3View Autumn 2014

The official magazine for the voluntary and communitysector in Eastbourne, Lewes District and Wealden.

Autumn 2014

Saving Time andMoney with aTravel Plan

VIEW

Autumn Funding Surgeries, page 4;Opportunities for Social Inclusion Initiatives in EastSussex, page 8;Training opportunities, page 11;A Week in the Life of Living Well, Dying Well, page 12

£296k Departmentof Health GrantAward

Volunteer CentreEast Sussex’sNew Website

And much more inside...

3Tackling Social Isolation andLonelinessPlus...

Page 2 3View Summer 2014

VCES Ask the Expert26 August & 30 September10:00 am to 12:00 pmEastbourne Library, Grove Road,Eastbourne BN21 4TL

VCES Ask the Expert2 September & 4 November10:00 am to 12:00 pmCrowborough Library, Pine Grove, Crowborough TN6 1DH

VCES Ask the Expert16 September10:30 am to 12:30 pmHailsham Library, Western Road,Hailsham BN27 3DN

VCES Master Class: Planning toWork with Volunteers16 September10:00 am to 1:30 pmHVA, Jackson Hall, Portland Place,Hastings TN34 1QN

Eastbourne Health and Well-Being Network23 September10:00 am to 11:30 amEastbourne Blind Society, 124-142 Longstone Road, EastbourneBN22 8DN

Dealing with Difficult People25 September9:30 am to 4:30 pm3VA Annexe, 8 SaffronsRoad, Eastbourne BN21 1DG

Health and Well-Being Trainingfor Volunteers6 October9:30 am to 3:30 pm3VA Annexe, 8 SaffronsRoad, Eastbourne BN21 1DG

Disability Awareness: A FreshApproach8 October10:00 am to 4:00 pm3VA Annexe, 8 SaffronsRoad, Eastbourne BN21 1DG

VCES Master Class: Recruiting &Selecting Volunteers8 October10:00 am to 1:30 pmMalling Business Centre, 112Malling Street, Lewes BN7 2RG

Introduction to SafeguardingVulnerable Adults9 October10:00 am to 1:00 pm3VA Annexe, 8 SaffronsRoad, Eastbourne BN21 1D

Risk Management andContingency Planning16 October9:30 am to 1:30 pm3VA Annexe, 8 SaffronsRoad, Eastbourne BN21 1DG

All Change: An Introduction toChange Management forLeaders22 October9:30 am to 12:30 pm3VA Annexe, 8 Saffrons Road,Eastbourne BN21 1DG

Emergency First Aid at Work6 November9:00 am to 4:00 pm3VA Annexe, 8 Saffrons Road,Eastbourne BN21 1DG

Writing a Fundraising Plan18 November10:00 am to 12:30 pmYarrow Room, Lewes Town Hall,Lewes BN7 2QS

Managing Staff PerformanceSuccessfully25 November10:00 am to 4:00 pm3VA Annexe, 8 Saffrons Road,Eastbourne BN21 1D

Diary Dates________ For further details on training courses, please see page 11 or visitwww.3va.org.uk/upcoming. More information about futureVolunteer Centre East Sussex events around the county can befound at vces.org.uk/events.

Welcome to the autumn 2014 edition of 3View.

Earlier in the year, many of you responded to oursurvey asking about priorities for supporting the localsector. This crucial information has helped to informthe new 5 year strategy for 3VA, Supporting ModernVoluntary Action across Eastbourne, Lewes Districtand Wealden. In this document, we set out the 4 keyaims for the next 5 years, which are supporting asector that is:

• Adapting to changes in the operatingenvironment to ensure that voluntary action thrives.

• Identifying and meeting needs of local peopleand their organisations.

• Being heard and understood by and influencingthe statutory sector, the public and the businesscommunity.

• Being resourced with what we and localorganisations need to achieve objectives.

Voluntary Action has always been hugely relevantand important, but never more so than now. How canvoluntary groups and organisations best develop anddeliver services, support their beneficiaries, furthertheir cause and have their voice heard?

To look together at this, we will be inviting you to localevents, one for each of the 3 areas we serve. Thesewill provide a great opportunity to groups andorganisations from all sectors to share ideas andopportunities, identify and overcome challenges andwill also make sure our work is targeted to areas ofgreatest need and relevance. The surveys told us alot, but meeting together in local areas and havingconversations will give everyone the opportunity todiscuss key issues and hear from others.

Invites will be coming your way or look out forinformation on our website in September. I hope tosee you there!

