The wishes of half a dozen local charities have been granted as we completed our first round of payouts from our new Community Fund this week.
Six charities from across Essex, each benefiting the community in entirely unique ways, received gifts of between £2k and £5k to assist them with their efforts and for specific projects and improvements. These ranged from easing isolation for members of the BAME and disabled communities, providing housing and education to abandoned teenagers, or offering a counselling or advice service.
Nikki from Renew Counselling said; “Each of the groups benefiting today are shining a light in the darkness for the individuals they serve. How appropriate that a Star is helping provide some of that light.”
Other groups benefiting in the first round of payments include Southend YMCA, Happy Hill, Southend Christian Fellowship, the Essex Multicultural Activities Network and Braintree Mencap.
Chelmsford Star Co-op has been providing assistance to hundreds of local groups for over 150 years, but it set up the Community Fund during lockdown as a way to give greater financial aid in a more focused manner. Those benefiting from the grant are selected by a group of our elected members from applications made to the Essex Community Foundation who assist with the managing of the scheme.
Head of Membership for the Society, Kevin Bennett, said; “A portion of every transaction made in our food, department stores or travel agents is redirected into this Fund, along with corporate donations, colleague fundraisers, sales of carrier bags and money from collecting pots left by our generous customers. Local customers and members raised this money and it all benefits local groups who need it. It’s why our Co-op is set up like it is.”
If you would like to find out more about the Chelmsford Star Co-op Community Fund, or perhaps apply for a grant for your own organisation, in the first instance please contact the Membership team.
We want to make it easy for you to access the funding that we have available.
If your charity, voluntary or community organisation is based or working in Essex and needs financial support, we may be able to help.
You can tell us what you need support for at any time and our team will try to find the funds you need. This includes emergency support available from our Essex Coronavirus Response and Recovery Programme.
We have written help and guidance notes – so please do read them before getting in touch.
Sadly, we cannot contribute funds to general appeals or to other funders.
We have a small amount of funding available to support individuals who are living, or have lived, in Essex, Southend or Thurrock. These funds help children and young adults where money is a barrier to them reaching their full potential. If you are looking for funding please click here and tell us some more information about the support you need.
GET IN TOUCH
We are interested to know how you are helping local people in your community and will be pleased to support you through our application process.
You can get in touch using one of the following options:
CHAT NOW using the button in the bottom right hand corner
We are experiencing an unprecedented number of enquiries so if we don’t reply straight away, please bear with us and we will get back to you as soon as we can.
Essex County Council are committed to continue supporting communities most in need and that have been adversely impacted by the Covid-19 crisis and so are pleased to launch the Food Support Fund so that foodbanks, food pantries, community organisations, schools and voluntary groups can provide support to those most in need.
This funding is for the provision of food for families with children and for individuals from across Essex County Council local authority areas who are most in need.
Applications will be accepted for up to £2500. Please ensure that the amount you request in your application reflects the local need and the number of families and individuals that you plan to support.
You will need to tell them how many families and individuals you expect to be able to provide with this funding and over what period.
This funding will run from Friday 10th December 2021 and all grants awarded must be spent by March 31st 2022. They understand that you may need to provide support to a family on more than one occasion during this period but please make this clear in your application.
They request that at least 80% of your grant application to be spent on families with children.
They are keen that everyone who needs it, has access to support during this period and so they will be sharing details of organisations who receive funding through this grant, so that families and individuals are aware of where they can go for support.
Applications will open on Friday 10th December and remain open until Friday 25th February 2022, or until the funding is fully allocated. Their office will be closed for applications during the Christmas period 24th December to 4th January 2022.
For an application form, please contact the Funding Officer at [email protected]
Essex Community Foundation, along with the community foundations network across the UK, will be distributing the Arts Council England Let’s Create Jubilee Fund.
This is a £5 million programme that will support community and voluntary organisations in England to develop creative and cultural activities as part of Her Majesty The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations in June 2022.
The programme is made possible with funding from the National Lottery, whose players raise £30 million for good causes every week. The Fund’s distribution will be managed by UK Community Foundations on behalf of their community foundation members across England.
Applicants will be able to apply for grants of up to £10,000, and are encouraged to partner with established artists, creatives and cultural organisations to develop their activities, ensuring that The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations give people throughout England the chance to experience the best of the country’s culture while also celebrating an important milestone in our national history.
Darren Henley, Chief Executive at Arts Council England said “We’re giving people across the country the chance to come together to experience the joy of culture and creativity in celebration of this historic milestone. With the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee taking place alongside the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games Festival and the Unboxed festival of UK creativity, next year is set to be a magnificent celebration of our nation’s artistic achievements.”
Rosemary Macdonald, CEO at UK Community Foundations said “UK Community Foundations is proud to partner with Arts Council England to deliver the Let’s Create Jubilee Fund. Our members look forward to working with local groups and artists who will create imaginative and innovative celebrations to mark this historic occasion, and strengthen cultural involvement and opportunities in their communities.”
