East Devon VCSE support service
We are here to support VCSE (voluntary, community and social enterprise) organisations in East Devon to achieve their purpose.
who is this service for?
- VCSE organisations in East Devon - whether you're well established or just starting out with a new idea!
- VCSE organisations supporting the communities of East Devon
- Communities and individuals of East Devon
Whether you're looking to start up, grow, diversify or simply maintain what you're already delivering, our team is here to support you.
what can we offer?
You'll benefit from advice, support and training for the whole sector in areas such as governance, funding and volunteer support. Whey not check out the latest training opportunities below - they're all free as long as you are a VCSE organisation based in East Devon!
There are 3 levels of training and networking style sessions, including:
- ‘Essentials Bootcamps’ – 6-hour sessions on 2 areas - ‘An Introduction to Voluntary Organisations and Social Enterprises’ and ‘Village Halls and Community Buildings’.
- ‘Deep Dive’ Training – 3-hour trainings on a variety of important areas for VCSE groups.
- ‘Bitesize’ Training – 1.5-hour sessions, combining networking and short training from guest speakers.
We are also helping organisations across the district to connect with and learn from each other, and can help co-ordinate multi-organisational responses to important issues.
We are keen to meet as many people as possible so we can ensure our service is rooted in what you want and need, and that we have a deeper understanding of all the amazing work that's already going on in East Devon - plus, of course, the challenges you're facing. The DCT team are spending more of our working days in various East Devon locations - follow our social media accounts to find out where we'll be and come and say hi if you see us.
Did you also know that you could share or find information about activities, events, volunteering opportunities and conversations across Devon via Devon Connect? The East Devon VCSE support service will be moderating the East Devon Connect page, this platform is your community hub. Here you can make connections, share information, search for volunteering opportunities and access activities within your local community.
How can I find out more?
To view our training programme please visit our events page and follow the Eventbrite links to book:
www.devoncommunities.org.uk/courses/category/east-devon-vcse-support
For any other queries please contact our team via eastdevonvcse@devoncommunities.org.uk or 01392 248919
We are especially keen to hear from you about the forms of training and support you are looking for, as well as any examples of success which we could capture as case studies and highlight to the sector.
You can read the press release from when we launched the service HereYou can read About the latest news articles from East devon and devon as a whole here
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Background to the project
On behalf of East Devon District Council, Devon Communities Together is delivering a Community and Voluntary Services (CVS) for East Devon to support, connect and strengthen East Devon’s Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise (VCSE) sector.
The project is designed to work in close collaboration with organisations across East Devon, working with grass roots groups in the district, reviewing needs, providing training, fundraising support and developing new ways of working on and influencing district-wide policy and service development. The overarching aim for the programme is to strengthen and coordinate the VCSE sector in East Devon.
In the first phase in summer 2023 we consulted with VCSE organisations at listening events across the district, to understand their assets and challenges. From those listening events we have identified four areas of focus for support:
- financial sustainability
- volunteer management
- business management
- connecting and partnering
Since the listening events and in line with our co-design approach we have developed a Theory of Change (ToC) Framework to enable us to measure the impact of the project, underpinned by feedback from the four listening events where representatives from VCSE organisations across East Devon informed us about their strengths and areas of need.
The second phase included attending networks across the district as well as to answer enquires via in person, via phone or email. Some of the responses have included promoting services; widening networks or signposting.
Through our listening activities across East Devon, and the resulting outcomes in our Theory of Change, we have designed an initial training programme running from January to March 2024, relevant to the outcomes of ‘financial sustainability, volunteer management, organisational management and connect and partnering’.
You can find out the full range of the training courses here
This project is funded by the UK Government through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund.
