Qube and SIP Team Hold Volunteer Thank You Events Across Shropshire

On 13^th July, Qube and the Shropshire Infrastructure Partnership (SIP) Voluntary and Community Support Team collaborated to put on a volunteer thank you event in Oswestry. This was just the first of three volunteer thank you events being held this year, with more to come in 2023 as well.

The event was held to celebrate the important work that volunteers have been doing over the last 2 years and the important role they have played in helping the communities of Shropshire during the Covid Pandemic. 

Coffee, tea and light refreshments were served, while volunteers had the chance to mingle and receive words of gratitude from community groups they have supported. Selina Graham, High Sheriff for Shropshire was also in attendance, championing volunteering and thanking volunteers for the work they are doing in Shropshire.

Volunteers attending the event also offered personal testimonies of their work and how it has positively impacted their own lives as well as the people they have supported.

Data collected in the 2022 VCSA State of the Sector Survey demonstrated volunteers put in approximately 59 working days per voluntary organisation per year in Shropshire. When extrapolated out to all of the registered charities in Shropshire alone, at an average wage of £16.07 per hour, that works out to over £578m in social value brought into Shropshire each year by volunteers.

Two more volunteer thank you events are being planned for October of this year. One will be held in Ludlow on 22^nd October from 10am – 12:30pm at the Ludlow Assembly Rooms, and the other will be held at the Cavalier Centre in Much Wenlock on 29^th October from 2-4:30pm. If your organisation is interested in getting involved with one of these volunteer thank you events or a future event, please email the SIP Voluntary and Community Support Team.

Funding Boost for Stanmore Country Park

The Green Flag award-winning Stanmore Country Park has been granted more than £72,000 from Severn Trent’s Community Fund and Shropshire Council to enhance bio-diversity and encourage children to be involved in its care.

The Shining Light on Stanmore Park Project has received £65,582 from the Severn Trent Community Fund, which awards grant money to improve the three elements of community wellbeing – people, places and environment. Shropshire Council has added a further £7,287, bringing the total project fund to £72,869.

The grant funding will carry out much-needed improvements to the park, which has again been awarded the Green Flag Community Award, to enhance biodiversity, improve public access and engage local children in helping to shape the future of the park.

The Shining Light on Stanmore Park Project will also involve:-

• Path improvement – Paths will be cleared and resurfaced with stone.
• Woodland management – Thinning of the woodland will be undertaken to boost biodiversity and help future veteran oaks to thrive. Disease-resistant elms will also be planted to help a rare butterfly that lives on the park, the white-letter hairstreak.
• Pond enhancement – Two ponds will be enhanced for wildlife and water quality.
• Family play trail – An artist has been commissioned to work with a local primary school. The children will help to design some low-key wooden play features around the park. The features will tell the story of the history and wildlife of the park.

Read the full story on the Shropshire Council newsroom.

Healthwatch Shropshire Issues Annual Report and Councils Seeking Feedback on Healthwatch Services

Healthwatch Shropshire have just published their annual report: Championing what matters to you - Healthwatch Shropshire Annual Report 2021-22. In it, the organisation sets out how they have listened to people and worked with partners through the year to make a difference.

Over 30,000 people used the service for advice and information, and they have produced 7 reports in the past year on topics from NHS dental access to food poverty in Shropshire.

Contracts for Healthwatch Shropshire and Healthwatch Telford and Wrekin are due to end in March 2023. Share your views on their services through the links below or in the Engagement Opportunities section section of this newsletter.

Shaping the future of Healthwatch in Shropshire 

Shaping the future of Healthwatch in Telford and Wrekin

STW ICS Issue Stakeholder Update on Shrewsbury Health and Wellbeing Hub

Last week, the Shropshire Telford and Wrekin ICS issued a stakeholder update on the proposed Shrewsbury Health and Wellbeing Hub.

In the announcement, Dr Charlotte Hart, Clinical Director for the Shrewsbury Primary Care Network (PCN) and Clinical Lead for the Programme said:

"After considerable scoping work to determine all available options, we have now agreed the preferred location for the proposed facility. This work has taken into consideration the size of the facility and access for patients, alongside other key factors.

