SUSTAiN offers a range of services for free to voluntary & community sector organisations, in alphabetical order, these are:

Funding Advice

We can help to identify opportunities for funding, develop your funding strategy and train you in bid writing to improve your chances of success.

You can also visit our Funding pages for details of latest funding opportunities.

Fundraising & Grant Giving

To help meet the need for small pots of money, SUSTAiN set up Solihull Together as a fundraising project. Fundraising activities throughout the year contribute to this pot, including our summer charity ball. Small grants are distributed each year. For more information, see the Solihull Together section of this website.

Volunteering

SUSTAiN supports volunteering in Solihull borough through helping to promote volunteering opportunities on behalf of organisations; and supporting volunteer managers through the Volunteer Managers’ Forum.

Read more in the Volunteering section.

Links with Business

SUSTAiN has strong links with the business community based on a track record of brokering partnerships and projects which have benefitted both the voluntary organisation and the business.

Governance, Planning, Performance & Quality

We can help whether you are setting up a new group, reviewing your policies and procedures, need help writing a business plan, set up a quality assurance systems or want to see if you can do even better.

Information, Advice & Guidance

We can provide one to one and group support on a wide range of aspects of running a voluntary organisation.

We also provide resources on our website and via our regular email SUSTAiN Alerts. Visit our Resources section or sign up to our fortnightly email alerts by filling out the form at the bottom of our Home page.

Leadership & Representation

SUSTAiN plays a key role in ensuring that the voice of the voluntary sector is heard and valued. We support a number of networking forums including the Third Sector Network aimed at all organisations.

To help ensure that as many voices are heard as possible but in a cohesive and constructive way, and help those who represent the sector in various forums, the Voluntary & Community Sector Reference Group (VCSRG) was established.

Our CEO is a community sector representative on the Governing Board of the Solihull Partnership. SUSTAiN, through the Colebridge Trust, supports the Partnership’s community engagement and community development work in various initiatives.

Read more on our Representation pages.

Child Protection & Safeguarding

We have resources such as best practice guides, policies, procedures and tools for safeguarding children and young people in your care.

Visit our Safeguarding section for details.

Training & Development

From time to time, SUSTAiN runs training events in a wide range of subjects or we can arrange or signpost you to more specific training. Find out what training is currently available.

Venues

A database of available meeting rooms in Solihull. This includes our own facilities at The Priory

  • A ground floor, accessible meeting room that will accommodate up to 20 and costs from as little as £20 per half day.

Contact: Reception at The Priory on 0121 711 3148.

We also recommend that venue owners list their facilities on Think Venue, an online resource designed to promote community facilities.