Successful Volunteering in the digital age

[Background] [Why is this event being held now?] [Aims] [What participants will gain from attending the seminar] [The seminar will be of particular interest to][Provisional Programme] [Event Information] [Application Conditions] [Application Form]

This seminar is organised jointly by NIACE and the Workers' Educational Association.

Background

A major strand of government policy is the belief that the state needs to reduce in size, and transfer power and responsibility for some services away from Westminster to the local level. The government says it wants individuals to take control of their lives, have a say in how services are delivered, engage with elected representatives and take an active role in their communities. This is the government’s Big Society vision.

Government believes that a key aspect to the success of local involvement is the willingness of individuals to give freely of their time and energy to shape their communities. Volunteers are expected to play an important role in making Big Society a reality.

The Prime Minister, Mr Cameron, says “We should not be naive enough to think that simply if government rolls back and does less, then miraculously society will spring up and do more. The truth is we need a government that helps to build a big society."

Alongside the attempted shift in control from state to local communities, we have seen a growing importance of the online world for government services, democratic participation, and campaigning and lobbying. It is likely that active citizenship in the future will need confident digitally capable citizens, including digitally capable volunteers.

This event will explore the role volunteering might play in the government agenda to increase community involvement in civic affairs and in particular the role that digital learning contributes to the agenda. The most effective community champions come from within target communities.

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Why is this event being held now?

2011 is the European Year of Volunteering and conferences and events have been planned to take place in various cities around Europe. These will bring together interested parties from the worlds of volunteering, business and government to debate important volunteering issues and challenges. This NIACE event provides an initial exploration of the relationships between volunteering, adult learning and digital skills within the UK context.

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Aims

A survey conducted by the Charities Aid Foundation (CAF) in 2010 of 1,000 adults shows that 75% of people agree that volunteering for charities plays an important part in improving society, and 71% agree that those who volunteer benefit personally from the experience. The value of properly managed volunteering is not in doubt. However, the current economic climate provides challenges in the management of volunteers.

The seminar will consider volunteering from three perspectives:

• The changinglandscape for volunteering given the government agenda to shift from state to social action at a local level
• The part learning plays in volunteering from the perspective of volunteers as learners, volunteers as promoters of learning, and the managers of volunteers
• The contribution of digital skills to the volunteering role.

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What participants will gain from attending the seminar

At the end of the seminar participants should have:

• had the opportunity to discuss volunteering within current government policy and direction
• identified the opportunities and challenges related to the role of adult learning within volunteering
• shared practice in volunteering, in particular practice that includes digital learning
• a better understanding of the elements that contribute to a successful volunteering.

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The seminar will be of particular interest to:

Local authority departments, voluntary and community learning organisations, adult learning providers.

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Provisional Programme

10:30 Arrival and registration (tea/coffee available)

10:50 Welcome and introduction to the day
Alastair Clark, Senior Programme Director, NIACE

11:00 Speaker: The emerging landscape for volunteering
Eta De Cicco, Programme Director, NIACE

11:30 Group discussions
Major challenges facing volunteering within the next few years

12:00 Feedback from discussions - key points

12:15 Tea/coffee break

12:30 Speaker: Examples of practice in volunteering and role of digital skills
Mel Lenehan, Workers' Educational Association (WEA), with support from volunteers

13:00 Sandwich lunch

13:50 Recap of the morning
Alastair Clark, Senior Programme Director, NIACE

14:00 Group discussions -
What key messages do we want to feed back to
policy makers about volunteering?

What key messages would we want to feed back
to local communities?

14:40 Plenary
Eta De Cicco, Programme Director, NIACE

15:00 Close of seminar (tea/coffee available)

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Event Information

• Arrival and registration is at 10:30am. The seminar will end with tea at 3:00pm
• Event fee per person (includes sandwich lunch, tea/coffee):
  £90 (Nonmembers’ rate)
  £65 (NIACE and WEA fullmembers’ rate*)
  * The discount is only applicable to individual members and organisationalmembers’ staff
  NB: NIACE does not charge VAT on conference or course fees.
• Only application forms with the payments section completed will be processed. NB: If you wish us to invoice your employer we require a copy of the Purchase Order before the form is processed.
• Places will be allocated in order of receipt of completed application forms (one form per person)
• Video cameras may be in use at this event. If you do not wish to be photographed or appear on the video outputs please indicate this on the application form and make yourself known at registration
• Participants should be prepared to take their own notes as there will not be handouts for all sessions
• If you have not received an e-mail confirming your attendance and joining instructions 4 working days before the event please contact:
  NIACE Events Team
  Tel: 0116 204 2833
  Fax: 0116 254 8368
  E-mail: events@niace.org.uk

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Application Conditions

• Event: Tuesday 29 March 2011
  Closing Date: Thursday 17 March 2011
• Cancellations are non-refundable
• The full fee is payable prior to the event
• Substitutions are to be advised 5 working days prior to the event
• A 10 working days notice period is required for provision of electronic note-takers, sign language interpreters and transcription to Braille
• Places can be reserved online via: www niace.org.uk/events Alternatively completed and signed application forms can be faxed or posted to NIACE by the closing date. Reservations by telephone cannot be accepted
• Application forms are individually acknowledged by e-mail. Joining instructions, including map and directions, will be e-mailed out one week before the event

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Application Form

(For people not using the online reservation system above)