A mixed week that began well with a very encouraging strategic discussion at my Chairman’s house with the “senior figures” in Surrey Youth Focus about our future direction.
Frankly, the point is that this is a second year of deficit budget and drawing on reserves, and 2013/14 presents some difficulties. We do of course have a cunning plan, which is what we were discussing and will be proceeding with. I don’t know any voluntary sector organisation in Surrey that is not facing real difficulties. In our case we are confronting realities and making plans before we end up dead in the pan – like the boiled frog which likes the early warmth and then dies.
I then got back to the office to a hugely disappointing letter from the Lottery that our Surrey Youth Enterprise bid was unsuccessful (only 18% of bids are) - BUT I am undeterred and we will be using £10,000 from a GMT to fund a pilot project that can then substantiate a re-submitted bid.
However, my pre-occupation this week has been in writing a Strategic Review 2012 (like a PESTLE report ) about political–economic context; policy issues and trends as they apply in Surrey; issues and concerns of Member organisations and young people. It’s shaping up as about 12 sides with a lot of footnotes/references. I know it won’t be of interest to many, but I am hope that everyone who does read it will learn something they didn’t know. Goes to Trustees 23 Oct and published at end of October.
Also building up to our AGM on 8 Nov at 6.00 pm at Guildford FE College. We have 6 x 5 minute presentations from member organisations, then a break out discussion/learning, followed by two speakers on funding. One is from the Lottery and the other an expert funding adviser.
Quiet weekend in prospect!
Mike
Friday, 12 October 2012
Friday, 5 October 2012
Bids & Bobs
Hi – the week has been dominated by a rush to finalise our £93,000 Armed Forces Community Covenant bid on behalf of nine uniformed organisations in Surrey, which collectively work with 30,000 young people in Surrey. There are a further 3,000 young people on waiting lists to join the Scouts and Guides particularly. The point of the bid is to increase the capacity of uniformed organisations in response to the evident demand, and to recruit and train more leaders, especially for the military cadets. I am aware of a similar collaboration in London that has received £millions of funding from the Government, but I think our effort is unique outside metropolitan areas. Fingers crossed.
We have also put in a small bid with our sister organisations in Sussex to our national body, NCVYS, for workforce development. This Surrey/Sussex bid will enable us to better map provision and market training offers in youth work, and in playwork for younger children (delivered by WSCYS). NCVYS have developed a new “Working with Young People” course in conjunction with the ABC Awarding body, which will be delivered locally by Lifetrain. Guildford FE College, who are also members of ours, are likely to be running a Level 2 (GCSE level) course in Youth Work Practice fairly soon. Meanwhile, I was contacted by a Youth Club this week who are struggling to recruit a (paid) part-time youth worker, so there is clearly a demand for youth workers. However, I suspect the point is that full-time professional youth work jobs are now very scarce and highly sought after, but perhaps fewer people are prepared to work in part-time jobs because of the anti-social hours and other limitations.
I helped to co-facilitate a one day workshop here with NCVYS about the Young Foundation’s work on Outcomes Framework for young people. The short version is that the life chances of young people do not depend on academic qualifications, but on their soft skills: relationships, communications, problem- solving etc etc..in other words the key relationships skills that youth workers try to imbue.
I have started work on the much-delayed Research Report, which I find really interesting, but hope that there is more than one reader! The point of it is to provide strategic advice to member organisations about the context in which we are all operating, and some of the trends and issues affecting young people. It will be a heavy read but packed with information, and deliberately contentious. It should be ready for Trustees on 23 October (just). All the references will be on the website once finished.
As regular readers know I am a Skeptic (sic-Greek) about commissioning…..West Coast mainline debacle??
Off to London on Saturday for last Father/Son lunch with youngest son before he marries in November, and to visit the Tate’s pre- raphaelite exhibition.
Have fun!
