Friday 4 March 2011

Social Accounting

Really interesting week in which the social finance work has progressed, with a lot of interest in a joint meeting between the Youth Justice Board and our member organizations aimed at reducing offending / re-offending. Timely, as Barnados have just released a report pointing to the cost to society of a young offender having to go into care (£115,000 over 3 years). Great phone call and meeting with Ruth from Jobmatch (matching offenders to jobs) – it’s not rocket science – folk need a job and housing on release, otherwise how long can you make the prison leaver’s £40 quid  last?

Really positive meeting last evening with some philanthropists advising on how we might access funding for a particular social impact bond project.

Attended a Social accounting/ Social Return on Investment course on Wednesday and was pleased to realise that we are in practice well advanced with social accounting, if not SRoI.

Last Friday evening I went to the Surrey Business Awards celebration dinner (think Oscars) and it was really instructive how many businesses are involved in their communities. So it is timely that we are soft launching our doyouthwork.com website this month, and I have given a copy of a job profile for a volunteer, Volunteer Broker to a visitor today from Proctor and Gamble, and also sent it to Business in the Community with whom  I made links some months back.

Personal disclosure: On Sunday 27 March I could be in my church, OR at an Elmbridge multi- faith event to which I have been invited , OR at a charity lunch at Magdalen, Tooley St. London (middle son’s restaurant) as he is fund raising a minimum of £2,500 for his London Marathon run in aid of The Railway Children (of India) BUT I am in fact doing a 26 mile charity walk for Redhill YMCA (Yto Y walk) . Be warned …I too am looking for sponsors!!

Trivial pursuit:
a)      Last week’s answer: There isn’t a marathon walk in the Olympics, but the closest is a 50 K road walk (31 miles) in…..3 hrs 34 mins. !! Ouch!
b)     This week’s question: As the Olympic cycle race is going through Surrey in 2012, what is the Olympic record?

Best wishes
Mike

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