 Welcome to your fortnightly NAVCA newsletter, with all the latest events, resources, and support from NAVCA, tailored to local infrastructure organisations. What does local government reorganisation mean for you? It feels like it has been an influencing heavy couple of weeks. The opportunity to flag to Treasury and DCMS the impact the war in Iran is having on communities (many thanks to everyone who contributed what you are seeing and experiencing), and the Covenant Council meeting, which the Prime Minister came to part of and appreciated the importance of a resilient, thriving civil society. We know that change is more than a few meetings, but it does feel like a shift in engagement, listening, and understanding. I am passing on the appreciation I heard, and the desire to do more from Government. Many of you are involved in different aspects of change – Pride in Place investment, neighbourhood governance, shifts in neighbourhood health, as well as health reorganisations and local government reform – keep talking to us about what you are experiencing, and we will use it to influence. Meanwhile there is a load of other information and resources in this newsletter, including on our new training programme, plus a toolkit you can use to start or progress conversations about implementing the Covenant locally. Please do have a look through and find what will be most useful to you. One to flag is there are a few places left on the Allyship Programme starting in June – the first cohort told us how valuable it was for them and their organisation to develop their thinking and practice, and you can find out more about that below. I’m looking forward to seeing many of you at the NAVCA Annual Conference next week. Do come and say hello, tell us what you’re up to and what’s happening in your communities. Best wishes, Maddy Contents: NAVCA events and resources What's on at NAVCA Civil Society Council update Civil Society Covenant toolkit for NAVCA members Allyship Programme - spaces still available Volunteering doesn't happen by accident New CEOs Support Network Health What the Neighbourhood Health Framework means for the VCSE sector Policy What does local government reorganisation mean for you?: webinar for the VCFSE sector New: NAVCA members share their experience with mergers, local government reorganisation, and devolution Employment rights changes - Helping businesses to take action VCSE Barometer Survey - Covenant principles External events and resources Crisis Fundamentals by Horizon Resilience New report: State of the Criminal Justice Voluntary Sector 2025 Updated Charity Commission guidance for trustees A Million Acts of Hope - sign the thank you card City University's Bayes Centre for Charity Effectiveness webinar series NAVCA events and resources What's on at NAVCAOur latest training programme offers practical, relevant and affordable support, designed specifically for local infrastructure organisations. • Choosing an organisational structure (28 May) – Build confidence in supporting local groups to choose the right structure, with clear guidance on charities, CICs and governance. • Stepping into charity leadership (18 June) – Explore what it takes to become a CEO, with practical tools and insight to help you assess your readiness and plan your next step. • Caring for the connectors (23 June) – Take time to reflect, recharge and build resilience in a session designed for those supporting others in challenging environments. • 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. Civil Society Council updatePlease see below a message from Maddy Desforges, NAVCA CEO, who is one of 12 members of the Civil Society Council, which held its first full meeting recently:
"The Civil Society Council had its first full meeting at No. 10 on 22 April. This is the new Council, made up of 12 members to advise Government on civil society and improve the relationship. It was an energetic, engaged and thoughtful meeting. Keir Starmer attended briefly and set it up well in terms of tone and ambition. We discussed terms of reference and ways of working for the group, which are close to being finalised. A key issue for me is developing a forward plan of work which prioritises issues for local organisations – including a range of issues on commissioning and procurement, the relationship with local statutory partners, and understanding and recognition of what the VCS brings. At this meeting, the substantive discussion was with the Minister for Procurement - he listened, reflected, and the examples given both resonated and surprised him in a positive way. A smaller group will take some work forward, mapping out where work is already going on to improve procurement and what else is needed. How social value is defined and measured will also be critical — particularly given concerns that current approaches can disadvantage community groups and charities, for whom social value is at the heart of what they do. I will make sure to feed into further work around blockers to engaging the VCS and where the system works against small organisations, right from the start of the commissioning process through to late payments and complex reporting. There are key points around bid criteria (so funding goes to organisations who have the best local insights and can deliver the best outcomes, not who can write the best bid); timing of the process (I made the point about contracts and grants being awarded after the start date, as well payment in arrears and late payments); the need for cultural shift so commissioners understand when competition is needed, and when it works against the outcomes being sought. We now have dates for meetings through the first year of the Council, so I will put in place some sessions to bring members together beforehand to talk through the issues coming up." Civil Society Covenant toolkit for NAVCA membersWhen the Civil Society Covenant was launched last year, we wanted to make sure that members had the tools and resources to be able to use it to develop local