Welcome!

Almost half of small and medium-sized organisations spend more than 10% of their annual budgeton work-related travel. In this edition’s Expert Eye, Harriet Knights, Project Officer at Sustrans,shares how organisations can overcome the rising cost of transport and travel by implementing aTravel Plan.

eye

Saving Time and Moneywith a Travel Plan

Expert

By rethinking the way you, your staff andvolunteers get around, it is possible to savetime and money. A Travel Plan is a package of

measures designed to encourage sustainablemodes of transport such as walking, cycling, bususage or car sharing. The plan will be a long-termstrategy for improving and managing access to asite – by staff, volunteers and visitors – and willinclude an action plan focused on minimising singleoccupancy car trips. The plan will be tailored toyour organisation and context and could includemeasures for commuting or work-related trips or acombination of both.

What are the benefits to your organisation?• ‘Business’ savings: reduced travel costs, less

demand for car park spaces and better use ofstaff/volunteer time all contribute to significantcost reductions.

• Increased productivity: measures such as onlinejourney planning, video conferencing andworking on the move (i.e. on a bus or train) canwin you back valuable work time for yourvolunteers and staff.

• Healthier, happier staff/volunteers: walking andcycling reduces stress and improves health andwellbeing. Furthermore, a new video from theHealthy Air Campaign describes an experimentexploring how people taking different modes oftravel record varying degrees of air pollution.Modes measured included car, foot, bike andbus. You may be surprised that the highest levelsof air pollution were measured by the persontravelling inside the car.

• Improved environmental credentials: reducingyour overall carbon footprint can boost thecompetitiveness and profile of your business.

What can you do?One simple measure is to remove uneccessary tripsaltogether! There are also a number of onlinemeeting tools which can help you to have onlinediscussions and meetings, reducing the need totravel. Some are free and others allow you to shareand collaborate on documents on-screen, sharemeeting notes and record the conversation. Formore tips and advice about other simple measures,contact [email protected].

Additional resourcesSustrans: Smarter Business TravelSustrans, in partnership with East Sussex CountyCouncil, offers free support to organisations basedin East Sussex to reduce the economic andenvironmental impact of travel.

Sustrans’ involvement can include: • Free support from a dedicated adviser offering

tailored business travel planning • A full appraisal of current travel needs and

development of a travel plan• Advice on grants and funding to support

sustainable transport initiatives• Activities, information and travel initiatives for

staff – for example bike loans or personaljourney planning

Overall, Sustrans can help you boost your resilienceand competitiveness by reducing car use andchoosing smarter, cleaner travel for more work-related journeys. This service is fully funded, sothere is no cost to you. Sustrans can also give youadvice about other sources of funding and schemesto help reduce your travel costs.

Contact: Harriet Knights on 07917127941 or [email protected].

For a further list of environmental resources, pleasego to http://bit.ly/1n0JTv7.

Summer 2014 3View Page 3


Trinity Church Willingdon -Bringing a Project to Life

The path from identifying the need for a project toits eventual completion is often long and arduous,with finding the funds the most challenging aspect.For larger projects, careful project planning isneeded and a logical approach to funding researchis essential. But where to start? Here JennieMcFayden, Secretary at Trinity Church Willingdon,explains the journey that they took to developtheir new kitchen.

The idea of having a new purpose-built kitchenstarted about the end of 2011 when I had the visionof opening a lunch club for the church. I really hadno idea about how to start looking for funds sowhen 3VA’s Funding Fair in January 2012 wasadvertised I was keen to sign up. The mostimportant part of the afternoon was the networking– in particular meeting Maureen Anstey, CommunityDevelopment Officer (Eastbourne) – which gave usthe opportunity for a face-to-face conversation andMaureen was able to highlight the next steps weneeded to take.

3VA’s advice was to gather the relevant information,develop a project plan and get some quotes.Through this process we realised that, in order tocomply with food hygiene regulations, we wouldneed a complete refurbishment of the kitchen area.This would not be an easy undertaking for a numberof reasons, including the sheer effort required onthe part of the committee and the financial expenseinvolved.

With further support, advice and suggestions from3VA, our committee considered:• How the existing kitchen space might be used; • What was actually needed in a 21st century

kitchen;• What funding would be needed;• How the project would impact on existing

volunteers; • How else the facilities might be used; and• Different ways of getting the work done.

