The December edition of the Voluntary Sector News is here. Please get in touch with Sandie Smith or Debbie Drew if you would like to know more about any of our work. Please pass this on to colleagues who may be interested.
As we approach the end of 2024, it’s time once again for us to hear directly from the voluntary and community sector about the challenges and opportunities you face. From 26 November 2024 to 17 February 2025, we invite charities, not-for-profits, and community groups across Cambridgeshire to participate in this vital survey.
This year feels calmer compared to the upheavals of recent times. Yet, beneath this relative quiet, our communities continue to grapple with complex issues—and the voluntary sector plays a crucial role in meeting these needs.
The 2024 State of the Sector report “We get back up again” painted a challenging picture: a drop in volunteer numbers, growing demands for services, and stretched waiting lists. This evidence helped Support Cambridgeshire advocate for the invaluable contribution of charities and community groups in a landscape of tightening budgets and cuts to public services.
Now, we need your voice again. How has your organisation fared this year?
This survey is your opportunity to share your experiences and make sure your voice is heard. The survey is circulated with statutory officers, councillors and funders across the county.The insights you provide will help us build a clear picture of the challenges and opportunities across the sector, enabling us to advocate effectively on your behalf.
By completing the survey, you’ll:
It only takes a short time to complete, but the impact of your input will resonate throughout the year. All organisations that fill out the survey will be entered into a prize draw for £100 for that organisation. The closing date for the survey is 17th February 2025, and the prize draw will follow this.
If you would like help completing the survey over the phone, or if you would prefer a paper copy of the survey, please call CCVS: 07935 649805.
Chair Sandie Smith
Laura Porro
Laura attended the meeting to give an update on the ICS People Strategy. This has been a co-produced piece of work and is to cover the next 5 years.
It has been decided to have 5 mission areas.
Nine actions have been shortlisted and prioritised from a long list of 69 identified actions. These will be taken forward by task and finish groups which will start in 2025.
The strategy is now being written and will include a traditional written strategy but will also have an interactive webpage to encourage more engagement.
As each chapter is written we will bring it back to the VSN for feedback. We want to ensure that we have the language right for all parties.
Laura has consulted the VSN strategy and has an advanced awareness of the voluntary sector so is making sure that this new strategy matches ours where appropriate.
The ICB are aware that changes sometimes take too long to happen/ implement, so we are looking at a different style of delivery method. We plan to have some smaller task and finish groups so work can be done in the background and thus speed up delivery. We may at this point come to the voluntary sector for involvement.
It was raised that some of the contracts from Health and other statutory bodies are now asking employers to pay the Real Living Wage which most organisations want to aspire to. However the cost implications for this are just not with raising the lower wages but having to up all wages. This was an issue before the government then asked for more
contributions. It was asked that there could be a commitment to the understanding of this.
Laura asked how this could be captured in the strategy.
ACTION Sandie to liaise with KS, SA, and JL and send out a paragraph to include in the strategy to reflect this.
It was acknowledged that there have been increased opportunities for training which has been taken up my some of the VSN members.
There is a willingness for some secondments into and from the ICS but the process for this needs consideration.
Director Update- Sandie
STRATEGY- the consultation on the strategy and action plan is now complete. It has been taken to the steering group and Andrea and Sandie have presented it to several ICS committees and a few tweaks have been made. Andrea will be taking it to the ICB executive meeting to get approval and then it will go to the Investment, Commissioning, improvement and Reform Committee in December. The Steering group will then sign this off ready for the launch at the January VSN meeting. A work plan will then be put in place to address actions.
NEW MODEL OF CARE- we have had some briefings on this and the aim is for there to be a digital improvement with an aim to make systems compatible and thus easy for all.
A workshop has been held around the potential providers of digital platforms. Invites went out to the Voluntary sector as well as others and included people with lived experience. When we have more information we will share it with the group.
NORTH PLACE DEVELOPMENT MEETING- Sandie had asked for people who may be interested in this after being offered some places for the voluntary sector. We had a lot of interest in this and Sandie has spoken to the chair to look at priorities for the areas and see which organisation was best placed. Sandie thanked people for their enthusiasm for this and those who have not been offered a place this time may find other opportunities are just around the corner. There are no notes for these meetings but Sandie said she may be able to include something from North and South in her news bulletins.
ACTION Sandie to source items for newsletter/ bulletin for future.
A mention of the Poverty Strategy Commission for Cambridgeshire- If groups want to submit evidence for the commissioners then they can do. Several organisations are involved including DISH, Reimagine, CAB and Sunnetwork.
Peterborough also has had the Poverty Truth Commission. This is due to end soon and they are holding a big event in February.
ACTION Sandie to include both links in the next newsletter.