Full guidance on the fund can be found on the UK Community Foundations website here. Applications will open on Tuesday 4 January. To register your interest for this funding programme, please email [email protected]
Running out of ideas to thank your audiences? Take a look at our top ways to show you care.
It’s Christmas, the perfect time to shower your supporters with thanks.
After a hard year of virtual fundraising and volunteering events, audiences and supporters need to feel valued. Here are loads of ideas to help.
Tell the world you are thankful
Publicly thanking supporters goes along way. Use your website to highlight good deeds. If you can, include photos and video clips of staff, supporters, and beneficiaries saying thank you.
Coordinate your social media posts and website to say thank you. On Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook, don’t just tag user accounts that you wish to thank – make sure to mention them in the text element of your post.
Be specific about what you’re thankful for, so that audiences can appreciate the contribution too. Add hashtags and links so that audiences are directed to the right content.
Send personalised emails and post letters
At Charity Digital, we’ve discussed how personalisation increases authenticity and trust. When sending thank you emails, include names, photos, and any bespoke details that your constituent management system (CRM) may have. Remember, email marketing software can also help make your communications mobile friendly.
Separate from emails, online thank you letters make a big statement. They can be public, but most of them come in the form of an e-card. Canva has ready-made e-cards that you can customise and send out.
Use the template function to draft the card, and then add bespoke elements. Our top tip here is to create different greetings for different audiences. Make sure you tailor the cards for volunteers, donors and supporters.
Shout out special donors
Whether as part of your normal digital communications or on your website, profiling significant donors works as a thank you and fundraising tool. Age UK’s permanent page acknowledging donors showcases big names in trusts and foundations. Being profiled and a part of this select group makes donors feel special and recognised.
Alternatively, you could formally recognise your benefactors in your Annual Report. Be innovative in your writing and selection of donors. You can acknowledge long-standing annual supporters, those giving significant sums, or donors with a compelling story.
Broadcast a thank you video
To make an impact, broadcast a special thank you segment on your YouTube channel, website, or social media account. Kindful offers tips on creating a donor video. They suggest showing donors their impact, keeping it short, and personalising the message.
For teams working remotely, there’s no need to fret about creating live content. Produce video content remotely by using recycled content, stock images, and pre-recordings from beneficiaries.
CauseVox also suggests holding ‘behind-the-scenes-look’ events where special donors get to see your operations, meet staff, or travel to see your impact. These type of events increases transparency and help connect donors with the cause.
For appreciation events, ensure that you have criteria for the invitation list to avoid any awkward questions around invitees.
Use the chat function to send text shout outs, or script an appreciation comment as part of your content. For charities looking to make special dedications, schedule a live stream just to say thank you.
Remember, let your supporters know the details of your event over social media.
Give traditional gifts
Traditional gifts still say thank you in meaningful ways. Plaques, memorabilia, medals, and other branded items work well to commemorate volunteer events, donation thresholds, and special mentions. When presenting your gifts, make it an event, whether in-person or digital.
A style guide is an essential way to ensure consistency, both in the visuals and words you choose. We explore the basics and offer some best practice advice.
A style guide is an essential part of your charity toolkit. It’s the one way you can create a consistent identity right across your organisation.
Consistent use of logos and language helps to create a professional, coherent and strong brand. And the benefits of that are far-reaching – making your brand recognisable to wider audiences, conveying that you’re a trustworthy and reliable charity, driving forward your mission, and strengthening your values both inside and outside the organisation.
Creating a style guide can be an involved project, using outside branding consultants and big budgets. But equally, if your charity is small or just getting off the ground, it can simply be a concise Word doc that outlines a few key rules for everyone to use.
The important thing is to make sure it works for your organisation. You might want to start small with key information around logos, colour and words to watch out for. You can always add to it later. And remember, style guides can easily become unwieldy, so make sure it’s quick to refer to – or it might never get used.
Here are the key sections and information you’ll need to include.
The basics
VISUALS
Making your organisation’s visual identity consistent is crucial to create a strong, recognisable brand.
LOGO
Show all versions of your logo along with examples of how to use them (including placement, sizes, and exclusion zones). If you have old versions, you might want to include them to remind people not to use them. Examples of how not to use the logo can also be useful (for example, not stretching them, changing colours, or adding extra text).
FONTS
Which fonts do you use? And when do you use them? For example, do you always avoid using italics in headings? Choose whichever fonts you think best represent your organisation’s personality, but above all, make sure they are clear and easy to read. Recite Me has an accessible fonts guide.
COLOUR
What are your brand colours? You might have a core palette of three colours, and a slightly wider selection of secondary colours. If possible, include the RGB and Hex values (for digital) and CMYK and Pantone refs (for print). This is particularly helpful if using external designers.
IMAGERY
Pull together some key guidelines about the kinds of images and photography you want to use. For example, you might want to only show active images, or focus on images of the positive outcomes your charity creates.