Through conversations with 3VA, we consideredways to design and finance the project, recruitvolunteers, work in partnership with other localorganisations and network across Eastbourne. Thefirst objective, however, was to cost the project andfind the funding.

We received quotes from three differentconstruction companies, which emphasised justhow expensive the refurbishment was going to be.At this stage we also sought the views of the peoplewho used the luncheon club.

3VA provided a number of funding searches, readthrough drafts and offered suggestions on improvingthe bids. In the initial stages of looking for potentialfunders and drafting applications, their support wasinvaluable. Although I had PC and communicationskills from my previous employment, I did not knowhow to tailor an application in order to attract afunder’s interest. 3VA was able to advise me on thisand I was able to email my draft applications toMaureen for comment. The fact that it was just oursecond major application that bore the desired fruit

Community DevelopmentAutumn Funding

Surgeries!

Researching funding options is often the most daunting part of thefundraising planning process. To help community and voluntary groupsnavigate this minefield, 3VA will be holding 3 funding surgeries in

Wealden and Lewes District for local groups this October, including atCrowborough Town Council from 3:00 pm to 7:00 pm on 23 October. Thesurgeries, to be run in partnership with local town councils in Crowborough,Hailsham and Seaford, will follow a similar format to previous outreachsessions across the area and be held at accessible venues in the community.Local groups can book a half-hour session to discuss funding needs, gain aninsight into current funding opportunities and seek advice on otherorganisational issues and agree follow-up support from 3VA.

Prior booking will be essential as places will be limited. Full details of venuesand timings will be available shortly through our weekly e-Newsletter and onour website, via Facebook and Twitter and on each relevant town councilwebsite.

For further detailsplease contact KarlParks, CommunityDevelopment Officer, [email protected] on 01273 483832 or01825 765136.

EngAge South EastHailsham Cricket Club

Lewes Film ClubMighty Oaks Trust

Seaford Baptist ChurchSussex Community Rail Partnership

Sussex Police Charitable TrustSussex Prisoners Families

TechResort

To find out more about these members or becoming amember yourself, please visit

www.3va.org.uk/content/membership.


is testimony to the support I received!

In the end, Trinity Church was awarded a total of£36,000 from five organisations: • Willingdon and Jevington Parish Council • Sussex Police • All Churches Trust • Waitrose • SITA Trust

Refurbishment work started in April 2014 and wascompleted the following month.

We celebrated our success with a special lunch forall those who supported us. None of this wouldhave been possible without the support of ourcommunity and in particular 3VA’s backing in theinitial stages when we were setting the project up.For this we do say a very big thank you!”

This has been hard work for the Trinity Churchcommittee and our journey illustrates just howlong it can take from the conception of an idea toreceipt of money in the bank that allows that ideato become a reality; in this case, it took two and ahalf years.

To see a photo gallery of before and after photos,please visit http://bit.ly/1zWVqo2.

3VA wishes Trinity Church Willingdon and TrinityDiners’ Club good luck for the future and manyhappy meals for our community. The new kitchen

Trinity Church Willingdon

Special lunch at official opening

Welcome to our newest members!All members will soon receive information on how to

update their organisation’s details. This is such animportant process - not just to make sure we havethe correct details with which to contact you, butalso to know what’s going on and where across thesector.

Using this information, we create the Valuing theVoluntary Sector report (available atwww.3va.org.uk/content/valuing-voluntary-sector),which looks at the economic contribution of thesector, the strength of volunteering and much more.

Not a member? Why not?! It’s free and easy to join3VA and membership will enable your organisation tobe part of this vital survey of the sector. For moredetails, visit our membership section online atwww.3va.org.uk/content/membership.

The BIG Count


Loneliness and social isolation are two linked but different problems. Whilst loneliness is asubjective problem (i.e. how someone feels) and can be felt even in the midst of a crowd ofpeople, social isolation is about the disconnection between people and their support

networks - having limited or no social contact with family, friends and society in general. Of coursefor those who choose to live in solitude, being disengaged from society is not necessarily a badthing. For those who do not choose their solitude, however, loneliness and lack of contact may bea result of any number of factors including sickness, disability, bereavement and mental health.

There is a growing body of evidence that social isolation can have health as well as socialconsequences. For example, a study by researchers at University College London in 2013 of 6,500men and women aged over 52 found that being isolated from family and friends was linked with a26% higher death risk over eight years even if they had no major health conditions.