Mike
We have also put in a small bid with our sister organisations in Sussex to our national body, NCVYS, for workforce development. This Surrey/Sussex bid will enable us to better map provision and market training offers in youth work, and in playwork for younger children (delivered by WSCYS). NCVYS have developed a new “Working with Young People” course in conjunction with the ABC Awarding body, which will be delivered locally by Lifetrain. Guildford FE College, who are also members of ours, are likely to be running a Level 2 (GCSE level) course in Youth Work Practice fairly soon. Meanwhile, I was contacted by a Youth Club this week who are struggling to recruit a (paid) part-time youth worker, so there is clearly a demand for youth workers. However, I suspect the point is that full-time professional youth work jobs are now very scarce and highly sought after, but perhaps fewer people are prepared to work in part-time jobs because of the anti-social hours and other limitations.
I helped to co-facilitate a one day workshop here with NCVYS about the Young Foundation’s work on Outcomes Framework for young people. The short version is that the life chances of young people do not depend on academic qualifications, but on their soft skills: relationships, communications, problem- solving etc etc..in other words the key relationships skills that youth workers try to imbue.
I have started work on the much-delayed Research Report, which I find really interesting, but hope that there is more than one reader! The point of it is to provide strategic advice to member organisations about the context in which we are all operating, and some of the trends and issues affecting young people. It will be a heavy read but packed with information, and deliberately contentious. It should be ready for Trustees on 23 October (just). All the references will be on the website once finished.
As regular readers know I am a Skeptic (sic-Greek) about commissioning…..West Coast mainline debacle??
Off to London on Saturday for last Father/Son lunch with youngest son before he marries in November, and to visit the Tate’s pre- raphaelite exhibition.
Have fun!
Mike
Friday, 28 September 2012
Of Markets & Values
Well it’s been a busy week, and a bit tense.
The tenseness comes from the strategic picture. I am sure there will be another round of serious cuts in 2013, even if as seems to be the case, the CSR 2013 is being shelved, as the Lib Dems won’t countenance another overt package of cuts. But they’ll still happen. For example, I hear that East Sussex CC are making -15% cuts next year, including to front-line services. Our working assumption is that Surrey CC will maintain its current grant to us in 2013/14 but thereafter…
The “old model” is one of grants and even contracts. I do strongly think that the commissioning/contracting model has run its course. More commentators are challenging the limits to markets and experience (think G4S at Olympics) So for example, see article in: http://www.guardian.co.uk/local-government-network/2012/may/01/local-government-outsourcing-contracts . The Archbishop of Canterbury’s book on Faith in the Public Square has perceptive and trenchant comments, and as you know Michael Sandel is vey sharp about the limitations. (I see he’s appearing at the Labour conference) My suggested alternative is making strategic alliances with quality (tested) suppliers of services. I have been briefed by the Consortium this week about their experiences of Surrey CC contracts….
I have also been hearing this week about changes in the charity sector at national level – NAVCA and Community Matters merging, NCVO merging with Volunteering England , and so on.
So, we have to respond to a significant, and enduring change in context.
Surrey Youth Focus is building links to businesses and corporates all the time now- so for example we had another "4x4 project" session on Tuesday evening, and will be launching a new initiative in this area shortly. The strategic point is that if/as local authorities are under the cosh (always remembering its taxpayers money that funds them ..our money) then the voluntary sector needs to local to other sources. The only options are trading/selling services (ie social enterprises) links to businesses, and increasing size through partnerships/mergers. The era of markets and global reach means that this is the era of MARKETING.
BUT this involves different skills and values from those traditionally held in the sector. I’m not sure how this will play out…I guess it just evolves.
On a positive note, my colleagues in uniformed organisations have been hugely supportive in helping me put together a substantial (£90K ) Armed Forces Community Covenant bid forward. Fingers crossed!
