Joe Irvin, NAVCA’s Chief Executive, has welcomed the plans announced today by Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg to help young people find work, training or get back into education. Nick Clegg MP has announced a £126 million scheme to help at least 55,000 “neets” – those not in education, employment or training. As part of the scheme, charities and businesses will be invited to bid for contracts worth up to £2,200 to take young people on.

 

Joe Irvin, NAVCA’s Chief Executive, said;

 

“Youth unemployment is a major problem. We have lobbied government on this issue and in particular we asked for the Government to ensure charities are included in plans to help young people. NAVCA is pleased that the Government has listened and Charities are being given the chance to play a constructive role in this scheme. It is important this is implemented in a way that benefits the young people it is intended to help. Involving charities can help make sure this happens.”

NAVCA has joined the Early Intervention Foundation Consortium. The Consortium was set up by Labour MP Graham Allen and is supported by David Cameron. The consortium seeks to become a centre to champion Early Intervention, develop an evidence base of what works and provide advice to practitioners. NAVCA’s involvement means that the local voluntary sector, who play an important role in supporting and delivering early intervention policies and programmes, can be at the heart of this work.

Joe Irvin, NAVCA’s Chief Executive said,

“Early intervention can dramatically improve lives, tackle child poverty and improve people’s health. Much of the work of local charities and voluntary groups concerns itself with early intervention. We believe local and small scale charities can play a big part in successful early interventions.”

“We really welcome the chance to be part of this consortium and we would like to see public bodies make a start by allocating at least one per cent of budgets to early intervention.”

More information on the work of the Early Intervention Foundation Consortium can be found on the website of Graham Allen MP.

NAVCA’s Chief Executive Joe Irvin has been invited to join a key Department of Health Board. The Department of Health Local Government (DH LG) Programme Board is charged with ensuring the implementation of the health and social care reforms which will establish local authorities as the system leaders. Joining this board will allow NAVCA to input the views of the local voluntary and community sector to decisions concerning Health and Wellbeing Boards, local HealthWatch and developing local public health systems. NAVCA will attend its first meeting of this board on 15 February 2012.

The invitation to join this board is recognition of NAVCA as a credible and authentic voice for the local voluntary sector and local communities. It will enable the local voluntary and community sector to influence decisions aimed at ensuring effective commissioning and improving the health and wellbeing of local communities.

Joe Irvin, Chief Executive of NAVCA, said;

“It is really positive that the Department of Health recognises how important it is to involve the voluntary sector in their transition planning. I am delighted that they see such an important role for NAVCA. By sitting on this board, we can ensure the views of the local voluntary and community sector help to shape this important agenda.”

“It is vital that our members continue to feed in their views and information to us: this is what the Department of Health wants and needs to hear.”

If you have any issues, concerns or questions about local HealthWatch, Health and Wellbeing Boards, or changes to local public health systems, email Katy Wing, NAVCA’s Director - Improving Local Services.

The Department of Health has asked a consortium of its voluntary sector strategic partners, including NAVCA, to run a series of learning events for LINks members over the next few months. These events will focus on how people can develop their skills as leaders, carry out enter and view visits, represent the views of local people, engage with diverse local communities and influence decision makers.

Katy Wing, NAVCA’s Director, Improving Local Services said, “These are a great opportunity to share and embed best practice across all LINks in the run up to local Healthwatch. They are ideal for LINks members who wish to gain more confidence and enhance their skills, as well as those who are new to LINks and want to make a difference to local health and social care services.”

The events will be delivered by NAVCA in partnership by Disability Rights UK, the Race Equality Foundation and Regional Voices. More information on dates, venues and how to book is available at www.regionalvoices.net/events or by contacting Ciara Mcintyre on 0191 233 2000 or events@regionalvoices.org

NAVCA has issued a six point test for local Healthwatch to make sure they are genuine grassroots bodies. To pass the six point test, the Government needs to amend the Health and Social Care Bill so that local Healthwatch organisations are not ‘statutory bodies’, which would create over 150 new local quangos. The tests include making sure local authorities take an intelligent, strategic approach to commissioning local Healthwatch, to give a strong voice to patients and local communities and to build on the current good work undertaken by LINks.

NAVCA has published the six point test as the Health and Social Care Bill is going through the House of Lords. There have been suggestions that the new bodies will lack teeth if they are not statutory. NAVCA rejects that view and is clear that there is no need for local Healthwatch to be statutory bodies - they can still have statutory powers. NAVCA believes that a network of vibrant community led organisations, answerable to local people, will have far more bite than over 150 unaccountable quangos.