Age UK have compiled a body of evidence about loneliness,social isolation and their effects on older people. Theorganisation says that one significant pattern that has emergedis that both loneliness and isolation appear to increase with ageand among those with long-term health problems. However, it’snot just older people who face social isolation: over half ofpeople aged between 18 and 34 and 35% of those aged over 55say they feel lonely often or sometimes, according to a surveycarried out by the Mental Health Foundation. Macmillan CancerSupport further describes loneliness as being ‘toxic’ to cancerpatients and that people who feel alone are more likely tostruggle with their treatment plans, fail to take medication orrefuse treatment.

Tackling SocialIsolation andLonelinessSocial isolation and loneliness existeverywhere - including urban and rurallocations throughout East Sussex. JennyWatson, Representation Officer at 3VA,explains what these terms mean, howpeople are being affected and the actionbeing taken to reduce their impact.

Jenny Watson

Age UK has found that loneliness andisolation appear to increase with age.


In association with 3VA, Churches Together inEastbourne has recently started a networkwhich aims to develop a model of how socialisolation can be tackled in an urban setting,which it’s hoped can then be extended to townsacross Lewes and Wealden districts. Earlier inthe year, ten organisations met to discuss whatthey could do collectively to better tackle theproblem. Their first task is to identify themethods of tackling isolation that may alreadyexist in Eastbourne and what gaps there are.They then plan to build links with statutorypartners through the Eastbourne StrategicPartnership so that gaps can be closed andduplication avoided.

Building Stronger Bridges, funded by AdultSocial Care from East Sussex County Council, is anew project to develop a network of Good Neighbour Schemes across the county. Focussing onthe central and northern parts of Wealden and parts of northern Lewes District, Action in RuralSussex (AirS) is working to provide neighbourly help for people with particular needs. Thescheme will work with community groups to develop existing and new volunteer schemes invillages run by local residents and focus on those who need additional help such as people withdisabilities, single parents, those in temporary need through illness and those who are isolatedfrom family and friends. Volunteers will assist with tasks such as lifts to the shops, smallhousehold tasks and even popping round for a chat. It is hoped that these schemes will reducefeelings of isolation and exclusion, provide a link between members of the community who mightotherwise not be in contact and allow people to remain independent for longer in their ownhomes.

For more information about either of these projects, please contact:

At a Glance Loneliness and social isolation are

two linked but different problems.

Social isolation can have health aswell as social consequences.

Churches Together in Eastbourneand 3VA have started a networkaiming to develop a model fortackling social isolation in an urbansetting that can be extended totowns across Lewes and Wealden.

Building Stronger Bridges is a newproject in northern Lewes andWealden districts where Action inRural Sussex is working to provideneighbourly help for people withparticular needs.

Additional resources: Age UK (2014) Loneliness and Isolation Evidence Review. http://bit.ly/VyGuw6

Mental Health Foundation (2010) The Lonely Society. http://bit.ly/1oIKiYG

Macmillan Cancer Care (2013) Facing the Fight Alone. http://bit.ly/VyaDf7

Public Health England (2013) Public Health Approaches to Social Isolation and Loneliness(presentation). http://bit.ly/1teCtIF

Reducing Social Isolation in EastbourneAmanda [email protected]

Good Neighbour SchemesJoanna [email protected]


SpeakUp Forum supports representation and is aplatform for networking in East Sussex. For more detailsSpeakUp’s website is www.speakupforum.org.uk, oryou can follow Speakup on Twitter @SpeakUpForum.

Opportunities for social inclusion initiatives in East Sussex

We asked you what is needed!

SpeakUp asked over 100 organisations at the

annual Big Event and carried out a detailed survey

with further 50 groups about the local priorities

for social inclusion support. The feedback was

analysed by the Task & Finish group and provided

as a formal response to SE LEP and the Big

Lottery. VCS in East Sussex chosen top 4 priorities

from those included in SE LEP Strategy, as:

• Targeted additional support for those facing

multiple barriers

• Training in soft skills essential to work and

increasing numeracy, literacy and ICT skills

• Preventing inactivity among 15-19 year old

• Volunteering as a route to employability

What’s in it for the sector? South East Local Enterprise Partnership (SE LEP) isworking together with the Big Lottery and ESiF(European Structural and Investment Fund) to provide£16m of funding over 6 years across East Sussex,Kent/Medway and Greater Essex. This will provide theadditional resources needed for Voluntary andCommunity Sector led initiatives which support peoplefurthest away from the job market and those currentlynot supported by other programmes.

