RCVYS Reading Children’s & Voluntary

Youth Services

Providing support, advice, representation and

information for its member organisations

RCVYS

Annual Report

2011 - 2012

RCVYS Chairman’s Comments

The Voluntary Sector nationally is undergoing a period of consideration

challenge, with these national commentators making some important points:

Deborah Alcock Tyler, Directory of Social Change

Third Sector Magazine - 22nd

May 2012:

“Many charities are struggling for money, closing down projects and

making staff redundant. And the lament is one of despair and

despondency: “It’s so hard”; “There’s no money”; “How can we survive?”;

“It’s always a battle”; “We’re knackered” and so on.”

In Deborah Alcock Tyler’s mind this is all true, but not new.

Craig Dearden-Phillips, Social Entrepreneur

Third Sector Magazine - 12th

June 2012:

“Why do so many charities dance to the discordant tune of collaboration?

Why do charities spend so much time forming partnerships that yield no

reward?”

Both have key messages for us as a sector in coping with the new challenges

faced.

The charitable sector has of course faced difficult times, the difference this time

is that the government over the last 10 years has been promoting a culture of

collaboration and encouraging an investment in charities’ capacity to deliver

against contracts. However, I believe that we must never forget the core value

and purpose of our work. Our partners are very important, but the value of our

partnership has to be measured in the outcomes for our service users.

With this in mind, over the last year the RCVYS Executive has endeavoured to

ensure that we have prioritised our valuable but limited resources into areas of

work with the highest possible value to our Members, and our other partners.

The RCVYS Executive have also received significant feedback through a review

of our service, which concluded that 97% of those asked in an anonymous

survey were satisfied or very satisfied with the support and services provided

by RCVYS.

Whilst the VCF sector does need to be less reliant on ‘traditional’ sources of

funding and seek to identify alternative and more diverse incomes, we also

need to be better at highlighting and presenting the value of our work to both

partners and funders, and in turn, raising the profile of the excellent work of

the local VCF sector.

David Seward - RCVYS Chairman

Identifying needs in the local community and

facilitating improvements in service provision to

meet those needs

• In 2011/12, RCVYS ensured that its members’ views on a variety of

key areas were heard and considered within the design services.

These included: supporting families, youth counselling, services for

young people, young people and alcohol and child sexual

exploitation to name a few.

• At our RCVYS Members Meeting in October, RCVYS Members had

the opportunity to highlight a range of gaps in provision to meet

the needs of their service users. RCVYS then collated this

information and presented this to the Commissioning Team at

Reading Borough Council.

Making a difference...

RCVYS has played a key role in Reading’s Innovations Project over the last

two years. The Innovations Project used ethnographic research

techniques to listen to and report on the lived experiences of parents in

South Reading, and to identify key challenges for parents.

From this research, a multi-agency group was set up to use Blue-printing

and Prototyping techniques to plan a project to enable groups of parents

to offer parenting support amongst other parents in their local

community.

The Parents Supporting Parents volunteering scheme was set up as part

of Sure Start Whitley Children’s Centre, and RCVYS provided key advice

around volunteer recruitment and management, and how to integrate

volunteers into the existing structures. The project went on to receive

national recognition when it was

awarded Highly Commended in the

Innovation category at the prestigious

LGC Awards 2012.

www.surestartwhitley.co.uk

Assisting local voluntary and community

organisations to function more effectively and deliver

quality services to the local community

• RCVYS has been continuing its campaign to ensure that voluntary

sector organisations have access to Children’s Safeguarding

Training, when and where they need it. 16 individuals from VCF

sector groups attended a Train the Trainer course and are now

qualified to deliver the Universal Safeguarding Children Training.

RCVYS also held 2 Designated Persons Training Courses where 15

people received training in how to handle safeguarding incidents in

their organisations.

• RCVYS has continued to produce its Newsletter, informing a wide

range of organisations about some of the key messages they need

to know. The RCVYS Mailing List has disseminated over 190 pieces

of news and information to its members this year .

• In March 2012, the National Council for Voluntary Youth Services

and RCVYS held a national conference looking at working with

young people from a Health and Well-being perspective. This event

helped groups to understand the new format of the NHS in

England, and explored many of the different opportunities

available.

Making a difference...

CATSYPP Reading works with children and young people aged 8 to 14

years old with a diagnosis of high-functioning autism or Asperger

Syndrome to provide weekly social activities and summer camps with

specially trained staff.

As a result of attending the RCVYS Designated Persons Training, the

Co-ordinator has taken the opportunity to simplify and update their

Children’s Safeguarding Policy and Procedures, discuss safeguarding

scenarios with people from similar organisations, and identify possible

areas of service development for the future.

www.catsyppreading.org.uk

Facilitating effective communication and networking

for local community groups

• In September 2011, as part of Reading Borough Council’s

Community Family Support Tender, RCVYS and RVA hosted a

Networking and Partnership-forming event with potential bidders.

This event enabled interested organisations to identify themselves

as Primary or Secondary partners and to facilitate conversations

about joint working to deliver this contract. The event involved

nearly 20 people taking part in a series of conversations in a

‘Dragons’ Den’/Speed-dating style.

• In January 2012, RCVYS had its 10th Anniversary Celebration Event

where nearly 70 people got together to celebrate RCVYS’

achievements over the last decade. This event also enabled

different groups, statutory partners and friends to share more

about their work and to meet new people in a relaxed and friendly

atmosphere.