Mike
The tenseness comes from the strategic picture. I am sure there will be another round of serious cuts in 2013, even if as seems to be the case, the CSR 2013 is being shelved, as the Lib Dems won’t countenance another overt package of cuts. But they’ll still happen. For example, I hear that East Sussex CC are making -15% cuts next year, including to front-line services. Our working assumption is that Surrey CC will maintain its current grant to us in 2013/14 but thereafter…
The “old model” is one of grants and even contracts. I do strongly think that the commissioning/contracting model has run its course. More commentators are challenging the limits to markets and experience (think G4S at Olympics) So for example, see article in: http://www.guardian.co.uk/local-government-network/2012/may/01/local-government-outsourcing-contracts . The Archbishop of Canterbury’s book on Faith in the Public Square has perceptive and trenchant comments, and as you know Michael Sandel is vey sharp about the limitations. (I see he’s appearing at the Labour conference) My suggested alternative is making strategic alliances with quality (tested) suppliers of services. I have been briefed by the Consortium this week about their experiences of Surrey CC contracts….
I have also been hearing this week about changes in the charity sector at national level – NAVCA and Community Matters merging, NCVO merging with Volunteering England , and so on.
So, we have to respond to a significant, and enduring change in context.
Surrey Youth Focus is building links to businesses and corporates all the time now- so for example we had another "4x4 project" session on Tuesday evening, and will be launching a new initiative in this area shortly. The strategic point is that if/as local authorities are under the cosh (always remembering its taxpayers money that funds them ..our money) then the voluntary sector needs to local to other sources. The only options are trading/selling services (ie social enterprises) links to businesses, and increasing size through partnerships/mergers. The era of markets and global reach means that this is the era of MARKETING.
BUT this involves different skills and values from those traditionally held in the sector. I’m not sure how this will play out…I guess it just evolves.
On a positive note, my colleagues in uniformed organisations have been hugely supportive in helping me put together a substantial (£90K ) Armed Forces Community Covenant bid forward. Fingers crossed!
Mike
Friday, 21 September 2012
Happy Days
Well I’m back from nearly two weeks in Provence to celebrate our 40th wedding anniversary.
As regular readers know I have very counter-cultural tastes, so whilst I enjoyed the best beach/swimming in the Med I have ever experienced, the best visit was to a beautiful Cistercian monastery at Thoronet to attend a Gregorian Mass. The Abbey is famous for its singing because of the superb acoustics in a very beautiful, plain, stone built monastic church. So it was a time of relaxing, beaches, wine, food and a few visits out. I was very struck by the generosity and kindness of the hosts of the small hotel where we stayed and at the very smart (and expensive) hotel and Michelin starred restaurant where we spent our anniversary, which was the same Sunday as the Gregorian Mass.
I also read a lot, including two books by Michael Sandel (Harvard, and last year’s Reith lecturer) about the limits to markets and competition. I see and read a lot more than in the recent past about “the common good” as opposed to personal gain. The symbol of the latter was seeing Roman Abromovitch’s “yacht” moored between Port Grimaud and St Tropez…moored there because it’s so huge (and looks like a naval destroyer) that it doesn’t fit into any local harbour. By contrast Bill Gates makes shedloads of money, but gives it away philanthropically. Sandel’s books are about the ethics of markets and libertarianism and he questions where does justice lie in a society, particularly in the USA, where some have huge riches and others are born into being marginalised.
Ah yes..work…Well the good news is that we have just been given a very helpful grant from a Trust towards our Surrey Youth Enterprise support service, and have now also got our Lottery bid in for the balance of the funding. Fingers crossed…..especially as youth unemployment in Surrey has begun creeping up again. Next Tuesday evening we have our next "4x4 Meeting" , and I have several interesting meetings including with the Chief Constable, Lynne Owens, and to sign off the Woking social enterprise start up. We are also making good progress in sorting out our rather slow and ancient IT, and I hope we van have a new system in by the beginning of next year.
Went to a meeting yesterday about the new website for Surrey's young people called Surge (or “Wearesurge”). You need to know about this - it launches in November.
So all positive stuff, and Manchester United and Wasps are winning.
Happy days!
Mike
As regular readers know I have very counter-cultural tastes, so whilst I enjoyed the best beach/swimming in the Med I have ever experienced, the best visit was to a beautiful Cistercian monastery at Thoronet to attend a Gregorian Mass. The Abbey is famous for its singing because of the superb acoustics in a very beautiful, plain, stone built monastic church. So it was a time of relaxing, beaches, wine, food and a few visits out. I was very struck by the generosity and kindness of the hosts of the small hotel where we stayed and at the very smart (and expensive) hotel and Michelin starred restaurant where we spent our anniversary, which was the same Sunday as the Gregorian Mass.