SE LEP worked together with SpeakUp Forum toestablish key priorities for social inclusion in ourcounty. Based on this they will be negotiating the BigLottery opt-in programme (£8mln) and ESiF (£8mln)funding priorities.

The actual call out for funding bids will open inwinter or spring 2015. The funding will be availableto Voluntary and Community Sector, businesses andpartnerships with the local authorities. It is anticipatedthat the funders will be looking for larger bids,delivered by a partnership or consortium oforganisations. Current discussions indicate those willbe for projects between £500,000 and £1 million plus.

This gives our sector an opportunity to work overthe next 6-8 months on developing links, jointproject ideas and deciding together what wewant to achieve.

How to get involvedSpeakUp is coordinating SE LEP VCS Task & FinishGroup and a wider group of organisations interestedin influencing SE LEP decisions and/or beinginvolved in delivering services. Please [email protected] to join the conversation. Big Lottery is commissioning a small developmentphase to provide additional support to organisationsinterested in bidding for their funding. Get in touchwith us and follow us on Twitter so we can invite youto future workshops and any other opportunities.

What else is happening?There will be an additional £8 million available forlocalised social inclusion initiatives in selected priorityareas through – CLLD (Community Led LocalDevelopment). More information about this will beavailable in the coming months. With the learning inthe community being a main vehicle to deliver theabove successfully. You can find full details andproposed headline activities on http://bit.ly/1pEsrRZ.

Big Event 2014 175 attendees benefited from “highly valued” networking and learning opportunities and visited 40 Advice Fair stalls on 8 July, which made for a very successful event.

From the feedback gathered we know that almost alldelegates would like to attend annually and the

event met the expectations of 90% of those there.Networking was considered as one of the main

priorities for attending the Big Event and 79% rated the networking opportunities as very good or excellent.

Resources from the conference can be found on the SpeakUp Forum website.


Volunteer Centre East Sussex (VCES) is a countywide service offering support and advice to groups that involve volunteers in any aspect of their work.Learn more online at www.vces.org.uk.

Just a click awayThis autumn, Volunteer Centre East Sussex has unveiled its newwebsite. VCES Volunteering Development Officer, Lee Shepherd,highlights the new look and the best practice resources available.

www.vces.org.uk

After several months of developing and testing,VCES has now launched our new website! Inaddition to being visually appealing, it’s our hopethat those thinking about volunteering and thoseworking with volunteers will find the site both easyto navigate and full of useful features, includingEssential Guides, ‘Any Organisation’ templates andan online health check.

Essential GuidesOur Essential Guides are resources that we haveworked particularly hard to expand and improve.Our range of Essential Guides, which includestopics from Writing a Volunteer Policy to MarketingVolunteer Opportunities, offers concise overviewson a variety of topics and is an ideal starting pointfor anyone working with volunteers.

We have our own ideas on Essential Guides thatmay need to be written in the coming months, butencourage volunteer-involving organisations who’llbe accessing them to let us know what additionaltopics would be beneficial.

‘Any Organisation’ TemplatesThe Essential Guides are complemented by a newrange of template documents under the banner ‘AnyOrganisation’, which are available for groups todownload and adapt as appropriate for their ownuse. As with all the content on the site, we havetried to organise the materials in ways which will beuseful for anyone new to working with volunteerswhile still meeting the needs of the moreexperienced practitioner.

We’ve been cognizant to approach the resources ina way that is not overly prescriptive. Instead, theresources are designed with diversity in mind,recognising that the groups we work with come in allshapes and sizes. We have resisted attempts tocreate ‘one size fits all’ models. The ‘AnyOrganisation’ templates in particular are designedfor thoughtful adaptation within each individualorganisation or group.

Online Health CheckIn addition to the volunteer policy, registered groupsaccessing the site can, for the first time, take anonline health check enabling them to make aninstant self-assessment and to identify the areas inwhich they may want to improve the way they workwith volunteers.

It’s a very exciting innovation allowing users toanswer some basic questions that will generate areport suggesting links to other VCES resourcescovering a range of issues, including the series oftemplate volunteer policy statements.

How to Get the Most from the New WebsiteGroups are able to access all our best practiceresources as well as regular blogs which will offerinsights on a range of volunteer-related topics, newsand upcoming events from the local and nationalvolunteering sector. Whilst you don’t need to beregistered with us to access the resources, wehighly recommend becoming a member to ensureyou’re connected to all the support we offer.