MEETINGS- the next meeting is an in-person meeting being held in Hartford Village Hall. We have 3 of the Assura/ICB-funded projects coming to share their success and if any other Assura/ICB projects or collaborations would like to present please contact Debbie or Sandie.
We have had interest nationally in these funded projects as we worked with the Integrated neighbourhoods and NAVCA will be attending the December meeting and doing some filming.
Karen Nolan from Assura (Head of Social Impact) has also asked to attend.
We have invited Matthew Smith to present the ICS Outcomes Framework.
PLACE ON ICB BOARD- The steering group had been invited to submit a letter of request for a VSN place on the ICB board. The letter has been submitted and we are awaiting a response. Across the country, some VSNs have a place others do not.
VCSE Reps
We are pleased to say we have been offered 2 more places for VCSE reps. One for the Quality Performance and Finance Board and one for the People Board. These places will be funded until the end of the financial year.
ACTION – to send an email for Expressions of Interest to VSN members.
FEEDBACK– Miriam, Lynda and Keith were all present and fed back about the meetings they attended.
Miriam said that her committee had been looking at the wider impacts of the system ie planning permissions being given to fast food outlets near the school when childhood obesity is on the increase.
She was also pleased to hear that the impact on people who use a service, when late decisions on future funding happen was considered.
Action log
This was complete except for the sharing of slides from North Place from the last meeting. Debbie said she had been in contact with Abby and they would be with us soon for sharing.
AOB
Hunts Forum have AGM on 27th Nov CCVS has theirs on 28th Nov and PVCS on 14th.
Debbie reminded the group about the showcase event on 20th November
Chair Sandie Smith
Sandie welcomed everyone and thanked Kirsteen and PCVS for providing the venue.
ACTION LOG
All the actions have been completed with action 99 the offer of ReSPECT training about to go out to VSN members within the week.
North Care Partnership and Integrated Neighbourhoods – Dr Abby Richardson & Sara Bailey
Abby gave a presentation explaining where the North Care Partnership covers as well as sharing the priorities for this area.
Abby explained that with the introduction of more comprehensive care plans they had started to see some results. They have completed 3723 care plans for the area.
The patients are coded so the system can see the background activity and can capture some of the associated costs. The quality of the Care Plan has improved for the patient and there already has been a reduction in costs associated with these patients. There is still some way to go to see the full benefits
The My Asthma App now has 5820 people onboarded. This is an app to help people manage their own asthma.
The North Care Partnership have been £180k from the Cancer Alliance this is to do work around increasing the uptake on cervical screening.
Sara gave an overview of the Integrated Neighbourhoods (IN) for the North Partnership. At present there are 12 with one more for Peterborough to be launched. A lot of learning has gone on since the first launch.
Each IN area has a Programme manager and each individual IN has a project manager making the work very localised for a localised need.
It was mentioned that some of the voluntary sector organisations work across North and South and thus some understanding of this needs recognising when priorities etc vary.
There is a North IN Development group that Sandie attends. The group have reviewed their terms of reference and agreed an extra place for a VCSE organisation. Sandie will be asking VSN members for interest.
ACTION– presentation slides to be shared post meeting.
Leesa Murray- Peterborough City Council
Leesa gave the meeting a background of her previous roles and explained that she is now the Commissioner for Adult Social care. She is responsible for contracts as well as quality.
The Local Authority priorities are
Education and Employment for those with LD and Mental Health problems
Supported Living settings- hoping to give people more options of what types of support they need.
To improve the transition from Child to Adult services.
The home and community support tender is due out at the end of the month. Organisations interested should look on Pro Contract
There is a job advert coming out shortly for a mental health commissioner for the team.
The Home Care market is quite buoyant at the moment with plenty of spaces. It is more difficult to find dementia care though.
The council are looking at ways to support carers better and there is soon to be a launch of an App called BRIDGIT this will help identify unpaid carers and point them to the right place to get support etc.
The council are keen for direct payment to be used but do not want it used for agencies. Thus we are working with PCVS looking at the personal assistant role to try and encourage more people to take up these posts and are looking at a wage of £15.49 hr . PCC are actively trying to get care packages uplifted to enable this.
Workwell- Andrea
This is an 18month pilot being funded by DWP. The aim is to get those people who are able to get back into work maybe after an intervention etc. This is not aimed at people with permanent long term conditions.
Allocation for the 4 areas have been agreed. CPSL Mind have Cambridge City, East and South, Fenland DC are covering Fenland, HDC have the contract for Huntingdonshire and the Papworth Trust have the contract for Peterborough.
Phase 1 will run from Oct to March approximately and will look at the spot purchasing options.
There will be small personal budgets for each person and people will be asked what it is they need to get back into work.
Some spot purchasing will be needed but only to purchase a new service or an extension of places to an existing offer.
There will be initial evaluation after 6 months.
The group recognised that often people are off work with stress- is there potential to work with employers on this?
