| Gweini Briefing Paper No 4 - County Voluntary Councils |
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County Voluntary CouncilsThe Churches' relationship with the wider Voluntary Sector is of critical importance for a number of reasons: 1) CHRISTIAN VOLUNTARY SECTOR IN THE LOCAL PUBLIC SQUARECounty Voluntary Councils are funded by their Local Authority to represent/promote the voluntary sector to/within the Local Authority. If church projects do not join then Local Government will presume that the Church is no longer involved in voluntary work and probably more significantly this will authenticate the general sense that the church quite simply is just "no more"! There is thus an important sense in which, before providing services to the local voluntary sector to help them access funding, operate professionally etc, County Voluntary Councils provide an important political, representation role. In some senses, therefore, the decision not to join your CVC has greater political significance, because of its implications for representation, than it has practical hands-on significance. Non membership has the effect of a self-imposed social and political disenfranchisement as far as the local churches' position as a welfare provider in the Local Authority is concerned. It removes you from Local Government's radar screen! 2) PRACTICAL HELPHaving gone to some lengths to stress the importance of engaging with your CVC for reasons of political representation, it is of course essential to recognise the significance of the key practical services which they provide. Among other things CVCs:
CVCs and LOCAL GOVERNMENT COMPACTSThe cost both socially and politically of our failure to engage with the local CVCs has recently been demonstrated very eloquently by the failure of the Christian Voluntary Sector to properly engage with the Local Government Compact process. This has been very costly for the Christian Voluntary Sector although, as Gweini Members Briefing Paper No 2 makes plane, there is still room for our engagement. It has also made it impossible for us to engage in the Community Strategy process (see Briefing Paper No 1) as voluntary sector projects, although we can nonetheless still engage in this process as church. COST?In some cases there is a membership fee, whereas in others all a church has to do to join is send an e-mail! CVC WEB SITES: CHECK THEM OUT!Pages 4-7 list the details of each County Voluntary Council so that you can make contact with your CVC. Before moving to this list, however, we would particularly draw your attention to the CVC web sites of which there are currently 13. Regardless of whether one of the 13 covers your area we would really encourage you to visit a web site just to give you an idea of what CVCs do. Given that much of the information provided in these sites is useful across Wales, moreover, this will inevitably provide you with helpful information even if you don’t live in the in the area of the CVC in question. Also do bear in mind that at the time of writing more and more CVC’s are developing web sites so that by the time you read this yours may actually have a site so it would be worth giving them a ring to check. Welsh County Voluntary CouncilsBRIDGEND ASSOCIATION OF VOLUNTARY ORGANISTIONS10 Park Street VOLUNTARY ACTION CARDIFFShand House CARMARTHENSHIRE ASSOCIATION OF VOLUNTARY SERVICESTy Carwyn, CEREDIGION ASSOCIATION OF VOLUNTARY ORGANISATIONSBryndulais, CONWY VOLUNTARY SERVICES COUNCIL8 Riviere's Avenue DENBIGHSHIRE VOLUNTARY SERVICES COUNCILStation Road Ruthin FLINTSHIRE LOCAL VOLUNTARY COUNCILThe Manse, GWENT ASSOCIATION OF VOLUNTARY ORGANISATIONS 8 Pentonville
INTERLINK Maritime Offices MANATELL GWYNEDD 24-26 Stryd Fawr NEATH PORT TALBOT COUNCIL FOR VOLUNTARY SERVICE Ty Margaret Thorne PEMBROKESHIRE ASSOCIATION OF VOLUNTARY SERVICES 36-38 High Street POWYS ASSOCIATION OF VOLUNTARY ORGANISATIONSRegistered office: Marlow, South Crescent, Llandrindod Wells, Powys LD1 5DH Satellite offices in the north: Plas Dolerw, Milford Road, Newtown Powys SY16 2EH Satellite offices in the south: Steeple House, Steeple Lane, Brecon, Powys LD3 7DJ SWANSEA COUNCIL FOR VOLUNTARY SERVICES Voluntary Action Centre TORFAEN VOLUNTARY ALLIANCE Pearl House VALE COUNCIL FOR VOLUNTARY SERVICES Unit 11 ASSOCIATION OF VOLUNTARY ORGANISATIONS IN WREXHAM (AVOW) 21 Egerton Street YNYS MON VOLUNTARY SERVICES Room 20 Mon Training |