We are confident that we have launched a site witha good range of basic, best practice resources, butare conscious of the need to add things as the siteevolves further. We welcome your help in doing this!For the site to be really effective, we need you to tellus the topics that you want us to cover. Please letus know what you think - we look forward to yourfeedback!

The website isn’t meant to replace personal contact,so we will still be on hand via email or phone to talkthrough specific issues with you.

For more information and to find out how to registeryour group with the Volunteer Centre, please ring01323 301 757 or email [email protected].


Community Volunteer Scheme Update

3VA has been awarded £296,210 from the Department ofHealth for a 3 year project to deliver better health and careoutcomes for vulnerable older people. The project ismanaged by 3VA and delivered on behalf of our awardwinning partnership with East Sussex Fire and RescueService (ESFRS). The project will be delivered across EastSussex and Brighton & Hove.

This is an innovative project that will be delivered bycommunity volunteers. It aims to further strengthen theworking relationship between health and care providers,commissioners and community organisations to supportvulnerable people. More specifically it will:

• provide improved information about local services • make navigation of services easier• strengthen relationships across public & communityservices

We were also fortunate to be awarded a grant of £4,987.03 from the Police & Crime Commissioner’s Safer in Sussex Community Fund, to pilot a Safe as Houses project.

The Safe as Houses Project will support the work of Sussex Police and Victim Support around burglaryprevention and after-incident support, particularly in areas of Hastings and city of Brighton. The pilotproject provides support, advice and information to help prevent residents from becoming victims ofburglaries, especially for residents living in ground floor and basement flats. It will also provide after-burglary support and encourage eligible residents to have a Home Safety Visit if applicable.

We will be able to provide more details about both of these projects in the next 3VA newsletter.

Katy Bourne, Sussex Police & CrimeCommissioner (left) with Claire Harris.

by Claire Harris, Volunteer Recruitment and Support Officer

Community Volunteers - We Need You!East Sussex Fire & Rescue Service (ESFRS) Community Volunteers schemewas created to support the work of the Service in achieving its vision of ‘saferand more sustainable communities’. Volunteers make a vital contribution byhelping ESFRS provide fire and road safety information and practical support tothe local community. We are looking to recruit more volunteers to support ouralready successful teams active throughout East Sussex and the City ofBrighton & Hove.

If you are interested in finding out more about volunteering with us, please visitwww.esfrs.org/communityvolunteers, call us on 01323 462 438 or [email protected].

n Dealing with Difficult People25 September, EastbourneThis short workshop aims to help you understand

what makes a difficult person, introduces classicdifficult characters and suggests some ideas to helpmanage them. The course also explores conflict andbasic approaches to defusing it.

n Disability Awareness: A Fresh Approach8 October, EastbourneThis is practical workshop for voluntary sector staffand volunteers is designed to give participants afresh understanding of disability, enabling them toprovide disabled people of all ages with good qualityand equal access to their services.

n Introduction to Safeguarding Vulnerable Adults9 October, EastbourneThis free course being run in partnership with EastSussex County Council is aimed to be anintroductory course and is open to anyone workingwith vulnerable adults in the voluntary andcommunity sector (outside of health and social care,as these organisations can already access freetraining courses through East Sussex CountyCouncil’s Adult Social Care Training Courses).

n Risk Management and Contingency Planning forVoluntary and Community Organisations16 October, EastbourneThis course will help you develop simple tools toensure you are protecting yourself (as an individual)and your organisation. The course will provide the opportunity to develop your knowledge,awareness and skills in order to protect membersand committee members and to continue to meetlegal requirements. This course is for trustees,managers and those responsible for organisationalmanagement of community and voluntaryorganisations, charities and community interestcompanies.

n All Change: An Introduction to Change Managementfor Leaders22 October, EastbourneThis short workshop aims to equip you with anunderstanding of common responses to change andwhat makes teams successful in times of change. Ithelps leaders develop the knowledge and skills toplan effective change and support individiuals andteams effectively.

n Emergency First Aid at Work (AOFAQ, QCF Level 2)6 November, EastbourneThis course is for people working in low hazardenvironments or where a needs assessmentindicates the requirement for a first aider trained inEmergency First Aid at Work. The purpose of thiscourse is for learners to attain the knowledge andpractical competencies required to deal with a rangeof emergency first aid situations.

n Writing a Fundraising Plan (Developing an IncomeGeneration Strategy)18 November, LewesThis practical session will give you the informationand the confidence to develop a plan for yourorganisation. In addition, all delegates will have theopportunity for a follow-up appointment with 3VAfor any further assistance, as well as a free copy ofour Essential Guide to Fundraising Plans.

n Managing Staff Performance Successfully25 November, EastbourneThis is a one day workshop for voluntary sectororganisations to promote best practice in achievingthe high quality performance from individual staffand managers. The main objectives of this courseare to provide an interactive opportunity forparticipants to review how they currently managetheir staff and identify achievable and practical waysto improve individual and team performance.


