 It’s a few weeks now since the local elections, which perhaps cemented the winds of change affecting our politics and reflecting wider cultural shifts we are seeing in communities across the piece. Many of you are at the forefront of that, seeing it, working with it, supporting others to navigate changes within their communities and with elected members. We’ve got a couple of events coming up you might want to join – around working with new councils, and with Akiko Hart, Director of Liberty giving a provocation about the shifts we are seeing and how we might respond to them as a sector. Meanwhile those winds of change will continue to blow over the summer. We’ll know the outcome of the byelection this week, and perhaps have a clearer idea as to the timing of any leadership contest. We’ll know more about how the new leaders and local authorities are bedding down, and how their priorities will play through locally. All of this reinforces the need for strong infrastructure to support resilient communities – the seat we have on the Covenant Council will help shape that and I’d love to hear your views on priorities and what you’d like to see emerge. Do get is touch to let us know how you are working through local changes, and the impact it is having for communities. Contents: Share your experiences of NAVCA membership - and win a free conference ticket What's on at NAVCA Join the NAVCA Allyship Programme Shaping the Civil Society Covenant: member discussion with Maddy Responding to the changing political landscape with Akiko Hart, Director of Liberty New CEOs Support Network: new cohort open Training and workshops for NAVCA members Policy Local government is changing – and we’re here to help you navigate it Share your views on access to banking External events and resources DBS checks for volunteers Training opportunity: Understanding the criminal justice system Democratic Engagement Fund: Prospectus published Share your experiences of NAVCA membership - and win a free conference ticket
At NAVCA, we want to make sure the support we offer reflects what our members need and value. That's why we are running a member engagement survey, to hear from you about your experience of being a NAVCA member. The short survey asks about how you personally engage with NAVCA and what’s working well, as well as where we could do things differently. We want to hear your views on networks, events, our influencing work, how we communicate, and more. Your feedback helps shape our future work and may be used anonymously in our annual reports or on our website. We want to hear from as many people as possible, so everyone in your organisation is welcome to complete the survey. We welcome all responses and, as a thank you, everyone who completes the survey has the opportunity to be entered into a prize draw to win a free ticket to the NAVCA Annual Conference 2027. Fill in the survey here (you have until 12pm on Wednesday 1st July to do this). What's on at NAVCA Join the NAVCA Allyship Programme Over the past year, we’ve seen something meaningful take shape across the NAVCA network. In 2025, our first Allyship Programme brought together people from 14 member organisations, united by a shared commitment to building more inclusive and equitable communities through allyship. The programme combined training, facilitated networking and peer learning to support participants to build their confidence and understanding. Feedback from this first cohort shows that this approach worked well, with participants describing increased confidence to act as allies and a stronger sense of connection to others doing similar work. The Allyship Programme is now open for new participants, with the next cohort starting on 30th June. Download our brochure to find out more about reserving your space, or get in touch with [email protected] for a chat. Shaping the Civil Society Covenant: member discussion with Maddy Ahead of the next Civil Society Covenant Council meeting at No 10, join Maddy Desforges, CEO at NAVCA, for an informal discussion about the issues, opportunities and concerns NAVCA members want to see raised. This is a chance to help shape NAVCA’s contribution to national conversations around the Covenant and its implementation, ensuring the experiences and priorities of local infrastructure organisations and the wider VCSE sector are reflected. The meeting will take place on Thursday 2nd July, 2pm - 3pm. Sign up here. Responding to the changing political landscape with Akiko Hart, Director of Liberty Join NAVCA members as we continue the conversation around responding to the changing political landscape and far-right rhetoric creating tensions in communities. This webinar led by Akiko Hart, Director of Liberty, will explore the challenges of the political shift, rhetoric on both sides of current community tensions, and how we adapt as a sector to respond to that and to support communities. How can we future proof our sector and organisations for future changes? How can we adapt our dialogue and messaging to speak to a wide audience? Join us for this important conversation on Wednesday 24th June, 3pm - 4:30pm. Sign up here. New CEOs Support Network: new cohort open Are you new to a CEO role, new to the sector, or new to the NAVCA network? Join our next New CEOs cohort, a supportive space for NAVCA members to connect