NAVCA’s six point test also focuses on the commissioning process for establishing local Healthwatch. The legislation, subsequent regulations and guidance should make clear that it is inappropriate for local authorities to go out to open competitive tender on short term contracts for local Healthwatch. This is because local Healthwatch needs to be embedded in local communities. It takes time to develop wide and inclusive patient and public involvement and this would be jeopardised by short term contractual arrangements, which are also bureaucratic and wasteful. Using rolling grant funding agreements would avoid this. They need only terminated in the event that local Healthwatch is ineffective or in breach of its obligations to the local community.

NAVCA’s test requires clear guidance on commissioning local Healthwatch, involving early and wide engagement with local stakeholders, including LINks, host organisations, the voluntary and community sector, patients, service users and local communities.

Katy Wing, NAVCA’s Director, Improving Local Services and a member of the Healthwatch Programme Board said:

“By applying the six point test for local Healthwatch, the Government can be confident of creating successful, genuine grassroots bodies. To pass the test the legislation needs an amendment that will mean local Healthwatch organisations are not statutory bodies. Creating local Healthwatch as statutory bodies would make them creatures of the state - and we don’t want over 150 new local quangos.

Local Healthwatch needs statutory powers, so that they have teeth, but they also need enough independence from government to be led by local communities and accountable principally to them. Applying our tests would ensure local authorities commission local Healthwatch in a way which gives patients and the public a strong voice”.

NAVCA’s six point test for the legislation, regulations and guidance to ensure local Healthwatch organisations are strong, independent and genuinely grassroots.

1. Does the legislation enable the creation of powerful, grassroots organisations accountable first and foremost to local communities? Or does it create over 150 local quangos accountable primarily to local government or HealthwatchEngland?
2. Is there clear guidance for local authorities on how to go about commissioning local Healthwatch, that involves early and wide engagement with local stakeholders, including LINks, host organisations, the voluntary and community sector, patients, service users and local communities?
3. Will it be made clear that open competitive tendering on short term contracts is inappropriate for local Healthwatch? You cannot simply ‘buy’ a local democratic mandate.
4. Will local authorities be able to maintain ‘host’ arrangements, where these are working well?
5. Will local Healthwatch be able to act independently and effectively challenge the local authority, NHS bodies, commissioners and providers of health and social care services?
6. Do the new arrangements recognise the achievements of existing LINks and support a transition to ensure we build on what has worked well?

The BIG Fund has now released the results of the bidding for the Transforming Local Infrastructure bids.

Joe Irvin, Chief Executive of NAVCA said;

“Congratulations to all those involved in the successful bids and commiserations to those who have been unsuccessful. We always knew only a limited number of awards were available. What has been remarkable is the way that NAVCA members have supported each other through this process. Our members have demonstrated yet again the selflessness with which they go about their mission of supporting local voluntary action.”

“NAVCA will continue our work with all members to help them be successful and sustainable organisations. We will be working with the successful areas to help them make the most of this opportunity. For those members in areas that have been unsuccessful we will help them find other ways to be able to maintain and improve services.”

“Ultimately what is important is that local charities and community groups can get whatever help they need, wherever they are, so they can continue their good work in their communities.”

A NAVCA report highlights the part its members play in bringing together the local voluntary sector to strengthen its voice. A survey carried out in November finds that most places have a local voluntary and community sector forums thanks to the work of the local NAVCA member. Local voluntary and community sector forums enable local groups to work together, support each other and exert influence over local decision makers. NAVCA’s survey shows that forums exist in 85% and that 84% of them were established by a NAVCA member.

Voluntary sector forums help improve services through their input into decisions about public service design and delivery, benefiting both service users and providers, which is many councils fund and support these forums. However, the survey shows that even when there is no funding for this work, it is so important our members do it. Half of the NAVCA members who support local forums do so without receiving any direct funding for this.

Neil Cleeveley, NAVCA Director of Policy and Communications, said:

“Giving local charities and community groups the chance to have their voice heard is vital work for NAVCA members, particularly those that speak up for the most disadvantaged people and communities.

“This report shows that it is NAVCA members doing this work up and down the country. The challenge for NAVCA and our members now is to make sure that the local voluntary sector has a strong influence over local decision making in every part of the country.”

Key findings from the survey are

• 88.5% of members said there was an LSP in their area, 90% of these have VCS representation.
• 85% of areas have a VCS forum.
• 84% of VCS forums have been established by NAVCA members.
• NAVCA members have a network of 160,933 local charities, voluntary organisations and community groups.

Read the full report

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