relationships, with both the statutory and the voluntary sector. That's why we created a Civil Society Covenant toolkit for NAVCA members, to support you with template letters, slides, and research to help you make the most of the Covenant. The toolkit links the Covenant to research by DCMS on local civil society infrastructure, bolstering the case for investing in and building relationships with LIOs. Head to the NAVCA Member Hub resources section, and search 'Covenant' to find all the relevant resources. Allyship Programme - spaces still availableAllyship in action has never been more important, and NAVCA members are uniquely placed to lead the way across local systems. Our Allyship Programme is a 12-month, cohort-based offer combining training, peer learning and ongoing support to help you build confidence, share practice and drive meaningful change on EEDI. There are just a few spaces left, with the application deadline extended to 23rd June — don’t miss your chance to be part of a supportive network of members committed to strengthening inclusion across the sector. Find out more here. Volunteering doesn't happen by accidentVolunteering doesn’t happen by accident, and our resources for members are designed to help build understanding and strengthening of the foundations for local action by demonstrating best practice in three core areas: Promoting volunteering; Reducing barriers; and Volunteering policy and practice. We’ve created a guide to enable conversations that identify where efforts are most needed, so that local communities are supported by strong volunteering infrastructure. Use the guide alongside the toolkit and templates, which you can download via the NAVCA website here. New CEOs Support NetworkStepping into a CEO role in local infrastructure can feel both exciting and challenging — and having the right support network makes all the difference. Our New CEOs Network brings together those new to post (and, in some cases, new to the organisation or sector) to connect, share experiences and build supportive relationships with peers across the NAVCA network. Through three facilitated sessions over six months, you’ll have space to reflect on the realities of the role, explore challenges in a trusted environment, and learn from others navigating similar transitions. NAVCA will support and facilitate the cohort initially, with the opportunity for you to shape how the network continues beyond this. If you’re a CEO new to post or new to NAVCA, we’d love you to join the July 2026 cohort: • Thursday 2 July, 3.30pm – 4.30pm • Wednesday 30 September, 1.00pm – 2.00pm • Tuesday 8 December, 9.30am – 10.30am Please book onto each session and add the dates to your calendar. Health What the Neighbourhood Health Framework means for the VCSE sectorNAVCA recently took part in a webinar hosted by Social Enterprise UK, supported by The Richmond Group, with presentations from NHS England, on ''What the Neighbourhood Health Framework Means for the VCSE Sector''. Download a summary of presentations from the webinar and the discussion that followed via the NAVCA member hub. Policy What does local government reorganisation mean for you?: webinar for the VCFSE sectorWhat does local government reorganisation mean for you? Join NAVCA for this practical, insight-led webinar designed for VCFSE organisations navigating local government reorganisation. We’ll explore what’s happening now, what to expect over the next two years, and what it means for your organisation — from funding and contracts to partnerships, rural issues and service delivery. With expert input on the political context, timelines, and emerging intelligence from across affected areas, we’ll share real examples and key lessons to help you plan ahead with confidence. If you receive funding from your local authority, deliver public services, advocate for rural communities, are working in partnership across health, care or prevention, or are interested in how these changes will affect you — then this session will help you understand what’s changing, what matters now, and how to prepare for what comes next. All VCFSE organisations, and everyone with an interest in this important topic, are welcome to join us for this webinar on Tuesday 9th June, 11am – 12:30pm. Book your space here. This webinar is open to all VCFSE organisations, and anyone with an interest in devolution and local government reorganisation. Please feel free to share the above text and the booking link with your local networks. New: NAVCA members share their experience with mergers, local government reorganisation, and devolutionWith recent and upcoming changes to local government, are you considering partnerships, collaborations and mergers with other local infrastructure organisations? As part of our devolution and local government reorganisation project with ACRE, we chatted to some NAVCA members about their experiences and insights, and we've recently published the full series on YouTube. Check out the videos below. Establishing CVS Lincolnshire - a partnership that led to merger Forming Black Country Together - a four-way LIO collaboration District-level local infrastructure organisation merger in Staffordshire Employment rights changes - helping businesses to take actionThe Employment Rights Act became law in December 2025, and will be applicable to 1.4 million businesses across the UK, benefiting 18 million workers. Policies within the legislation are designed to help more people stay in work, support productivity and boost living standards. Support and guidance is available to all employers seeking to understand how these changes will impact their business, and to workers who want to learn about their new rights. This toolkit is designed to help you understand the changes being introduced as part of the government’s plan to Make Work Pay (MWP). Please share this information with your networks. VCSE Barometer Survey - Covenant principlesThe VCSE Observatory is pleased to launch Wave 14 of the VCSE Barometer — the largest quarterly survey of the