A first look at the National Citizen Service Bill
The government introduced the National Citizen Service (NCS) bill earlier this month. NCS has already been running for the last five years, so what does the bill mean?
In summary, the bill is intended to secure the future of NCS and make the NCS Trust more accountable to Parliament and the public. At the same time, a new body, the National Citizen Service Trust, will be established by Royal Charter. We take a closer look at what the bill does on the blog.
NCVO welcomed the government’s announcement, recognising that NCS has made a big difference for lots of young people – including to empower them to take action in their communities. However, we think further collaboration with the voluntary sector could help NCS reach its potential, particularly as a starting point for life-long volunteering.
Young people in voluntary action
On the same day the bill was announced, the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Charities and Volunteering held a meeting to discuss young people in voluntary action, with speakers from the NCS Trust, Volunteering Scotland, Girlguiding and (the former) National Council for Voluntary Youth Services. NCVO provides the secretariat for this group and notes from the meeting will be uploaded onto our website soon. In the meantime, you can catch-up with the discussion with the hashtag #appgcav on Twitter.
If you are interested in receiving invitations to future meetings and updates from the APPG, please sign up on our website.
With exquisite timing, today sees the launch of the NCS bill and our meeting in parliament to discuss youth volunteering. Follow #appgcav
— Karl Wilding (@karlwilding) October 12, 2016
Get involved
As the NCS bill makes its way through parliament, we will be co-ordinating a group of charities to inform the debate about NCS. If you would like to know more, please email volunteering@ncvo.org.uk
Funding to boost volunteering among over 50s
The Office for Civil Society and Nesta announced three new grant funds totalling £4 million which aim to increase volunteering among the over 50s. Recognising the important contribution that older volunteers already make, these new funds will explore how more people can be encouraged to volunteer and how their talents and experiences can be retained.
All three funds are open for applications:
Not just about boots on the ground
From the front-line to the back office, volunteering is now a key part of policing. But does more volunteers mean success? And if not, what does?
Inspired by The Lord Ferrer’s Awards, Kristen takes a closer look at what successful involvement of volunteers in policing looks like.
One job, many hats
Are you wearing your party hat?
Get ready to celebrate International Volunteer Managers Day on 5 November. The theme for this year is “one job, many hats”.
Let us know what you are planning by leaving us a comment below or send us a tweet at @NCVOvolunteers, using the hashtag #IVMDay16.
Investing in skills
When you’re working your magic, be confident in your skills with our training. Coming up:
- Assessing the impact of your volunteers, 21 November
- Understanding micro-volunteering, 22 November
- Good practice in volunteer management, 2 December
- Recruit and retain volunteers through social media, 9 December
If you’re an NCVO member, with an income of less than £5m, our one-day training courses are priced at £195.
If you can’t make these training courses, then we’re always announcing new dates – and in the meantime, you can learn wherever you are, whenever you want with our online Studyzone course on good practice in volunteer management (free for NCVO members).
Volunteers. Staff. What’s the difference?
The National Trust have been working with researchers to better understand how management of volunteers is similar or different to the management of paid staff.
The research confirms what Helen Timbrell, Director of Volunteering & Community Involvement at the National Trust, argues – the way that staff and volunteers are managed needs to be different. But how? To find out, read more on the ivo blog.
Volunteering & social cohesion in a post-Brexit world
On 15 September, the NCVO National Volunteering Forum met in Manchester to share analysis on the potential implications of Brexit for volunteering, and discuss the evidence & real life examples demonstrating the role that volunteering can play in improving social cohesion.
Catch up with discussions from the day with our Storify, which includes presentation slides from the day.
International Volunteering Conference
To celebrate London being the European Volunteering Capital 2016, join us at the first ever International Volunteering Conference on 5 December. Organised by Team London, in collaboration with us at NCVO, plus GLV, Volonteurope and The FSI, this will be a practical and interactive event aimed at celebrating and sharing good practice.
Shining a light on governance
Join us at the NCVO/BWB Trustee Conference 2016 on Monday 7 November for essential updates on governance regulation and to get practical tools and guidance in our range of expert-led workshops. Don’t miss out – book your place today.
Emily was NCVO’s trainee volunteering development policy officer. She is interested in policy around volunteering, particularly diversity in volunteering, employability, volunteering in public services, and employer supported volunteering. 
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