I also read a lot, including two books by Michael Sandel (Harvard, and last year’s Reith lecturer) about the limits to markets and competition. I see and read a lot more than in the recent past about “the common good” as opposed to personal gain. The symbol of the latter was seeing Roman Abromovitch’s “yacht” moored between Port Grimaud and St Tropez…moored there because it’s so huge (and looks like a naval destroyer) that it doesn’t fit into any local harbour. By contrast Bill Gates makes shedloads of money, but gives it away philanthropically. Sandel’s books are about the ethics of markets and libertarianism and he questions where does justice lie in a society, particularly in the USA, where some have huge riches and others are born into being marginalised.
Ah yes..work…Well the good news is that we have just been given a very helpful grant from a Trust towards our Surrey Youth Enterprise support service, and have now also got our Lottery bid in for the balance of the funding. Fingers crossed…..especially as youth unemployment in Surrey has begun creeping up again. Next Tuesday evening we have our next "4x4 Meeting" , and I have several interesting meetings including with the Chief Constable, Lynne Owens, and to sign off the Woking social enterprise start up. We are also making good progress in sorting out our rather slow and ancient IT, and I hope we van have a new system in by the beginning of next year.
Went to a meeting yesterday about the new website for Surrey's young people called Surge (or “Wearesurge”). You need to know about this - it launches in November.
So all positive stuff, and Manchester United and Wasps are winning.
Happy days!
Mike
Friday, 31 August 2012
Realising ambition
Well it’s been a short week after the Bank Holiday, but we have put in a grant bid to a GMT for “Surrey Youth Enterprise” - one day workshops, mentors, website and advice service to young people about how to become self-employed/set up a social enterprise. We are then pitching to the Lottery. I am sure that self employment/setting up a business is the right way to develop for many young people.
As an example of what is possible, I had lunch on Wednesday with the hugely impressive young man who started up his own youth market research company when aged 16 ..and now is 22. The company is called "The Eleven" and is working on a magazine style website for young people in Surrey giving news, reviews, lifestyle, health, social issues, places to go, things to do info. The website will be called SURGE. All this is within the Surrey CC contract with Working Links, with whom I also met this week, to provide careers advice to young people. Even I am excited by the opportunities and insights that this can bring to young people. I think it’s just great.
I am also working on a grant bid with uniformed organisations to expand participation by young people in scouts, guides , military cadets and so on. The contribution of the uniformed organisations to civil society is hugely important – hence the front page headline in “The Times” (25 August) – “Government sends in the scouts to riot hotspots” . It’s about a consortium of uniformed organisations being funded by Government to set up new units in deprived inner city areas. Our grant bid is along similar lines, but addressing the price of success….unblocking the waiting lists for Scouts and Guides in Surrey, and increasing participation in the military cadets.
I confess my eye has also been on my forthcoming holiday, at last, and 40th wedding anniversary…in Provence. One of my heroes is Dr Samuel Johnson who said this: “To be happy at home is the ultimate result of all ambition, the end to which every enterprise and labour tends, and of which every desire prompts the prosecution.”
Talking of ambition, regular readers will have endured the stories of my studying for a MA Theology these last three years – well I have passed with Merit, so I am very pleased.. realising ambitions..which we all need to have. I’ll tell you the next cunning plan- ambition next time. No blog for a bit now..too busy relaxing in France .
Have fun- I will!
Mike
As an example of what is possible, I had lunch on Wednesday with the hugely impressive young man who started up his own youth market research company when aged 16 ..and now is 22. The company is called "The Eleven" and is working on a magazine style website for young people in Surrey giving news, reviews, lifestyle, health, social issues, places to go, things to do info. The website will be called SURGE. All this is within the Surrey CC contract with Working Links, with whom I also met this week, to provide careers advice to young people. Even I am excited by the opportunities and insights that this can bring to young people. I think it’s just great.