There is also a worry that there will be an increased risk of referrals coming to VS organisations and as with Social Prescribers there will not be finance to support this.
Director Feedback- Sandie Smith
Sandie attended an away day for VSCE alliance lead recently and found it very useful.
There is an aim to have a National Network of Networks (like the VSN) and Sandie has agreed to support the set up of an Eastern region network.
It has also been agreed that VCSE health alliances, ie our VSN, can join NAVCA.
STRATEGY REVIEW the consultation on this closes next week so there is still time to fill in the survey. Sandie will then finalise the action plan for approval by the VSN Steering Group. ICB approval planned for December. The new plan will be launched in January.
ASSURA MONIES we are still looking to have a second round of grants offered out before Christmas.
Three of the previous grant recipients will present their projects at December’s VSN meeting which is in person meeting.
DECOUPLING OF LDP- the steering group sent a letter to the leader of CCC and to the ICB raising the concerns around this. The steering group are meeting with some relevant partners to discuss this. A question around this was raised at South Place and it may be raised at North too.
FAITH RESEARCH- Hunts Forum have done some work on this and are now looking at Global faiths. The Gather Movement are putting on a conference next year and the VSN will be supporting this.
Reps Feedback
Miriam – several items discussed at recent meeting. The making sure that monies are being allocated to the right areas. The New Model of Care, as well as general ask for approval on investments.
Sharon- Sharon has been contributing to the workforce data group. The strategy is still NHS data. Sharon is happy to share the strategy if anyone is interested.
They are looking at anti racism in the workforce- Roger Cline who wrote the paper “Snowy White Peaks” is being consulted.
Sharon is happy to say the enabler groups have been reduced from 8 to 3.
Andrea mentioned the Health Economics workshop that was due to be held in November but the date has had to be changed – Andrea will keep the group in the loop on this.
AOB
The ask/ offer for VSN organisations to be involved in some mentoring has only seen 2 organisations sign up for this. Please have a think if you could be interested.
ACTION Debbie to resend the info.
There is going to be a Cambridge Poverty conference and 11 commissioners are on board – this includes Tracey for DISH who reported their first meeting had taken place.
DISH have also launched some animations around what they do. They are also holding some awareness sessions in Jan, Feb,March
The next Health and Wellbeing Network meeting is on 7th November “Support in Difficult times” there will be speaker from Anglia Water, HEAT partnership and Peterborough CAB. To book a place see below (on line)
https://forms.office.com/e/z1nqn1fAkf
The next Showcase event will be 20th November online
The November edition of the Voluntary Sector News is here. Please get in touch with Sandie Smith or Debbie Drew if you would like to know more about any of our work. Please pass this on to colleagues who may be interested.
NHS Cambridgeshire & Peterborough want to better support local people by giving them greater digital or online access to healthcare information, options, and services.
We are at the early stages of creating a digital/ online solution that is accessible and easy to use. Something that would offer you personalised support to get the healthcare you need, when you need it.
You will still be able to access care through traditional means (in person and over the phone) and we are keen that any digital solution helps enhance your health service experience.
Please help us understand what works well for you now and what would improve your experience. Your feedback will help shape how we improve digital access to healthcare in the future.
Share your views at https://www.healthwatchcambridgeshire.co.uk/form/improving-digital-access-to-heal by Friday 13 December 2024.
The October edition of the Voluntary Sector News is here. Please get in touch with Sandie Smith or Debbie Drew if you would like to know more about any of our work. Please pass this on to colleagues who may be interested.
Sandie welcomed everyone and then shared the Action Log.
All actions are complete but the opportunity to hold a ReSpect workshop for those who are interested is still available from Sharon– please could you let Debbie or Sharon Allen know if you would be interested.
EDI Workshops
Danny Karystinos shared a presentation with the group around EDI and recruitment and talked about the changes that can be made to really be inclusive and not just a “Tick Box”. Danny said that the Voluntary Sector could come along to sessions arranged BUT was happy to put one on specifically for the VSN. These would need to be in October as Danny’s post is ending in November.
ACTION – to share slides post meeting (Debbie)
ACTION – to arrange with Danny some workshop dates (Debbie)
Healthier Futures Fund Feedback- Andrea
Andrea shared slides with the group outlining the information from the Healthier Futures Fund and the Feedback from the survey.
There had been a lot of interest from the Voluntary Sector and 21 projects being funded. This was 3 years of funding of between £50- £300k.
They received 29 responses to the survey which aimed to find out people’s experience of applying and barrier to application. Andrea thanked the sector for their patience in the constantly evolving process and said that the ICB had learnt lessons from this.
A couple of the things highlighted were the difficulty in smaller organisations applying (ie the grant value was not a good fit for small groups and they don’t have capacity to complete the application process)
The Real Living Wage and the need for accreditation has been discussed at the VSN Steering group. For small organisations this could have been a barrier event
though the sector aspires to paying well. The use of accredited contractors felt restrictive too.