The preferred location for the proposed Shrewsbury Health and Wellbeing Hub is located next to the Shrewsbury Town Football Club on the Oteley Road in Meole Brace. 

We are working closely with Lands Improvement, the current landowners, as well as the local authority to secure the site and explore transport solutions, ensuring the hub would be linked into the transport system and easily accessible to our patients.

A planning application will be submitted by Lands Improvement to Shropshire Council shortly and more details of the site layout will be shared over the coming weeks."

Read the full update here.

Shropshire Council to Pay Discretionary Energy Rebate Scheme

Shropshire Council have now paid 88% of the £150 energy rebates totalling £14.7 million. The council tax team is working hard to process the remaining payments to eligible residents before the end of September. 

Government has now provided the Council with extra funding to be able to provide additional targeted support to those most likely to be struggling with the rising cost of living. 

On 20th July, Shropshire Council Cabinet agreed a discretionary energy rebate scheme which will run until the end of November. 

Under this scheme, a payment will be made to council tax support claimants in bands E-H and to working age council tax support claimants as of April 1 2022 (and who are continuing to claim council tax support as of 1 August 2022) 

Eligible residents will receive the payment directly if the Council hold bank details. If they do not hold the correct information, residents will receive a letter inviting them to apply. 

A flyer is available for printing or social media to direct residents to this information.

More information about the discretionary scheme is available in the FAQs on the Council's website and will also soon be available to view on the Cost of Living Support website.

Current VCSE Engagement Opportunities

The VCSA newsletter will now contain a regular feature highlighting current open surveys and engagement opportunities that are relevant for VCSE organisations and their beneficiaries.

Flyers/materials for distribution will be made available for download as well as any relevant links. If you have engagement opportunities to share/list here please email Sarah Hampson, VCS Insight and Engagement Officer at Shropshire Council to have it included in an upcoming newsletter.

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Lingen Davies Cancer Fund Survey: Lingen Davies want to hear from you as part of a project to improve lives for those impacted by the disease in Shropshire, Telford and Mid Wales. It will take no longer than 10 minutes, and your views will help inform our LiveLife Cancer Awareness Service. Please take the survey and help promote it. They also need volunteers for focus groups. Closing date TBD

• Download poster to promote
• Those interested in focus groups should email Korrina Campbell
• Survey link

Libraries strategy 2022-2027: Provide your feedback on the draft strategy, which describes the changes the Library Service will make to be at the forefront of the council’s future relationship with its residents, and how the service will work in partnership with others to deliver the county’s priorities. Closing 3rd August

• Survey link
• Download executive summary
• Download full draft strategy
• Download FAQs

Shropshire Economic Growth Strategy: The Economic Growth Strategy for Shropshire (EGS) for 2022-2027 has now been published as a draft for formal consultation. The strategy has been refreshed to consider the council’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic and the impacts of Brexit and also how these national changes impact on partners and the economy. The draft strategy has been developed through ongoing collaboration between Shropshire Council, the local economic taskforce, Shropshire’s business community, and other partners and key stakeholders. Closing 15th August

• Shropshire's Draft Economic Growth Strategy
• Shropshire's Economic Evidence Base
• Full consultation information
• Survey link

Charities Commission Annual Return Consultation: A consultation on its proposed new approach to the annual return, and a new set of up to 16 questions it plans to include. These changes would come into effect from 1 January 2023. Closing 1st September

• Survey link

Shaping the Future of Healthwatch Shropshire, Telford & Wrekin: Shropshire Council and Telford and Wrekin Council would like you to help them to shape how Healthwatch in your area will look from 2023 onwards. There are lots of changes happening in relation to health and social care services. For example, the new 'integrated care system' for the whole of Shropshire and Telford & Wrekin which aims to integrate care across different organisations and settings, joining up hospital and community-based services, physical and mental health, and health and social care. They  are interested in your views as to how Healthwatch best fits in to this new system. Closing 5th September

• Questions and Answers (Shropshire)
• Survey link (Shropshire)
• Email responses (Shropshire)
• Post responses (Shropshire): Feedback and Insight Team, Shropshire Council, Shirehall, Abbey     Foregate, Shropshire SY2 6ND.
• Questions and Answers (Telford)
• Survey Link (Telford)