I am also working on a grant bid with uniformed organisations to expand participation by young people in scouts, guides , military cadets and so on. The contribution of the uniformed organisations to civil society is hugely important – hence the front page headline in “The Times” (25 August) – “Government sends in the scouts to riot hotspots” . It’s about a consortium of uniformed organisations being funded by Government to set up new units in deprived inner city areas. Our grant bid is along similar lines, but addressing the price of success….unblocking the waiting lists for Scouts and Guides in Surrey, and increasing participation in the military cadets.
I confess my eye has also been on my forthcoming holiday, at last, and 40th wedding anniversary…in Provence. One of my heroes is Dr Samuel Johnson who said this: “To be happy at home is the ultimate result of all ambition, the end to which every enterprise and labour tends, and of which every desire prompts the prosecution.”
Talking of ambition, regular readers will have endured the stories of my studying for a MA Theology these last three years – well I have passed with Merit, so I am very pleased.. realising ambitions..which we all need to have. I’ll tell you the next cunning plan- ambition next time. No blog for a bit now..too busy relaxing in France .
Have fun- I will!
Mike
Friday, 24 August 2012
High Spots
This has been a busy and tricky week, though with high spots derived from being in touch with youth workers and young people…is it too late for me to be a youth worker?? Interesting that it always the frontline that’s the best place to be...doing the delivery which brings its own rewards, though not financially, and there’s the rub. We pay for managers not deliverers.
On Monday I was at NESCOT talking about youth enterprise / employment and met again with Working Links (the contractor delivering web based career guidance in Surrey) and their sub-contractor “The Eleven” which is a small London based youth market research company. The founder is aged 22 and he is the oldest in the company, and was very impressive indeed. They are setting up a website (“SURGE”) that will provide info on places to go/things to do, but this will be wrapped around with news and features. ALL determined by young people only – they will be the editors/arbiters about what goes up on the site. The founder’s comment was – max of 300 words and must have a video. Sign of the times. I was very impressed.
We have a new Trustee starting shortly from the Scouts – Cliff Sheard - and we have welcomed him…stacks of experience and a practicing accountant.
I visited the Surrey Credit Union as they might provide start-up loans to young people; they do great work and are wanting to expand rapidly.
I met on Thursday with Matrix at Allen House (Guildford) which is currently offering the best coffee and brownies anywhere...knocks Costa to the north pole.
In the afternoon I met with Lifetrain, and then the great young people and youth workers at the B Free Youth café in Leatherhead (at much converted church). The purpose of the visit was to talk to young people about their views on self-employment/setting up a social enterprise. We had a great discussion - I got an iced coffee but had to buy Dominos Pizzas. We then talked more widely about their experiences…cyber bullying, depression, self-harming, and experiences of their friends about homelessness and so on. It sounds rather negative but the discussion was great – realistic, positive. In terms of our Surrey Youth Enterprise Wates and Lottery bids - about two-thirds of the group had plans to set up as sole traders/self-employed, but don’t know how to do it. I rest my case.
Various operational and strategic discussions this (Friday) morning, so a busy week. It’s the young people (“The Eleven” and at B Free) that stick in my mind.
I am supposed to be sailing in the Solent tomorrow (Sat) but the wind is Force 7 so it may be off. Final day of our local Music Arts Drama festival on Monday – 5,000 people at live bands / beer tent/food/ fireworks – should be fun!
Have fun (despite the weather)!
Mike
On Monday I was at NESCOT talking about youth enterprise / employment and met again with Working Links (the contractor delivering web based career guidance in Surrey) and their sub-contractor “The Eleven” which is a small London based youth market research company. The founder is aged 22 and he is the oldest in the company, and was very impressive indeed. They are setting up a website (“SURGE”) that will provide info on places to go/things to do, but this will be wrapped around with news and features. ALL determined by young people only – they will be the editors/arbiters about what goes up on the site. The founder’s comment was – max of 300 words and must have a video. Sign of the times. I was very impressed.
