Summary

Groups applying to the National Lottery Community Fund’s Awards for All programme in England can request funding for the following major events in 2023:

• The Coronation of His Majesty the King on 6th May.
• The Eurovision Song Contest in Liverpool from 9th to 13th May, and the UK’s role hosting it on the behalf of Ukraine.
• The 75th Anniversary of Windrush on 22nd June, and the contribution the Windrush generation and their families have made to the UK.

This is in addition to the fund’s usual guidance, and all projects must:

• Involve people and communities from the start.
• Build on people’s strengths.
• Be connected in their community.

Voluntary Action LeicesterShire can provide support and advice on how to structure your application and feedback on the draft application

Information on local events that are taking place for The Coronation of His Majesty the King is available on Leicestershire County Council’s website:

https://www.leicestershire.gov.uk/about-the-council/how-the-council-works/civic-and-ceremonial/the-coronation-of-his-majesty-the-king

The event is on Sunday 7 May 2023, 12noon – 5pm at the Bath Grounds, Ashby de la Zouch.

Ashby de la Zouch Town Council has kindly provided a space at the King Charles III Coronation – Party in the Park where residents of Ashby will be celebrating throughout the afternoon. Leicestershire County Council, North West Leicestershire District Council and Voluntary Action LeicesterShire are working together to deliver an opportunity for groups to showcase their organisation, encourage membership and most importantly recruit volunteers.
With a large attendance expected at the event, this is a fantastic opportunity. We would like to hear from any organisations who would like to come along to the event and be a part of the Volunteering Village.

If your organisation would like to take part please email volunteering@valonline.org.uk and register your interest by 31 March 2023.

The National Lottery Community Fund started this process by asking you to join us in a conversation so we could better understand the challenges and opportunities you face, your aspirations and hopes, and the ways we can best support communities in the future.

This is a time for reimagining and exploring new possibilities, and we’re delighted to have you with us as we take this journey.

What we’ve heard so far and what comes next

Since launching this process, we’ve had almost 2,000 engagements with communities and civil society organisations across the UK where we have looked specifically at our future strategy. We’d like to extend a big thank you for taking part in the first phase of our strategy renewal process, which has helped us on our journey of understanding how we can best support UK communities to thrive.

You’ve shared your ideas, experiences and insights and we are hugely grateful for your input.

The conversations relating to our strategy renewal have so far been broad and wide. We wanted to start with your views. Now, based on the insights and feedback to date, alongside reviewing evidence and learning, and scanning the trends and horizon for the coming years, we are delving deeper into certain areas that could help us achieve more for communities, before deciding on our future strategic direction.

Read more about our strategy renewal process here.

Date: Saturday 18th February 2023 at 10am to 4pm
Venue: Peepul Centre, Orchardson Avenue, Leicester LE4 6DP

We hope you will come along and join us to find out about diabetes, from getting your feet checked to losing weight, healthy diet and keeping active!

We will be sharing information about services in Leicester and really want to engage with patients and families to hear about their experience and challenges around managing their diabetes.

A consultation session will be held at 1pm where you will get the chance to share your views and help shape the future of diabetes care in Leicester. Lunch will be provided.

This is a drop-in event open to all. For those who wish to take part in the consultation session please register online https://DiabetesHealthFestLeicester.eventbrite.co.uk or call 01902 916444.

Leicestershire County Council is running a consultation on sexual health services, which is now live and will run until midnight on 12 March.

Residents of Leicestershire and Rutland who have used or tried to access current sexual health services, staff who provide sexual health services and partner organisations are particularly encouraged to complete this consultation. If they are able, individuals should fill it out online www.leicestershire.gov.uk/sexual-health-consultation

If you need a paper copy or an easy-read version of the questionnaire, please email phconsultations@leics.gov.uk   

This includes,

• Integrated Sexual Health Clinical Services
• Community Based Long-Acting Reversible Contraception (LARC) Services
• Community Based Emergency Hormonal Contraception Services
• Online Sexual Health Services

The current contracts for these services end 31 March 2024. New services are required to commence 01 April 2024.

You can find the soft market test materials here.

Responses will inform our future commissioning intentions and the development/refinement of the service specification.

With the goal of making Leicestershire a net zero carbon county by 2045, Leicestershire County Council has approved the blueprint for residents, businesses and other groups to work together on an updated Net Zero Strategy and Action Plan.

After almost 1,400 people had their say during a consultation, the Net Zero Strategy and Action Plan sets out the approach to delivering the council’s ambitious desire to work with residents, partners and businesses to achieve net zero carbon emissions in Leicestershire by 2045 or before.

Week 1 – 16th January – Buildings and Energy
Week 2 – 23rd January – Resources and Waste
Week 3 – 30th January – Transport
Week 4 – 6th February – Business and Economy
Week 5 – 13th February – Communities
Week 6 – 20th February – Nature and Land Use
The six week campaign is set to be a fantastic showcase of net zero activity, with a range of initiatives for residents and stakeholders to get involved in ranging from e-bike training to educational talks, tree giveaways to energy efficiency competitions.

Further information here.

An easy-read, practical guide for everyone in the voluntary sector who is looking to acquire and manage premises successfully for their organisation. Each section is self-contained, written by an experienced property adviser and offering practical tips, quizzes, case studies, resources plus a short webinar.
https://propertyhelp.org/weston-property-manual/

Contact the VAL Helpline on 0116 257 5050 if you would like support with any bids related to property.

As we all continue to feel the financial pinch, introducing fundraising ideas that are free and easy to maintain are a must. That’s why we encourage our voluntary groups, charities, and CICs to join easyfundraising.

easyfundraising is passionate about local groups and communities accessing vital funds, which is why they partner with over 7,000 online retail brands that want to give back. It’s simple – when someone shops online, a small percentage of what they spend transforms into a monetary donation for your organisation. It’s free for your organisation and the online shopper – the retailer donates the money, not the shopper.

Anything from a weekly grocery shop to a family holiday can generate a free donation because over 7,000 retailers are involved, including Amazon, eBay, John Lewis, Sainsbury’s, M&S, Screwfix, Waitrose, Argos, Moonpig, Tesco, Boots, trainline and more.

With 24% of people shopping online twice a week these days – and everyone watching how they spend their pennies – this is a way you can ask for support without needing to ask for money.

For example, a weekly online food shop at ASDA raises £1 for your organisation. 5 people shopping weekly = £5 a week in donations and over £250 in a year.

All you need to do to start receiving these donations is register your organisation here:

And don’t worry, the easyfundraising team will help you get started and give you lots of free support to help you get your volunteers, supporters and staff involved.

National Apprenticeship Week is your chance to discover exciting opportunities to boost your career. Schools, colleges, employers, career advisers and thousands of students come together online to celebrate Apprenticeships in support of the Government-run National Apprenticeship Week.

National Apprenticeship Week (NAW) 2023 is the 16th annual celebration of apprenticeships. The week brings together businesses and apprentices across the country to shine a light on the positive impact that apprenticeships make to individuals, businesses and the wider economy. It provides a fantastic opportunity to help students to think about their future and raise awareness of the options available after school.

Skills for life

The theme for National Apprenticeship Week 2023 is ‘Skills for Life’. The week will reflect on how apprenticeships can help individuals to develop the skills and knowledge required for a rewarding career and help businesses to develop a talented workforce that is equipped with skills for the future.

Throughout the week, top employers and organisations come together to showcase their opportunities to thousands of attendees, who are actively seeking an apprenticeship.

National Apprenticeship week have an exclusive and dedicated portal where anyone can subscribe to be enrolled in seminars, events, Q & A and job opportunities.