21/09/2021 - Essential support to help communities respond to Covid-19
Community Investment Fund case study - Community Voluntary Service (CVS) Bedfordshire
If anything positive has come out of the Covid-19 crisis, it’s the pulling together of communities – and Jane Owen, from Community Voluntary Service (CVS) Bedfordshire, has seen that first hand.
Whether volunteers have been delivering food parcels or helping the isolated and vulnerable, in many cases they have been new groups who have often needed support from the experts to help everything run smoothly.
CVS has an unmatched track record in encouraging organisations in the local voluntary, community and social enterprise sector to work together, and in partnership with the public and private sector, to share knowledge and expertise.
Funding from the council’s airport company London Luton Airport Ltd (LLAL) has allowed the group to provide advice, support and training for groups at all stages of their development, right from the get go. This has traditionally included facilitating funding events, helping to draw up constitutions and advising on funding sources and develop applications.
But Covid-19 has changed all of that, so Jane and her team have been focusing on a whole new type of support – which has meant establishing a new way of working.
"We have of course still been very busy but it’s a different kind of group that has been needing our support," explained Jane.
"Lots of mutual aid groups have sprung up that need help with things like safeguarding advice and how to keep their volunteers safe. Some of these groups won’t still be around after the crisis so it’s not the same as the long-term projects we usually help with, but they need our help right now."
Usually Jane would be out and about in the local area, seeking out volunteer groups in the community and asking if they need help. Covid-19 has put a stop to that, but local reaction to the crisis has demonstrated just how Luton’s communities have pulled together – and how much the LLAL funding continues to help even when the times have changed so much.
"I’m amazed and impressed about what’s been happening in Luton," said Jane. "Groups have rolled up their sleeves and just got on with it."
CVS came across many mutual aid groups on social media, and others approached the charity directly.
“We have been able to offer advice to help them run smoothly and safely, whether they were delivering food parcels or helping the isolated and vulnerable.
"We made sure volunteers knew how to work safely, for example how to handle money and not to take bank cards from people for payment, even if they offered them."
CVS are still keen to help anyone in difficult circumstances who might need more specialist care and support.
Jane added. "It’s too early to say what impact this has all had, but in some cases our advice has helped referrals to adult services when we suspected something wasn’t right."
Jane said that the group isn’t just dealing with the immediate crisis, but is helping organisations look to the future.
"Some people who had wanted to get set up a group but didn’t have the time are now looking ahead and we are helping plan their constitutions and make sure their governance is in place."
About CVS
CVS is a voluntary and community sector support organisation, offering a range of services, enabling local organisations and communities to make a difference in Bedfordshire. CVS can help with funding and constitutions so that volunteers can focus on what’s important to them - getting on with the job, and improving and saving lives.
Jane is absolutely clear about what the LLAL funding means to CVS. “Without the funding we would not be working in Luton and Luton charities would not be getting our vital help.
"That would mean 75 VCS enterprises wouldn’t have access to one-to-one advice, and more than 500 organisations wouldn’t receive our regular newsletter. That’s a lot of groups in Luton that wouldn’t get the support and advice necessary to make sure they can focus on helping those people most in need."