential impact in the community. Two case studies look at how this works (Strengthening Local Communities (Case Study 10) with Adult Social Care and Community Transport Operators (Case study 4) being supported to respond to cuts in bus subsidies).Provision of specialist workshops enabling local voluntary organisations to grow their knowledge and provide insight into local responses (CTO – Case Study 4, Orangery Case Study 11)Introducing information on such changes through network and forum meetings and inviting statutory partners to attend and speak about such changes(Case study 17)Providing information with relevant hyperlinks and contact details through our e-bulletin, website and social media.


4.2 Consultation - as a result of your organisation’s activity, local voluntary organisations and community groups can report that they have had their views sought by statutory bodies in the development and implementation of relevant policies, plans and practices. See evidence 4b.

At a basic level RVA makes available to groups information on current consultations, opportunities to take part in workshops, stakeholder meetings etc through our website, e-bulletin and social media. We also take the opportunity to post information and stories from a national perspective as well as locally. For example we report information from the rural services network which highlights some of the concerns which are impacting plans local – such as the differences between central government funding for rural and urban authorities; changes in bus subsidy grants.


We work with our local statutory agencies to discuss the best way to reach local people (Orangery Extra Care housing – Case Study 11) and target specific events at those who may be most hard to reach.

With the Community Transport Operators (Case Study 4) the county council had approached RVA to consider how the operators could best be supported through a period of transition and with major funding cuts in the pipeline when their own relationships with operators was not good. This meant that RVA had a mediation role before being able to engage with the operators, through the Forum, in participating in consultation with East Sussex.

Through our community networks and forums we arrange for statutory agency staff to come and discuss proposed changes eg we are having regular attendance from te Hastings & Rother CCG/Adult Social Care about the developments of their Better Together programme.

RVA undertakes specific work with local communities (Case study 1 Case Study 12) to hear their voices and understand their own priorities and works with the community to ensure that their views are taken into account statutory planning processes (Case Study 18).


4.3 Accountable representatives - as a result of your organisation’s activity, local voluntary organisations and community groups can describe how they have genuinely accountable representatives who are participating on behalf of the sector in policy and decision-making structures and processes. See evidence 4c.

N/A


4.4 Capacity for influence - as a result of your organisation’s activity, local voluntary organisations and community groups can demonstrate how they have increased knowledge and skills to be involved in the policy and decision-making structures and processes. See evidence 4d.

It is clear to us from our work that groups need to be supported to understand that their views do impact on policy and decision making processes. RVA will also support groups, especially those with little previous experience of influencing policy


by simplifying the questions asked to those relevant to the group; developing discussions into bite sized chunks and enabling groups to focus on those areas which they may influence through their own local experience and knowledge. We would sum this up as facilitating access to information; promoting inclusion and sharing experiences. At the same time that we enable groups to participate we also support groups to effectively have a voice – this might include training on meeting skills, listening and the importance of collaboration. Recently we have been engaged in projects in the most deprived communities in Rother and the experience of engaging such groups in local policy making decision making is reflected in our case studies on Our Place(Case study 11). and Heart of Sidley (Case Study 1)A very different experience is reflected in our work to support the development of the Rother Cycling Strategy. In our role as ensuring there is VCS representation on the Rother Transport Action group we had engaged with and encouraged local cycling groups to participate. The importance of safe cycling was regularly highlighted through this group and East Sussex County Council engaged with the relevant groups participating in the Action Group to seek their views on developing a local cycling strategy. Our cycling groups had a clear idea of what they wanted to see in the area but little experience of strategic planning and we have been able to work with them to understand what ESCC are wanting to develop. The groups are now actively involved in the development of the Strategy.

In addition the work we have undertaken with the Community Transport Operators group has shown how this more structured forum gained capacity for influence and is now embedded within the strategic planning processes for public transport in East Sussex (Case Study 4)

The work with Adult Social Care on Strengthening Local Communities (Case Study 10) has led to the pilot project Building Stronger Bridges with 6 local organisations who are all now engaged in working with ASC to shape future policy (Case Study 19)

RVA had also worked closely with the refurbishment of Peasmarsh Memorial Hall and re-engaged to support them to fight an unexpected decision from NHS England to stop the developmet of the planned satellite surgery (Case Study 18). Working with the group, local GP surgery, MP’s and introducing the support of HealthWatch East Sussex. In the minds of he villagers this was a local issue, However RVA realised there could be wider ramifications for satellite surgeries across the country which was reflected in our discussions with both local and national HealthWatch.