Training Opportunities

Could you support the sector by delivering a training course in our next programme? We’realways keen to hear about skills and experience you can offer. Equally, if there’s a course you need

that’s not currently available, please give us a call on 01323 639 373 or [email protected].

3VA provides a range of essential training courses for thevoluntary and community sector which aim to inform andinspire – helping you and your organisation become moreeffective. Please visit our online calendar of events atwww.3va.org.uk/upcoming where you will find full detailsof any upcoming training and where you will be able tobook quickly and easily online.

A Week in the Life

MondayBBC Radio 4 journalist Sara Conkey has beenfollowing two of our Doulas, recording for aprogramme called Lives in a Landscape, which willbe aired on 29 August. We have been talking to hertoday as she does the final edit. She is delightedwith how it’s gone and we’ve loved working with herand presenter Alan Dein.

TuesdayWe welcome four colleagues from a hospice inCambridgeshire who are interested in our work andwho would like to integrate doulas into their hospiceand community. We talk about the need forsomeone to be a consistent, supportive presenceand advocate for people facing death, as well asgiving back-up and confidence to family carers.Hospices do a great job in supporting peoplemedically but we all agreed most staff are too busyto give this level of support. We are due to have ourcentre appraisal by Crossfields Institute who qualityassure our training and so Athina, our trainingcoordinator, is here completing our complianceprocedure today.

WednesdayWe have a series of people helping us with differentaspects of Living Well Dying Well work. Our part-time operations person Mariamah is here todaysetting up a Facebook page for our lovely office andtraining venue - the Tin Tabernacle in Barcombe. Itis a lovely old converted chapel in the middle of thecountry and one of our aims is to encourage otherpeople who are involved in well-being, personal orspiritual development to come and join us here.Dance and movement therapist Maya Cockburnhas some client sessions here this afternoon. Wehave part-two of the Doula Foundation traininghappening on Friday and we spend time setting upthe space to welcome our students.

ThursdayIt seems we are having a very social week! Threeof our doulas have come from different parts of thecountry to meet two representatives from Doula UK,which is an umbrella organisation for birth doulas. Itwas wonderful meeting. There are many similaritiesbetween birth and death and so we were able to

share andunderstandeach other’sexperience verywell. As anorganisationthey are a fewyears ahead ofus, but arecurrently formingthemselves into a charity which is a process thatwe’ve already been through. They have a lot ofexperience of building a UK-wide network of birthdoulas and supporting them to go from their traininginto practice. So it looks as though we’ll be able togive each other mutual support.

FridayThe first three days of the doula training took placein May and the 10 students returned today for thefinal two days of the foundation course. They are awonderful group with a fabulous ethnic mix: SouthAfrican, West Indian, Chinese, Japanese andBritish! Today they have a presentation from funeraldirector Cara from Arka, based in Brighton, whogives them all kinds of very valuable informationabout funeral directors’ practices. In the afternoonwe look at all the legal requirements following adeath with the help of a registrar of birth, marriage,death. It always amazes me how ill-informed we arewhen it comes to these issues. I’m beginning tothink if, as a society, we are to be more accepting ofdeath and dying, we need to talk about it as part ofour citizenship education in schools. Even thoughthis is a serious and sensitive subject and thestudents treat it very respectfully, I’m glad to saylaughter is never far away. It was another veryfulfilling day for us. The end of a very diverse weekat Living Well Dying Well!

Hermione Elliott, Living Well Dying Well

For more information on Living WellDying Well:

www.livingwelldyingwell.net01273 933 [email protected]

3VA member Living Well Dying Well is a registered charitybased in Lewes. It was set up in 2009 to encourage an approachto dying that is humane, respectful, and honouring of anindividual’s identity and sense of self. In this edition’s ‘A Weekin the Life’, we hear from Hermione Elliott, the charity’s director.



Transforming Lives: Eastbourne Dementia Action Alliance3VA hosted an initial meeting on 20 May 2014 and invited all Eastbourne groups who had an interest inor involvement with dementia. Amanda Steer, Representation Officer, gives an account of the day andtells us what’s next.

