Found 58 resources
Building for the long term: reflections from two social enterprise leaders
Starting a social enterprise can feel like a balancing act. You're trying to create social impact, earn income, secure funding, build partnerships and manage day-to-day operations, often all at the...
SORP 2026: Demonstrating impact
By Support Cambridgeshire's Development Team As a result of the Charity Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP 26) all charities reporting to the Charity Commission must be able to demonstrate...
Four trees do not make a forest: the small charity ecosystem
The small charity sector in Cambridgeshire is, quite honestly, amazing. It is resourceful, adaptive and normally ahead of the curve on statutory offer. I could leave this blog there, to be honest,...
Leading a charity merger: Governance lessons from the Support Cambridgeshire Co-Chairs
In June 2023, as the Chairs of CCVS and Hunts Forum, we sat down in a room alongside our respective CEOs to discuss a big question: Was it time to merge? It was not the first time this question...
The sandwich question: when controls become bottlenecks
Most small organisations have their own version of what I’ve come to think of as 'the sandwich question.' It usually sounds something like: “Can we order lunch for the...
Cross my palm with silver: Part 2
Views on some of the national drivers that charities in Cambridgeshire need to think about These are some of the areas charities will need to consider as they navigate the future. They may find...
Cross my palm with silver: Part 1
These are a number of changes within the local statutory sector (including councils and health services) that I think charities in Cambridgeshire should be keeping view and reflecting on within their...
What should you consider before working with a Professional Fundraiser?
Many organisations think about using a professional fundraiser when they need extra time, skills or capacity to bring in funding. This blog explores the advantages, risks, funder perspectives, real...
Recognising donations in kind: Showing the full value of your charity’s work
Many charities rely not only on cash income, but also on generosity given in other forms: Free venue space Professional services offered pro bono Donated equipment Specialist support...
Charity reporting (SORP 2026) series – Part 3
This is Part 3 of our simple - Charity reporting (SORP 2026) series. Before we look at the changes, let’s start with a simple question: It’s not unusual for charities to...
Charity reporting (SORP 2026) series – Part 2
This is Part 2 of our simple - Charity reporting (SORP 2026) series. If you’re not sure what reporting tier your charity falls into, start with Part 1: What reporting tier is your charity? A...
Charity reporting (SORP 2026) series – Part 1
Before talking about SORP 2026 and the upcoming changes, is important to determine the type of accounts your charity needs to prepare - many local charities are unsure which rules apply to...
Lights, Camera, Impact: How charities can use video and storytelling to connect and inspire
In today’s fast-paced digital landscape, video stands out as one of the most effective tools available to charities and voluntary groups. It is engaging, accessible, and highly impactful. Whether...
Case study: Sabr Arts and Crafts – creating a support network for a grassroots initiative
Sabr Arts and Crafts is a grassroots initiative to create a welcoming space that addresses mental health and well-being, particularly for women from the South Asian community, who...
Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority (CPCA) Learning and Skills Fund project
The Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority (CPCA) Learning and Skills team has relaunched its funding programme for voluntary sector organisations. The fund supports projects that use...
Centre for Warmth funding and how it’s helped C3 Impact (The C3 Church)
Support Cambridgeshire received a grant in 2024, administered by NAVCA and funded by Cadent under their Centres for Warmth Programme. The Centre for Warmth Programme aims to support people who...
If you want a job done, ask a busy person! The story of the NEC Charity Hub
If you want a job done ask a busy person, or so the phrase goes. In this case the person asking was Sarah Crick, the CEO of Red Hen, and the person she asked was me. Would CCVS (soon to be...
Maps Murmurations Project: Where Generations Meet
Since last autumn, CCVS Volunteering for All has been working in partnership with Cambridge City Council and a range of community organisations to deliver a creative, intergenerational project that...
Cybersecurity for community groups: Simple steps to stay safe
Charities are facing growing threats as cybercrime continues to rise. Our on-demand training: Cybersecurity for Small Charities covers the basics of staying safe online, but the digital...
Social enterprise and charity – entrepreneurial thinking or commercialisation?
This blog was written in response to the article in Third Sector: Ian MacQuillin: Have we seen Dan Pallotta's Ted Talk too many times? In financially tight times it is only natural that the demand...
Celebrate your people’s achievements with Digital Badges!
Support Cambridgeshire are excited to introduce digital badges for local community groups and charities to recognise the awesome skills and achievements of their learners, beneficiaries and...
Incoming changes to employment rights
This article is published with the permission of Lyndsay Salmon HR consultant and Support Cambridgeshire Trustee: Exciting news for the HR enthusiasts out there – on 1 July the Government...
Why we’ve left X (formerly Twitter)
After careful consideration, we’ve made the decision to leave X. For our communications team, it was an easy choice. What began as a supportive, inclusive, and vibrant platform for...
GET group – what does the future look like?
CCVS, and now Support Cambridgeshire, took over the GET group when the original charity closed. We want to see the network continue but also want to ensure it is meeting the needs of the sector and...
We’re here to help you!
If you're reading this, chances are you're one of the many remarkable people helping to run a community group, charity, or voluntary organisation in Cambridgeshire. Whether you're a volunteer...
A missed chance to make a real difference to volunteering
So RVS are developing a multi million pound national volunteering site that will “supercharge” falling volunteer numbers around the UK by widening access and removing barriers. See here. I...
Martyn’s Law
If you operate a venue with a capacity of 200+, or an event with a capacity of over 800 this will impact you. In March 2024 we published an article, with an update in November 2024 about The...
My work experience week, by student Ryan. July 2024.
Hello, everyone. My name is Ryan, and I am a Year 10 student at the Netherhall School. Growing up in Hong Kong, I liked to volunteer during fundraising events for charities. I have chosen to work...