4.5 Working agreements - as a result of your organisation’s activity, local voluntary organisations and community groups can report the benefits they have gained from working agreements, protocols and/or compacts with statutory bodies. See evidence 4e – 4f.

N/A





Influence



Strong relationships with local statutory services which enable early dialogue on emergent issues. Trusted partner.

Strong knowledge of local issues and concerns and trust of local sector that such issues will be raised in appropriate forums.

Growing capacity within local sector for moe groups to participate in strategic decision making and consultations. Moving such discussions away from ‘the usual suspects’.

Growing evidence bank of the influence of such discussions on policy decisions.

Direct new opportunities for groups to undertake new work – eg around building community resilience and improving health and wellbeing


Coping with the stresses and disruption to VCS relationships with health caused through the changing landscape. New structures (especially CCGs); changing personnel; impact of Better Together etc



It might help to record the interviews in order to capture quotes, testimonials etc. you may wish to consider as to whether the interviews should be undertaken by an independent party to provide a degree of impartiality. Finally, don’t forget to check whether the organisation is happy to be mentioned by name in reports etc. or whether they would rather remain anonymous.

For internal reflection prior to undertaking the case study


What is the nature of the particular policy issue/development on which the case study is focussing?

Provide an outline of the issue policy development

How was it going to affect local voluntary and community organisations?

Was there anything about the issue/development that the sector sought to change?

What role did your organisation play in supporting the sector to influence/change the issue/development?

How did you identify the issue/development and its possible impact on the sector?

Did you raise awareness of the issue/development with the organisations that would be affected? If yes, how did you do this?

Did you co-ordinate or facilitate a cross-sector response to the issue/development? If yes, how did you involve the sector in this process and how did you ensure that key public sector decision makers were made aware of and understood the sector's position?

Who from your organisation was involved in the process (i.e. individuals, service teams, partner organisations etc.) and what roles did they play?

Questions for the case study participants

Questions specific to Outcome statements 4.3 and 4.4


What was the outcome of the process for the local voluntary and community organisations?

What, if anything, changed regarding the issue/development? How did this affect the sector as a whole? Across the sector, were different organisations affected in different

ways? If yes, how?

How do individuals/organisations involved in the process reflect on the following?

o To what extent did they feel like an integral part of the decision making process?

o To what extent were they able to access sufficient information to understand the issues and respond effectively?

o To what extent do they feel that local external agencies consulted with their organisation/the sector effectively?


Have there been any impacts (positive or negative) on the outcomes experienced by the organisation's service users/beneficiaries? If yes, what are they and what evidence is there for this?


Would the sector have been able to influence the decision making process without the role played by your organisation?

o If no, what were the key factors in bringing about that change?o If yes, did the support help to bring these changes forward (i.e. did they

happen sooner?)?

Are there any ways in which the local support and development organisation could improve the way it tries to influence key decisions on behalf of the sector?

How does the NAVCA member ensure that the sector has accountable representatives on key local decision making bodies, partnership boards etc.?

Are there representative structures in place?o How do they work?o Are representatives directly accountable to the sector?

Provide specific examples of the local decision making bodies partnership boards etc. on which sector representatives sit?

What is the key learning from this case study? (For reflection by the NAVCA Member following data collection - where multiple case studies have been undertaken notes should be compared)





What role does the local support and development organisation play in facilitating these representative structures?

Do they provide a paid worker to facilitate the process and support representatives? If yes, what types of support are provided?

Who from the local support and development organisation is involved in delivering the support (i.e. individuals, service teams, partner organisations etc.)?


What have been the outcomes of these structures being in place?

Are there any key decisions that have been changed or influenced? How effective are the representative structures?

o Do representatives feel sufficiently confident, knowledgeable and skilled to carry out their role effective?

o Does the wider sector feel that these representatives are accountable and effective in their roles?

What is the overall contribution (i.e. impact) of the local support and development organisation to the representative process?

Would the representative structures exist without their support?

Would the sector be in a position to influence decisions without the involvement of representatives?

o If no, what are the key factors that make the representative structures effective?

o If yes, how would this happen in a joined-up, representative and accountable way?

Are there any ways in which the organisation's support for representatives could be improved?






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