Presenters spoke on a number of topics, including what it islike to live with dementia or with a person with dementia,how dementia can progress from very mild to severe, whatthe symptoms might be and ways to help make life better forthose with dementia, along with games and tools to help.

After lunch there was a 40-minute dementia friends’ training session, which I would encourage everyoneto attend. Offered by booking in advance with a dementia champion (contact me for details), thesesessions are very clear and truly eye-opening. Among other things, you begin to realise how the simplestof things can make such a difference for someone with dementia. Once you’ve become a dementia friend,you’d then be welcome to take a dementia champions’ training course, which will teach you to run thedementia friends’ sessions and continue to spread the word.

After our first meeting in May, interested parties signed up to form the Eastbourne Dementia ActionAlliance and held their first meeting on 10 July. This meeting was well-attended and, as an outcome, themembers present agreed to encourage their own groups or organisations to hold friends’ training and tokeep their members informed by leaflet and newsletters. A few other pieces of work were also agreed andpeople identified to come along to the next meeting where we intend to plan our future work and discussfunding.

The next meeting will be on 16 September 2014 at Eastbourne Town Hall. If you would like to attend themeeting or to be kept informed about the work in which Eastbourne Dementia Action Alliance is involved,please email [email protected] to let me know.

Chances4Change Eastbourne, Healthand Well-Being Training forVolunteersThe Health and Well-Being (H&WB) training forvolunteers is one day (6 hours) long and addressesmental well-being, physical activity and healthyeating. It is a varied, interactive day and includes ahealthy lunch and a short ‘Health Walk’. The aims ofthe day are:

• To enable volunteers to identify and share clearmessages about mental well-being, physicalactivity and healthy eating.

• To make connections between these 3 areas.• To reflect on how they can bring their learning to

their volunteering roles.• To identify further support or training that would

help them increase their knowledge andexpertise in health and well-being.

• To help volunteers access useful health and well-being related information and resources.

Once volunteers have completed the initial training

they will also be able to access further free training,namely:

• Mental Health First Aid Lite training (3 hours)• Physical Activity Brief Intervention training

(choice of 3 or 6 hours)• Cookery Leader training (2 days)• Other support, as identified.

We are also establishing a regular Health and Well-Being Network, starting on 23 September 2014from 10:00 am to 11:30 am, that will give volunteersand staff working in these areas an opportunity tocome together, share experiences and keep eachother informed about what they are doing. The firstone will take place at Eastbourne Blind Society, 124-142 Longstone Road, Eastbourne BN22 8DN.

For further information please contact Helen Meadeat [email protected].

3VA Registered Office 8 Saffrons RoadEastbourneEast SussexBN21 1DG

3VA Lewes OfficeBizspaceThe Malling Business Centre112 Malling StreetLewesEast SussexBN7 2RG

3VA Wealden Office79c High StreetUckfieldEast SussexTN22 1AS

01323 639373 [email protected]: Search for 3VATwitter: @3VAsupportVCS

3VA is a Company limited byGuarantee Registered in England andWales Number: 4637252 Registered Charity Number: 1096788

3VA is a member of the NationalAssociation for Voluntary and Community Action (NAVCA) and theNational Council for VoluntaryOrganisations (NCVO).

3VA is supported by EastbourneBorough Council, High Weald LewesHavens CCG, Eastbourne, Hailsham &Seaford CCG, East Sussex CountyCouncil, Lewes District Council andWealden District Council.

If you would like to find out about advertising through 3View, 3VA’sweekly e-Newsletter and our websiteplease email [email protected].

3View Editor: Scott Roedersheimer, 3VA Marketing Officer

Notices of publications, events andservices do not necessarily carry anendorsement by 3VA, nor do theyrepresent the view of 3VA.

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3VA can help you connect with voluntary and community sectorcontacts throughout the Lewes District, Wealden andEastbourne. For more information about advertising in 3VApublications, please contact us at [email protected].

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Saying Farewell...

In August, 3VA says good-bye totwo valuable members of the teamas they depart to further developtheir careers in the sector.

Katherine Perrin, Head ofDevelopment, who has been with3VA for over four years, and KatiaRichardson, Business DevelopmentManager, who’s been with theorganisation for a year and a half,have both made significantimpacts in their respective rolesand will be missed.

We wish them the very best withthe bright futures that surely awaitthem! Katia Richardson

Katherine Perrin © A

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3View Autumn 2014