Please come along to our Open Day on Friday, 27th January, 2012 at Red Balloon Warwick and learn more about what we do to support the recovery of severely bullied children.

Special Guests, Chris White MP and Dr Carrie Herbert, CEO, Red Balloon. 10am until 4pm.

Northleigh House, Five Ways Road, Hatton, Warwick, CV35 7HZ. Tel: 01926 484203

The route for the Olympic Torch has been announced and it passes through Solihull on 1st July 2012.

Organisations may want to start thinking about how this could be used to promote their cause.

Signpost Inclusion are running a new group aimed at dads and male carers of children with special needs or a disability.

They meet once a month at the Renewal Family Centre in Solihull and take children along to enjoy a fun stay and play group. There are plenty of facilities and activities for all ages and siblings are welcome too. The group is very informal and relaxed and is a great opportunity for Dads and male carers to spend quality play time with their children and to meet other Dads.

Contact details and dates of future sessions  for the group can be found on the flyer below and there is also a website www.dadsonsaturday.co.uk or by email to info@dadsonsaturday.co.uk

Dads on Saturday Flyer

Enable-Solihull is very privileged that Joanna Evans has volunteered to undertake two sponsored walks in aid of Enable-Solihull.

The first walk is along the Jurassic coast from 17th July 2011; this is a two day, challenging and hilly walk.

The second walk will not be until next year, 2012, and will take place in Cambodia.

If you would like to sponsor Joanna, please complete the attached sponsorship form and return it to us at Enable-Solihull. I also attach the route maps of the journey that Joanna will be making. If you can, please ask your colleagues, friends and family for their support.

If you have any queries or questions regarding the sponsored walk please do not hesitate to contact me.

Download the Sponsorship Form

Thank you for your continuing support to Enable-Solihull.

Finding the right conference venue can be difficult for your potential customers, especially when
they may be looking for one with a social, environmental, charitable or community benefit.

At Think Venue we have made it simple for those customers to find you!

Think Venue is an online venue finding service of conference venues representing Third Sector
organisations that re-invest their profits rather than delivering them to shareholders. The
initiative has proved extremely successful in Birmingham and it is now being rolled-out in
Solihull.

Think Venue lists everything from small community spaces, to church halls and large venuse like the NEC & IAA

The cost of listing your venue is as little as £40 per year and, if you mention SUSTAiN, the first 3 months are free and you will get 15 months for the price of 12.

The Venues search function on our website already links directly to Think Venue making it even more likely your venue will get found.

This is a very clever social enterprise idea and we would encourage you to give it a go. You have nothing to lose.

Think Venue Solihull Promotion Leaflet

Visit Think Venue and get your meeting room listed

A report was produced in August 2010 with regards to Valuing Volunteer Management Skills. The key findings were:

• 42% of people who manage volunteers have not received any training that would help in their work with volunteers
• members of networks were considerably more likely to access training and support than those who weren’t members – 74 % compared to 49 %
• there is strong demand for additional training and skills development across the range of functions outlined in the National Occupational Standards in the management of volunteers.
• many organisations rely greatly on the local and national volunteering infrastructure for advice and support, particularly on local Volunteer Centres

Justin Davis Smith, Volunteering England, commented: “Volunteer managers play a crucial role in supporting the 17 million individuals who volunteer through an organisation each year. This report highlights the need for better access to training and development for volunteer managers so that the full benefits of volunteering to local communities can be realised.”

To help you address the above, why not join the Solihull Volunteering Forum (SVF). This forum meets every couple of months and tackles current volunteering issues. Most sessions also includes a bite-size training session. And the best bit – it’s all FREE.

Solihull Volunteering Forum Flyer 2011

If you would like more information, please contact Amanda Henshaw on 07818 579298 or at amanda.henshaw@wkwt.org.uk

Ashram have started a new Womens’ Support Group which meets every 3rd Wednesday of the month between 11.00 and 1.00 at the Bosworth Community Centre on Bosworth Drive, Chelmsley Wood.

For more information, call 0121 770 8570 or download the flyer.

Delivering services for children, young people and their families in a changing world

Friday 3rd September, 9.30am – 12.30pm
Action for Children, Princess Alice Drive, Chester Road North, Sutton Coldfield B73 6RD

Want to offer great services to children, young people and families?

Want to share your experience and learn with others in the same boat in the Voluntary and Community Sector?

Want to find out the lastest information about commissioning and personalisation?

Then this free half-day event is for you!

By the end of the morning attendees will have:

• an understanding of the current commissioning landscape across the West Midlands including the impact of the national picture regionally and locally;
• had an opportunity to discuss current commissioning practice with colleagues and an ‘expert’ from the field;
• an understanding of the key thinking behind the personalisation agenda and its implications for children, young people and families, and the voluntary sector; 
• had an opportunity to discuss the implications of personalisation with colleagues and an ‘expert’ from the field; and, 
• had an opportunity to network, share experience and learn from colleagues across the region.

To register for this event, please contact Sue Spencer, Children England Linkworker at susan.spencer@barnardos.org.uk / 0121 5042431 by Wednesday 1st September 2010.

Download the flyer for more information.

Voice UK – the charity that supports people with learning disabilities and other vulnerable people who have experienced crime or abuse – is looking to set-up support groups in the Solihull area and throughout the West Midlands as part of their Big Lottery-funded ‘Keeping Safe’ project.

It is keen to hear from individuals, groups or organisations who would like to be included in this phase of the project.

The purpose of the self help groups is to give disabled victims of bullying, abuse or any other type of crime a confidential forum where they can talk about their own experiences and access peer support, as well as get help and advice from professionals. We hope that attending a self help group will increase the confidence and wellbeing of individuals.

The groups are likely to meet once a month, and will be informal but structured meetings. It is intended that they are peer led, with a disabled person as Chair and Voice UK facilitating. Voice UK will not set the agenda of a meeting but instead, the agenda of each group will be unique and agreed by the participants. It is expected that the first meeting for any group will be a consultation event, with ideas for future agenda items and guest speakers being discussed and agreed.

If you are interested in knowing more about the self help groups contact:

Jane Kirby
Senior Regional Coordinator – Voice UK
07879 555 456
janek@voiceuk.org.uk