Making a difference...

As part of the Reading Children’s Trust Work Shadowing Programme, the

RCVYS Development Worker and a Duty Manager from the Access and

Assessment Team from Children’s Social Care spent time finding out

more about each other’s work.

The Duty Manager found out more about the wide range of groups and

organisations working with children, young people and families in

Reading, met with 2 groups, and was introduced to the RVA Directory

and other ways of finding out about VCF Sector groups.

The RCVYS Development Worker spent a day with the Access and

Assessment Team exploring more about their work and observing and

inputting into case assessments. As a part of that day, the RCVYS

Development Worker was able to link a lady and her young son into a

local cultural organisation that have helped them settle into a house in

Reading, and become a part of the local community here in Reading.

www.reading.gov.uk/a-to-z/a/access-and-assessment-team

Enabling the views of the local voluntary and

community sector to be represented on partnership

groups, and promoting effective working

relationships and two-way communication

• RCVYS Representatives have served on 21 committees, groups,

meetings and forums in Reading, Berkshire, and on a national

reference group.

• RCVYS has had a strong voice on Reading Children’s Trust, with the

RCVYS Development Worker again being re-elected as Vice Chair of

Trust, and the two RCVYS Representatives becoming Thematic

Scrutineers. Together, they have been involved in many of the key

decisions for children’s services over the last year, and have

encouraged greater partnership working and communication.

• RCVYS had enabled its Members to have a strong voice into the

changes to the delivery of youth services in Reading, by collating

Member responses to the initial consultation, and by holding a

dedicated focus group.

Making a difference...

Home-Start Reading provide a home visiting service for families with

children under 5 years of age, by matching them with a trained volunteer

to provide bespoke support, encouragement and friendship.

RCVYS was part of the Local Safeguarding Children Board Task Group

looking at ensuring that referrals into Children’s Social Care were both

appropriate and directed to the right place, by producing and distributing

a range of materials and guidance for all agencies.

The trustees, staff and volunteers at Home-Start Reading have found

these resources both helpful and reassuring, enabling them to more

accurately and effectively work with statutory services to support the

families they’re working with. As a result, 3 of the children they support

are now no longer subject to a Protection Plan.

www.home-start-reading.org.uk

Enhancing the voluntary and community sector’s role

as an integral part of local planning and

policy-making

• In September, RCVYS was commissioned by the Reading Borough

Council Early Years Team, to work with the wide range of Nurseries

and Pre-Schools to set up their own Providers’ Forum, manage

their own representation, and identify their own training needs. By

seconding an Early Years Providers Development Worker from a

RCVYS Member organisation, the new Reading Early Years

Providers’ Forum has now met 4 times, with over 75% of all

settings having attended. They also have representatives on 4

committees.

• Through involvement with the Innovations Project, RCVYS has been

working with Children’s Centres to better engage with their local

communities and VCF groups within their reach areas.

• RCVYS has played a key role a further two commissioned services

in Reading: Youth Counselling and Community Family Support. This

included helping to develop the service specifications and being

part of decision-making panels.

• RCVYS has continued to contribute to Reading Borough Council

Budget and Service Restructuring Consultations, ensuring that the

views of local voluntary sector organisations have been heard at

the highest level.

Making a difference...

Through its ongoing programme of visiting and networking, RCVYS has

helped to identify a number of different groups and schools that have

expressed a growing concern over the potential for Child Sexual

Exploitation here in Reading. RCVYS has helped to bring these groups

together through the LSCB.

By supporting the VCF groups to ensure that their views and perspectives

are helping to shape emerging strategies to proactively tackle the issue.

www.reading.gov.uk/lscb

RCVYS would like to thank the staff, Officers and Councillors

at Reading Borough Council for their continuing

financial support.

RCVYS 34 Parkside Road, Reading, Berkshire. RG30 2DD

Tel: 07872 958501

E-mail: info@rcvys.org.uk

www.rcvys.org.uk

Bernadette Adams

Adrian Barker

Tim Clewer

Ben Cross

Tessa Dove

Karen Dwyer

Sarah Emery

Lyn Griffiths

Mary Jacobs

Jill Lake

Cathy Lamsdale

Leslie Macdonald

Sarah Mayhew

Jackie Oversby

Gareth Owen

Karen Ross

David Seward

Alison Steedman

Natausha Van Vliet

Chris West

RCVYS would also like to acknowledge its appreciation and thanks to

the following people for their service to the Voluntary, Community and

Faith sector this last year, as RCVYS Exec Members and RCVYS

Representatives on the following committees, groups and forums.

Reading Children’s Trust (RCT) Board

RCT Agenda Setting Group

RCT Early Years Intervention Group

RCT Integrated Prevention Group

RCT School Improvement Group

RCT LDD Strategy Group

RCT ‘Think Family’ Steering Group

RCT CAF/ISA Group

Domestic Violence Strategy Group

Local Safeguarding Children Board (LSCB)

LSCB Training Sub-Group

LSCB Safer Recruitment Sub-Group

North Locality Steering Group

South Locality Steering Group

East Locality Steering Group

West Locality Steering Group

NEET Task Force

Innovations Project Group

The Compact

ChangeUp Reading

RCVYS Executive Committee

A final big thank you must go to the Stronger Together team. The project

finished at the end of September 2011, and over the last 3 years provided

RCVYS and the wider VCF sector with great support in a number of areas.