UK voluntary, community, and social enterprise sector. Thank you for your support in previous waves. This time, the survey focuses on how VCSE organisations experience their relationships with government and what they expect over the next 12 months. In Wave 14, the VCSE Observatory is building a repeatable baseline to assess over time whether VCSE organisations feel that different levels of government are behaving in ways that reflect the Covenant principles. They also want to understand organisations’ views, experiences, priorities, expectations, and concerns for the next 12 months, with a particular focus on the upcoming local elections in May 2026. • Your relationships with local, regional, and national government work in practice. • To what extent do these relationships reflect Covenant principles. • Your organisation’s priorities, expectations, and concerns for the year ahead. The survey runs until 20th May. Fill it in here. External events and resources Crisis Fundamentals by Horizon ResilienceThe VCSEP are running a free training session for organisations in the voluntary sector. Drawing on experience at the heart of UK government crisis management, this training by Horizon Resilience will provide participants with a strong practical foundation in crisis management principles, supported by a scenario-based discussion and applied learning. Attendees will leave with an improved awareness of crisis and resilience in the UK context, including how the voluntary and community sector fits within the wider resilience system and a practical understanding of the crisis lifecycle, from anticipation and response through to stabilisation and recovery. March attendees rated this training 4.6/5 and commented positively on its content and relevancy. This training is aimed at those new to, or less familiar with, formal resilience structures. The workshop will take place on Tuesday 2 June, at 10am - 12pm (limited to 20 places) - Register by emailing [email protected]. New report: State of the Criminal Justice Voluntary Sector 2025Many local organisations will support people in contact with the criminal justice system, often alongside wider community services. Clinks has published its latest State of the Sector 2025 report, providing a national overview of the voluntary organisations working in this space. Read the report: State of the Sector 2025 | Clinks Financial analysis of criminal justice charities: State of the Sector 2025: Financial Analysis | Clinks The findings highlight a sector under increasing pressure, with rising costs, growing demand, and ongoing funding uncertainty. They also underline the vital role these organisations play in supporting individuals and families across communities. The report includes practical insights, examples of local practice, and recommendations for government and funders. Find out more about Clinks’ work: Our Work | Clinks Contact: [email protected] Updated Charity Commission guidance for trusteesThe Charity Commission has published updated guidance for charity trustees on conflicts of interest, with research suggesting many trustees are unsure how to recognise a conflict. The redesigned guidance helps trustees identify and manage both financial conflicts – where a trustee or someone connected to them stands to gain money or other value, and conflicts of loyalty – where obligations to another person or organisation could influence a trustee’s judgement. The updated Charity Commission guidance for trustees, known as CC29, is intended to help trustees identify and manage conflicts of interest and protect charities from harm. The updated guidance is shorter, clearer and includes common examples of situations in which a conflict of interest can arise in a charity. A Million Acts of Hope - sign the thank you cardScrolling on social media or listening to the news, it can feel like we are increasingly divided and that our communities are pulling apart. But when we look more deeply into our communities, it's clear there is so much more that connects than divides us - and that the overwhelming majority of British people stand firmly against extremism and polarisation and with each other. The A Million Acts of Hope campaign is designed to meet the wave of hate and division we see growing - and distorted on social media - with something more powerful: a vast, visible demonstration of the compassion and decency that truly define who we are. That’s why, from 13 to 20th May, hundreds of charities, community and faith groups will be coming together to celebrate the people who show us hope everyday. At the heart of the campaign is the country's biggest ever thank you card - a collective tribute to the people in our communities who make the world around them better, everyday. From the coaches running kids' football teams on freezing Saturday mornings, to the volunteers fighting to keep our local libraries open, and the boxing gyms giving young people somewhere to go and something to believe in. The card is already on over 50,000 signatures, and we're trying to reach 60,000. Sign the card here. City University's Bayes Centre for Charity Effectiveness webinar seriesGrowing and sustaining a coaching culture in smaller organisations Date: Thursday 11 June 2026 Time: 12:30pm - 1:30pm Location: Online, via Zoom CCE Coach Dr Helen Timbrell is joined by Jude Williams, CEO of Literacy Pirates and Executive Coach Simon Hill, as they reflect on how coaching approaches can support sustainable learning and development in less-well-resourced organisations. Drawing on practical examples, attendees will: • Explore what makes coaching effective - before, during and after interventions • Hear how Literacy Pirates is embedding coaching approaches in their work • Come away with tools and techniques that don't require big budgets • Share experiences through facilitated discussion Book now at https://cityunilondon.eu.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_85MRIazUKrCRbiS Comments are closed.
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