Hosting Work Experience Students – should we, or shouldn’t we?
My colleague Ellie, wrote a fantastic blog, ‘Young volunteers – breaking down barriers,’ to share why, we at CCVS, would like to see more young people volunteering, and what needs to happen...
AI for Voluntary Groups: Getting Started
Artificial intelligence, or AI, is technology that enables computers and machines to simulate human intelligence and problem-solving capabilities. IBM Whether we like it or not, AI is here to stay....
Trends and ideas in digital fundraising
The Charity Digital online fundraising conference is an event we try to log onto each year, as we did in December 2024. There is usually an eclectic range of speakers to share ideas and highlight...
A personal introduction to Project Management
My first role on leaving university was in project management; to begin with it involved a confusing array of tasks, a seemingly epic cast of people and spreadsheets I couldn’t make any sense of. ...
From vision to reality: Creating CCVS’s new website
If you’re thinking of starting the process of getting a new website – the condensed story of our process and journey may help. Our old website was great when first created, but over time had...
What does devolution mean for the local voluntary sector?
Just before Christmas the government published the English Devolution White Paper - GOV.UK. They believe that: “Devolution across England is fundamental to achieving the change the public...
GET group update
GET stands for Guidance, Employment and Training and was formed in 1989 with a mission to provide an ‘umbrella’ Infrastructure Group for the adult skills not-for-profit sector of Cambridgeshire....
A response to the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Independent Commission on Climate initial report
The Cambridgeshire & Peterborough Independent Commission on Climate website states that the commission was created by Cambridgeshire & Peterborough Combined Authority in 2020, on the...
The importance of having an inclusive and representative board of Trustees
Something I have learned working with people with additional needs, mental and physical health issues, and those who are facing isolation and hardship, is that they are the real experts of their...
The buzz I get from volunteering
Hello! My name is Amy and I volunteer with Ellie at CCVS. Together we work towards promoting volunteering and removing barriers that stop people from getting involved in community...
Climate Change – taking positive action together
As a voluntary sector organisation, CCVS have committed to take positive climate action through becoming a signatory of the Cambridge Climate Change Charter. We recognise that the growing climate...
Removing Barriers to volunteering
At a recent workshop, we shared some of what we have learned from this work and pulled in best practices from providers from around the world. This includes Time well spent on Diversity and...
Tips for supervising volunteers
Our recent workshop on supervision skills for those managing volunteers shared tips on how best to manage the supervision. What has happened since the last meeting with the volunteer? Are...
Barriers to volunteering
Hello! It’s Amy here and I’m going to give you an overview of what barriers people might come up against when they’re looking for voluntary work. As you might be aware, it’s important for...
Volunteering during the cost of living crisis: Is it worth it?
Hello! It’s Amy here and I’d like to talk to you again about the benefits of volunteering and why it’s worthwhile to volunteer. Lots of us might be thinking that it’s not...
Volunteer Cambs! A New Website
Hello! It’s Amy here and I’m going to tell you about a new website which I think you will find useful when looking for voluntary work. I think that a volunteer platform is needed because it...
Young volunteers – breaking down barriers
Hello everyone, My name is Ellie, and I am the Volunteering Development Officer at CCVS. For over 9 years I have worked on an amazing project supporting people from all walks of life into...
Pride – what can you do to support Pride in a non-tokenistic way, all year round
We were pleased to recently attend an event that the Barking Owl group hosted for Pride Month. Barking Owl is the NAVCA national network for all NAVCA members who work in a...
Let’s talk about trading
We recently hosted an event – one of three this summer exploring funding diversification for charities. The focus of this event was on trading. We kicked off with a presentation from Livia...
Mental health matters. You matter.
Hopefully, it’s top of the priority list. However, wanting it to be top of the list, and actually making time to ensure steps are taken to protect and enhance your own, and your team’s mental...
Serious violence duty in health workshop
Before we develop new projects that often have externally imposed deadlines it is important to find out what is already happening, to hear the voices of the individuals and communities that may be...
6 essential tips when thinking about charity monitoring and evaluation
No one (or at least almost no one) goes into working or volunteering for a charity or community group to do evaluation, because they love data, or they like filling in forms. But the reality is...
Top tips for recruiting staff in difficult times
This blog is to share our experience of recruiting staff. We definitely have not got all the answers, but we had a very successful recruitment round, and this was based on a new recruitment process....
Volunteering – 6 points you need to think about
A lot has been written about volunteering over the past few months, but we know that the big question in the voluntary sector is, how can we get more people to volunteer? We have seen the results...
Getting a wider perspective on fundraising: feedback from the Third Sector Fundraising Summit
Earlier this month I attended the Fundraising Summit hosted by the Third Sector, which was a great opportunity to get a wider perspective on what is happening in the fundraising world for big and...
7 essential things to think about when doing digital fundraising or crowdfunding
These are the key takeaways from the training that we run on this subject. New technology, social media, and the different ways we connect as individuals and organisations have changed how...
Protecting your charity – it’s everyone’s business
The words cyber security can sound somewhat alien, however, with the publication of the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) report, Cyber Threat Report: UK Charity Sector, showing that the charity...
Insights from the Charity Digital Online Fundraising Conference October 2023
The Charity Digital Online Fundraising Conference in October 2023 brought together industry leaders, experts, and charity fundraisers to explore trends and ideas in digital fundraising. The...
How to nominate a voluntary champion for an honour or award
The UK honours system recognises people in the voluntary sector who have gone above and beyond to shape and improve their communities, and who have made a significant impact, making life better for...
Enhance volunteering experiences for the global majority
Takeaways from the NCVO Time Well Spent 2023: Volunteering Among the Global Community launch event. Time Well Spent is NCVO’s research programme focusing on volunteers and their experience. The...