Social value

Social value is the difference that organisations can make in not just what kind of services they deliver, but how they deliver them. A commercial cafe, for example, may provide a great service, but relatively little social value. A community cafe, by contrast, that does all the things the commercial cafe does, and employs people with learning disabilities, may also provide a great service and create lots of social value via the impact of employing people who often have less opportunity to gain the benefits of a job.

Voscur works with commissioners who design and buy services, and VCSE organisations that would like to deliver services, to help them work together to create the most impact and social value through the delivery of public services.

Community Asset Transfer of public toilets

Rare opportunity for Community Asset Transfer: former toilets in Avonmouth

25 November, 2019

A block of disused public toilets in Avonmouth is available for Community Asset Transfer (CAT) bids, where community groups have the chance to manage and run a property to benefit local people.

The toilet building, at the edge of Avonmouth Park on Avonmouth Road, is a single-storey unit with a tiled roof, built some time between 1905 and 1910. It has been vacant since 2005, and the freehold is owned by Bristol City Council.

The Climate & Our Community

Climate change is happening at a faster rate than we thought.

And it seems, much faster than we are acting on it.

Around the world we are already seeing drought, crop-failures, flooding and migration. Bristol itself is vulnerable to climate change. There is a real risk to our food systems, to our economy and of increasing extreme weather, and the poorest communities will be hit first.

Date/Time:

Tuesday, 10 December, 2019 - 09:00 to 13:00

Nominations open for the Voscurs – Bristol’s social impact awards

24 October, 2019

The 2019-20 Voscurs, Bristol’s social impact awards, are now open for nominations.

This is your chance to nominate a group or individual for their hard work since January 2019. There are seven categories, each highlighting a particular strength of the voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) sector in Bristol.

Fair Saturday is back – register your community event now

3 October, 2019

Fair Saturday, a celebration of community organisations and culture in 180 cities around the world, returns on Saturday 30 November 2019, and Bristol is taking part once again.

Falling the day after Black Friday, Fair Saturday serves as an antidote to pre-Christmas sales pushes from large corporations, by championing local causes instead. This can involve anything from community choirs and theatre companies to market stalls and social enterprises.

British Science Week grants for community groups

1 October, 2019

To celebrate British Science Week (6-15 March 2020), grants of up to £1,000 will be available for community groups that work directly with traditionally underrepresented people or communities who are not currently involved in science activities.

Funding has been made available from the British Science Association, which runs British Science Week, and the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.

Underrepresented people or communities include:

Interventions/2 exhibition by Yoko Ono and domestic abuse victims at Georgian House Bristol

Next Link and Safe Link service users in Yoko Ono exhibition at Georgian House Museum

26 September, 2019

A new exhibition at Bristol’s Georgian House Museum by world-famous artist Yoko Ono will also include statements from 115 service users of Next Link and Safe Link, to raise awareness of domestic violence and sexual abuse.

Report on the value of arts and culture in building communities

23 August, 2019

Arts Council England has released a report on the value of arts and culture in place-shaping, which has demonstrated that arts and culture can help build communities and increase wellbeing.

Social Value Briefing

Come along to this briefing to update your knowledge of social value and how it's used in commissioning in Bristol. This briefing session will be followed by a practical session on measuring and evidencing social value in commissioning - this will be running early 2020 (details to be confirmed shortly).

Date/Time:

Tuesday, 12 November, 2019 - 12:00 to 14:00

Engagement events VCSE Infrastructure Support

VCSE Infrastructure Support: Events, survey and consultation with Bristol City Council

17 July, 2019

Bristol City Council's funding of the city's voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) sector, known as VCSE Infrastructure Support, is being reviewed over an eight-week consultation period.

The review includes running several engagement events, where VCSE organisations are invited to share their views and describe their needs, to ensure funding is as appropriate as possible. VCSE Infrastructure Support is currently delivered by Voscur.

Glossary of key terms used to demonstrate need

A large part of your funding applications, business plan and communications will involve evidencing (or demonstrating) need: the demand for your organisation in the community, the services you can provide, and the outcomes you've had.

When you're new to writing funding bids or reports, it can be difficult to make sense of the key terms and buzzwords used by grant makers, local authorities, businesses and other VCSE organisations.