Telford and Wrekin Council Aging Well Survey: Share your views on the support you need to 'age well'. Telford and Wrekin Council, together with a wide range of our local partner organisations are launching a borough-wide “Ageing Well” consultation, asking residents over the age of 50 to share their views on the support they need to age well. Closing 16th September

• Survey link

DCMS Dormant Assets Scheme Consultation: The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport is providing an opportunity for the public, the voluntary, community and social enterprise sector and industry stakeholders to have their say on how to shape the direction of the Dormant Assets Scheme in England in the years ahead. Dormant assets are financial assets, such as bank accounts, that have been untouched for a long period. The Dormant Assets Scheme is led by the financial services industry and backed by the government with the aim of reuniting people with these financial assets. Where this is not possible, the Scheme unlocks this money for social and environmental initiatives across the UK. Closing 9th October 

• Consultation document
• Survey link

Open consultation Down Syndrome Act 2022 guidance:  This call for evidence will inform the development of the Down Syndrome Act statutory guidance. The Department of Health and Social Care are seeking your views on what should be included within the guidance. They will consider those views when producing draft guidance which we intend to publish for full public consultation. Closing 8th November

• Read the full guidance document 
• Survey link
• Easy read version of the survey
• Email feedback

Shropshire Council Diversity survey: Shropshire Council and partners are working to understand the needs of every local area in Shropshire. They recognise that Shropshire is made up of diverse communities, and not all health, wellbeing, community and personal needs will be the same. Shropshire Council are collecting information to paint a picture about local use of health services, health and wellbeing, and the demographic and economic make up of our communities. Right now, they specifically want to hear from people in: Whitchurch and surrounding area; Oswestry and surrounding area; St Martins. Closing date TBD

• Survey link

Healthwatch: 999 and ambulance services feedback. Healthwatch want to understand how the current strains on the ambulance service are impacting people’s health and lives. No closing date

• Survey link

Community Resource Hosting Functional Fitness MOTs in August

Upcoming locations:

Tuesday, 2^nd August: Hadley Community Centre, TF1 5NL  

Friday, 5^th August: Eastern Oswestry Community Centre, SY11 2LQ 

Wednesday, 31^st August: Bayston Hill Christ Church Hall

The events include a one-to-one fitness test, a short film and talk on reducing the risks of falling (with demo on how to get up from a fall) plus a short Exercise Taster. 

Appointments must be booked in advance, take 2 ¹/₂ hours and are free of charge. 

To book a place, please phone 01743 360641 or email Community Resource.  

Shropshire Infrastructure Partnership

Free and Subsidised Trainings

The Shropshire Infrastructure Partnership Voluntary and Community Development Team have over 20 accredited courses upcoming this autumn in their training programme .

These courses include a mix of online and face to face training opportunities across Shropshire from a variety of different trainers.

Courses offered are either free of charge or a heavily subsidised £15 per person.

Demand for the training opportunities continues to be very high and places are already booking up quickly. So, they are urging you to sign up to your chosen courses as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.

Courses offered this Autumn include 1 Day Emergency First Aid at Work, Volunteer Management and Peer Support, Startup Funding for Charities and Social Enterprises, Governance and Legal Structures for Charities, Unconscious Bias, Cyber Security for Charities plus many more.

Courses are limited to 2 spaces per organization and they continue to operate a waiting list. These courses are suitable for all volunteers and staff working in the voluntary sector in Shropshire.

For more information on courses, dates and times, and to book a space, visit the Eventbrite page.

And there is more on the way for 2023 - Follow the team's training offerings on Eventbrite to get notified about more training offerings as they are added.

Volunteers Needed: The Royal British Legion Poppy Appeal

The Royal British Legion is here to help members of the Royal Navy, British Army, Royal Air Force, veterans and their families. And we’re not going anywhere.

Volunteering with them helps make an enormous difference to the Armed Forces community. However much time you can give, there are plenty of opportunities for you to get involved as a volunteer and make a difference.

Have a bit more time to spare or looking to expand your skills? The Royal British Legion are recruiting for a Poppy Appeal Organiser for Oswestry, High Ercall and Telford Central. To find out more and apply please click on the adverts below:

Oswestry Poppy Appeal Organiser

High Ercall Poppy Appeal Organiser

Telford Poppy Appeal Organiser

You can also visit the Royal British Legion Poppy Appeal volunteers website to learn more.