To apply for this position please download and complete the three-part application form at the bottom of this page and send it to [email protected] by the closing date of Friday 17th December 2021.
With the proposed expansion of the Covid-19 Booster Vaccinations, Community360 are urgently seeking more volunteers to come forward and help with the rollout.
Volunteers are needed to help ensure the smooth running of the vaccination clinics that now include the roll out of the booster jabs. As furlough has ended and people are able to get out and about more, the number of volunteers has dropped. But the need is still very much there.
Rachel Durmishi, Head of Projects at Community360 said: “As winter approaches and with the need to boost the vaccination programme we are asking anyone who has a few hours to spare to come forward and help. There are a range of tasks on offer from sanitising seats to ensuring that individuals have waited long enough to be able to receive their next vaccine. We continue to cover a range of sites across Colchester including GP surgeries along with supermarkets and pop ups using the vaccination bus.”
She added: “This is also an opportunity to chat to people attending and to check on the welfare of those who attend and identify if they would benefit from any additional support. Other tasks involve answering questions on what will happen, guiding them or just giving a friendly smile and allowing them to share a story.”
“It feels like one of the greatest things I have ever done,” said Community360 vaccine volunteer Hazel Linscott.
She is urging more people to spare a few hours to help out.
“I have worked for many years in an office environment, but during lockdown I had no choice but to work from home. I felt I needed to do something outside my four walls and try and help people in the community.” Explains Hazel.
She added: “I heard about Community360 and the work they were doing helping the NHS with the vaccination programme at different locations around the local area. I wanted to play a part in trying to put an end to this awful time and so decided to put my name forward to help.
I started volunteering at the beginning of the year and haven’t looked back since. It is so fulfilling; you meet some wonderful people and I get great satisfaction of being part of an amazing group of volunteers. I feel that without the volunteers helping the NHS this vaccination programme would not have been as successful as it has been, we are making a difference to get this world back up and running again and that to me is what it’s all about.”
Community360 are also looking to recruit Winter Resilience Ambassadors. This role will help to support their winter work to ensure that Colchester residents remain safe, warm and well during the winter months. From supporting with preparation and distribution of winter packs, to getting out into the community to have conversations and offer signposting, advice and guidance to those who need it.
Winter resilience ambassadors will be able to attend events to increase awareness of the support available and have meaningful conversations with Colchester residents throughout the winter months.
Tracy Rudling, CEO at Community360 said: “This is an exciting opportunity to play your part in continuing to protect the community. Our volunteers have played such an important role in the vaccination rollout, but we now need more people to come forward. Our Winter Resilience Ambassadors also have an important part to play in our local community, to give practical help to local people in need of a little extra support this winter.”
For further information on how to enquire about becoming a Vaccination Marshall or Winter Resilience Ambassador Volunteer contact: 01206 505250
2021 has bought many challenges that the voluntary sector has had to contend with. But what challenges – and opportunities – will the sector have to navigate over the course of the next 12 months?
Date: | Tuesday 18 January 2022 Time: | 14:00-15:15
EVENT DETAILS
Join us at the launch of The Road Ahead 2022.
The Road Ahead is our annual analysis of the changing operating environment for anyone working in the voluntary sector. It identifies and explains forces and trends that are shaping the sector and are likely to have an impact on organisations in the future.
At the event, participants will:
learn the top-line findings from our political, economic, social, technological, environmental and legal (PESTEL) analysis, highlighting key drivers that we think will shape the sector in 2022
hear responses from our guest panellists, reflecting on some of the key issues including localism and communities, workforce and culture wars
be able to put your questions to the Road Ahead 2022 Authors and guest panellists.
WHO SHOULD JOIN THE EVENT
The event is relevant to anyone working in the sector with an interest in the changing political, economic, social, technological, environmental and legal landscapes, or responsibility for strategic planning and managing risks and opportunities.
PRICING
The event is free.
HOW TO BOOK
Please pre-register for your place by clicking the ‘Book’ button above. Places are limited. Once the event is fully booked, we’ll operate a waiting list as we know that places will be in high demand.
After registering, you’ll receive a confirmation email. Joining instructions with the Zoom link will be emailed shortly before the event.
CONTACT US
Email [email protected] with any questions or queries you may have about The Road Ahead 2022 launch event.
The pandemic may not be the only source of change in the charity sector but it certainly has accelerated the pace. Virtually overnight, charities moved their work home, adapted how they delivered their services, and started fundraising online. It’s a lot but we embraced it – and with 2022 on the horizon, we need to get ready to embrace even more.
In this podcast, we’re joined by Sarah Cousins, Head of Organisational Change at the British Heart Foundation, Greg Edwards, Head of Development at Open Door Charity, and Simon Givens from the Soil Association as they talk us through how they handled change in the charity sector, from organisational restructuring to adopting new tech.
Alan Perestrello, co-founder of Trillium will also join the conversation to add his insight on how charities can best manage their transformation projects and how they can successfully prioritise “people over platform”.