We have a new Trustee starting shortly from the Scouts – Cliff Sheard - and we have welcomed him…stacks of experience and a practicing accountant.
I visited the Surrey Credit Union as they might provide start-up loans to young people; they do great work and are wanting to expand rapidly.
I met on Thursday with Matrix at Allen House (Guildford) which is currently offering the best coffee and brownies anywhere...knocks Costa to the north pole.
In the afternoon I met with Lifetrain, and then the great young people and youth workers at the B Free Youth café in Leatherhead (at much converted church). The purpose of the visit was to talk to young people about their views on self-employment/setting up a social enterprise. We had a great discussion - I got an iced coffee but had to buy Dominos Pizzas. We then talked more widely about their experiences…cyber bullying, depression, self-harming, and experiences of their friends about homelessness and so on. It sounds rather negative but the discussion was great – realistic, positive. In terms of our Surrey Youth Enterprise Wates and Lottery bids - about two-thirds of the group had plans to set up as sole traders/self-employed, but don’t know how to do it. I rest my case.
Various operational and strategic discussions this (Friday) morning, so a busy week. It’s the young people (“The Eleven” and at B Free) that stick in my mind.
I am supposed to be sailing in the Solent tomorrow (Sat) but the wind is Force 7 so it may be off. Final day of our local Music Arts Drama festival on Monday – 5,000 people at live bands / beer tent/food/ fireworks – should be fun!
Have fun (despite the weather)!
Mike
Friday, 17 August 2012
Enterprising Surrey Youth Focus
It was good to be at Surrey Sports Board on Monday exchanging perceptions of the Olympics, and discussing how to establish Active Surrey as at least a quasi -independent body and maybe a full social enterprise (at present Active Surrey is hosted by Surrey CC).
On Tuesday, I was at a half day workshop about mentoring skills - in advance of our Surrey Youth Enterprise bid, and to develop my own skill as a potential mentor for helping young people into start-ups of self–employment or social enterprise. It was a very useful half- day, delivered by trainers from South-east Social Enterprise for the Training and Development Partnership.
This led into a meeting with the GASP Motor Project at their new premises about the possibility of their young people becoming fitters of the trackers to be sold
by “our” social enterprise. GASP are very interested, which is great.
This is a very developmental period for Surrey Youth Focus as we bid for grants to undertake projects in the near future. In pursuance of our bids for Funding Surrey Youth Enterprise, and in addition to having a statistical analysis of need and having views of young people through focus groups, we are now testing out the evidence of need for this support service by a survey monkey survey that has gone to young people (aged 16-24) through our Members. Hopefully the results will be positive.
Other ideas being looked at with Trustees are to build a SYF business network that enables businesses and corporates to focus on, and contribute to the achievements of young people. We are thinking of greatly expanding our annual Celebration of Youth to be the centrepoint of this initiative. So hopefully we are indeed enterprising!
Mike
On Tuesday, I was at a half day workshop about mentoring skills - in advance of our Surrey Youth Enterprise bid, and to develop my own skill as a potential mentor for helping young people into start-ups of self–employment or social enterprise. It was a very useful half- day, delivered by trainers from South-east Social Enterprise for the Training and Development Partnership.
This led into a meeting with the GASP Motor Project at their new premises about the possibility of their young people becoming fitters of the trackers to be sold
by “our” social enterprise. GASP are very interested, which is great.
This is a very developmental period for Surrey Youth Focus as we bid for grants to undertake projects in the near future. In pursuance of our bids for Funding Surrey Youth Enterprise, and in addition to having a statistical analysis of need and having views of young people through focus groups, we are now testing out the evidence of need for this support service by a survey monkey survey that has gone to young people (aged 16-24) through our Members. Hopefully the results will be positive.
Other ideas being looked at with Trustees are to build a SYF business network that enables businesses and corporates to focus on, and contribute to the achievements of young people. We are thinking of greatly expanding our annual Celebration of Youth to be the centrepoint of this initiative. So hopefully we are indeed enterprising!
Mike
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)