Job Opportunity: Mayfair Community Centre Volunteer Coordinator

NHS Shropshire Telford and Wrekin: Two Opportunities

NHS Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin are seeking members to provide important VCS and/or public representation on the following two committees. Follow the links below to find out more about each opportunity:

Equality and Involvement Committee: This committee will play a key role in making sure that local health and care plans consider the needs of people who experience the greatest inequalities in accessing services and the poorest health outcomes.

People interested in becoming a member of the committee should have an awareness and understanding of the diverse communities of Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin.

Members of the committee will be expected to attend one online committee meeting per month and will be provided with the relevant training and support needed to assist them in their role.

To read the role description and register your interest, please click here  or email Jayne Morris, Engagement Officer.

The closing date for expressions of interest is Friday 19th August 2022.

Outpatient Transformation Steering Group : NHS STW are looking for a Public/Patient Representative to sit on the NHS Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin Outpatients Transformation Steering Group. An outpatient is someone who has an appointment in a hospital or clinic but does not need to stay overnight. 

Your role will be to help make sure that the group consider the views and experiences of people using local services to influence the future of outpatient care in the county.

To read the role description and register your interest, please click here  or email Jayne Morris, Engagement Officer.

The closing date for expressions of interest is Monday, 1st August 2022.

Little Stars Baby Bank Seeking Trustees

Little Stars have two exciting opportunities and are seeking a treasurer and fundraiser to join their board.

Joining Little Stars board is a wonderful opportunity for you to use your skills and experience to help shape the future of Little Stars, whilst complementing the skills of the existing and highly valued board members. Having launched in 2020 they are still in their infancy but they have big ambitions. By becoming part of the Little Stars family you can help them realise their vision and help and support even more families across Shropshire.

Firstly, they are looking for a Trustee with a background in Fundraising and Income Generation. In this role you will assist the Board of Trustees to develop a new approach to fundraising and income generation and ensure fundraising is of the highest standard and priority.

Secondly, they are looking for a Trustee with a background in finance/financial management. They work closely with an accountant (so you would not be expected to produce annual accounts), but they are looking for someone to cover specific responsibilities as the Treasurer.

They are seeking individuals for both these roles who have at least 3 years’ experience. Previous experience in a trustee role is not essential.

You will also help to inspire and maintain the charity’s vision, mission and values, as well as ensuring compliance and accountability for finances, legal and governance obligations. They are looking for individuals who would enjoy the opportunity to contribute their skills and expertise to help to provide robust and dynamic governance, to ensure they achieve their ambitions.

For further information about the roles please email Leanne Simcoe, Trustee.

Expressions of interest to be received by 2^nd September 2022.

Volunteer with Attingham Park

Volunteers have always been at the heart of the work of the National Trust in caring for nature, beauty and history and they are really grateful for your interest in supporting them. 

Attingham are seeking volunteers to fill a number of positions,. Please see the attached list for the areas where they are currently recruiting volunteers.

You can apply for any of the volunteering roles at Attingham by visiting the National Trust volunteering pages and searching for ‘Shrewsbury’. Once you have applied, they will send you some more information and invite you to a taster shift or information session for that role.

If you have a particular role or specialism that you’re interested in, which isn’t listed, please let them know so they can keep you informed as and when they are able to offer volunteer positions in those areas.  

Ethos Recruiting Trustees

Since 1994 the Ethos Group (formerly Transhouse (Oswestry) Limited) has been helping people who have experienced physical disabilities transition back into independent living.

From people who have suffered a life changing spinal cord injury in a road accident to others who are wheelchair users through a sudden illness - the Ethos Group is the place they can call home after discharge from hospital.

Ethos is currently recruiting new trustees and is particularly keen to welcome those with health and social care experience.

For further information see below or visit the Ethos Group website. You can also email or phone 01691 404359 for more information.

Qube: Hiring for Three Roles

Qube in Oswestry are hiring for three positions!

• Finance Officer
• Transport Officer
• Social Prescribing Triage Officer

Visit the Qube website to find out more and to apply. You can also email them or phone 01691 656882