Andrea will be taking the survey feedback to the Aligning Support Steering Group on the 23rd so would like any other feedback before then.
ACTION to share slides post meeting and for any other feedback to Andrea before 23rd.
Workforce Pro Bono- Andrea
Previously we have discussed at the VSN with Laura Porro the possibility of ICB staff doing a day of volunteering at a voluntary sector organisation. It was felt that this may be difficult and actually cause more work. Many of the staff at ICB have skills that could be used pro bono such as coaches, comms, finance, legal etc and it would be good to have a guide to what was on offer and match with organisations needing the support.
Andrea is awaiting sign off from the committee to proceed as this does have a cost implication to ICB .
Workforce mentoring- Andrea/ Sharon
The aim is to bring systems closer together and ICB are setting up a pilot mentoring scheme where the Voluntary Sector can be mentors for ICB staff.
Andrea shared some slides showing what the process would be and what the expectations are.
Andrea asked for any suggestions to add to the reading list/resources that would give the mentees a greater understanding of the VCSE sector and working with communities.
Sandie has she will compile a pack and a suggestion to include the Vital Signs report: https://www.cambscf.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Vital-Signs-2024.pdf
The scheme is now open for expressions of interest with a view to starting some of the relationship matching from October. The link to the expression of interest form is here: https://forms.office.com/e/ZaBZkDCgpa
ACTION To compile a pack of supporting information-Sandie
ACTION To share slides post meeting- Debbie
Director Update- Sandie
All the details for the Strategy Review are now live on Support Cambs Website. Members are asked to look at the supporting documents and then respond to the survey. Anyone in your organisation can fill this in.
VSN strategy review survey
This review will be being shared with the ICB members too and any other partners. Andrea will share through the internal newsletter too.
Two listening events have been set up. The first is for the voluntary sector 24th September and the second is 9th Oct and open to all.
ACTION to send the VSN an email with all the strategy details included- Debbie
Learning Disability Partnership- the steering group have discussed the disbanding of this and have asked if there has been an impact assessment done.
Although the service offer in theory will be offered the separation of the service could have an impact on the service user or carers.
It was agreed that a letter will be written to the ICB and CCC expressing concern.
ACTION– Sandie to draft a letter for approval and then to send to appropriate people.
Assura Grants- round 2 of this is happening but as yet we do not have specific dates. We have 20K left over from the first round and we are looking at ways to top this up. The next round will be focussing on Integrated Neighbourhoods who did not receive in the first round- not all IN will be able to be covered.
Reps feedback
Sharon talked about the Just R recruitment portal (previous details shared with group) so far ARHC are the only voluntary sector organisation signed up to this. There are no costs to this and the ICB are looking to see how then can increase the looks to non NHS posts.
Contact Sharon or Mel Payne at ICB for more details
ACTION Sandie will add to the next newsletter.
Sharon mentioned the Culture and Leadership Compact and the Leadership programme.
Some of the VSN attended the Above Difference training and there are now plans to set up a leadership alumni.
Sharon also asked if organisations did staff surveys were they willing to share the questions they asked and outcomes for some ongoing work that is happening.
AOB
Robert Colbert alerted the group to a reduction in funding for Alzheimer’s Peterborough which has meant a reduction in days the resource centre can be open and the loss of Ade Gardeners post- Robert will be feeding back VSN info to Peterborough.
Many different offers of training are coming through from ICB- if you or team members attends any it would be great if they could give us feedback and let us know what they have signed up to (if it wasn’t organised through Debbie).
The Next Health and Wellbeing Network meeting has invited the Community Pharmacist and the NHS BA to talked about what’s happening in their areas.
Debbie is in the process of organising the next showcase event – this is going to be 20th November- if you are interested in being a showcasing organisation please let Debbie know – attendance at these is big and covers all areas including ICB, CCC and district council staff.
A reminder that there will be a second session on the New Models of care is happening on 17th September at 3pm online.
Just to be aware NAVCA along with Sandie and Andrea have been doing a piece of work. They are looking for images and may approach VSN members so this is a genuine request.
Thank you
As many of you are aware PCVS have a new CEO Kirsteen McVeigh. The Voluntary Sector Network would like to thank Gill Benedkiz for her amazing input and engagement with this group whilst they have been awaiting Kirsteen’s arrival.
The September edition of the Voluntary Sector News is here. Please get in touch with Sandie Smith or Debbie Drew if you would like to know more about any of our work. Please pass this on to colleagues who may be interested.
Junes meeting had a packed agenda with guests Clive Emmett from UCAN talking about “Ticket to Home” and Rob Henchy talking about Fenland District Council’s Help Hub.
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