with peers, share experiences and build relationships with others navigating the opportunities and challenges of local infrastructure leadership. Across three facilitated sessions over six months, the group will offer space for honest conversation, mutual support and shared learning in a trusted peer environment. NAVCA will support and convene the cohort initially, helping members build a network that can continue beyond the programme. The July 2026 cohort will meet on: • Thursday 2 July, 3.30pm–4.30pm • Wednesday 30 September, 1pm–2pm • Tuesday 8 December, 9.30am–10.30am Please remember to book onto each session separately and add the dates to your calendar. Sign up here. Training and workshops for NAVCA members Our latest training programme offers practical, relevant and affordable support, designed specifically for local infrastructure organisations. • FREE: Caring for the connectors (23 June) – Take time to reflect, recharge and build resilience in a session designed for anyone working in local infrastructure. • Dare to be different: Board diversification (22 & 24 June) – Gain practical tools to support organisations to build stronger, more diverse and resilient boards. • Volunteering and the law (30 June) – Strengthen your knowledge of legal essentials and best practice to support safe and effective volunteering. Find out more and book via the NAVCA Member Hub. Policy Local government is changing – and we’re here to help you navigate it NAVCA and ACRE are working in partnership to enable the VCFSE sector, local infrastructure organisations (LIOs) and rural community support charities, and forming unitary and strategic authorities to work together effectively through devolution and local government reorganisation. We have recently published lots of new resources to support you to navigate changes to local government. There are also resources designed for small VCFSE organisations, for local authorities, and strategic authorities. Explore and download the resources here. Share your views on access to banking HM Treasury is inviting views on access to banking: Review into access to banking The purpose of the review is to identify which in-person banking services are essential or important to consumers; to understand which groups need access to in-person banking services; to assess whether any detriment is being caused to consumers and the extent and materiality of this detriment; and to examine both the current provision (including existing mitigations) and the future trajectory of in-person banking services in the UK. It openly asks for views from voluntary and community groups, so do share your experiences to help shape the review. External events and resources DBS checks for volunteers Volunteers play an important role in supporting communities across the UK. DBS is highlighting the support available to organisations through free Standard and Enhanced DBS checks for eligible volunteer roles. DBS does not charge for eligible volunteer checks, although umbrella bodies may charge a separate administration fee. The campaign aims to improve awareness of volunteer eligibility criteria and common misconceptions around unpaid roles, trainee positions, and work placements. Find out more here. Please share this with your local networks. Training opportunity: Understanding the criminal justice system Many voluntary and community organisations support people who have experience of the criminal justice system, whether through housing, health, employment, family support, substance use, domestic abuse or other community services. To help organisations build their understanding of the sector, Clinks is offering two online training sessions: Navigating the criminal justice system – an introduction to how the criminal justice system works, including prisons, probation and the role of the voluntary sector. Working and volunteering in prisons – a practical overview of prison environments, procedures and effective partnership working. These sessions are ideal for staff and volunteers who are new to criminal justice or would like to strengthen their knowledge and confidence. The sessions are tailored for and delivered specifically for LIOs. Democratic Engagement Fund: Prospectus published MHCLG has now published the prospectus for the Democratic Engagement Fund. The fund will provide grants to civil society organisations (CSOs) to deliver politically neutral, place based activities that help people understand, engage with, and participate in democracy. The fund focuses on groups that are currently less democratically engaged and aims to generate evidence on what works to increase democratic participation, informing future policy and practice. With grants of around £25,000 (and up to £50,000 in exceptional cases), this fund is designed to support organisations already rooted in their communities to reach people who are less likely to engage in democratic processes – including young people, ethnic minority communities, disabled people, people experiencing homelessness, frequent movers, and people from lower socio economic backgrounds. The application period opens on 22 June and the deadline to submit an application is 31 August. Let's keep in touch! Follow us on LinkedIn Join the conversation with the NAVCA network Comments are closed.
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