This section of the site is where work related to the Diversity and Outreach section of the Change Up project is developed and shared.
The work of Growing Up in the West Midlands meets the needs of the diversity of the sector and there is wider access to information, support and engagement
Deliver work plan to management group detailing time line, targets and objectives.
Outreach and lobbying work to enhace the enagement of and support to under-represented groups.
Work with specialist organisations and networks and engage with and implement good practice guidance
Create a strategy and action plan for ongoing development of inclusive practice
Interim report and apply emergent strategy to Growing Up Group at Strategic Forum meeting
6th Sept - establish delivery group (completed)
31st Oct - deliver work plan to management group
10th Nov - contribute to Rural Affairs Forum
19th Jan - Strategic Forum interim report and apply emergent strategy to Growing Up project
15th Mar - Strategic Forum
31st Mar - complete delivery
£7500 plus meeting costs and specialist advice.
The budget was based upon the notion that £6K would resource research/outreach with 20 specialist organisations and £1.5K would be to draw together this work into an action plan.
Also see our notes from the Development Meeting on 16th September
the starting point was the sector's activity doesn't reach everybody therefore we need to look at our own practice, and do some outreach with marginalised/excluded groups to set up a dialogue about how to improve inclusion, so,there are 3 elements:
· Have a regional look at marginalised groups
· Helping forum members look at their own practice
· Helping the Growing Up Management and Delivery groups to look at their own practice
Growing Up in the West Midands Diversity and Outreach Delivery Group email archive
Our presentation at the Strategic Forum January 2006.
to include:
I will bring along my laptop with up to date notes and will bring information to share around the strategic alliances and of discussions at the Strategic Forum on 8th July.
Kabir Ahmed, Nathan Dennis, Darren German, Alison Straker
Alison reminded the group of the key points raised on 16th September and added to those additional notes from the Strategic Forum meeting on 8th July.
Darren summarised the scope of our diversity and outreach remit to include:
He argued that equality and diversity needed to refer both to individual people and the organisations involved. We agreed on the need for an equality based approach which is not led just by the bigger organisations.
Engaging small organisations is an ongoing challenge. It was proposed that we could encourage smaller ground to get involved through some sort of linking process- e.g. around tendering and delivery.
This links clearly with the work of the NCVCCO delivery group and their work on commissioning, which acted as a reminder of the need for this group to link our work across themes of Growing Up. So our first priority is to ensure diversity and outreach is at the core of the work of the other delivery groups.
Much of our discussion was based around economic barriers to inclusion of grassroots organisations across diversity spectrum.
It was proposed that we should build awareness within organisations of the benefits of working in partnership and going for bids collectively to overcome competition. Kabir pointed out, however, that it is fine to build commissioning processes that push partnership, but commonalities and common objectives should drive partnerships and will be what sustains them, not funding bids.
Nathan questioned why grassroots organisations doing good work on the ground continually struggle for resources. How do we overcome this and ensure that big organisations that are good at paperwork don’t dominate.
How do we make things more equal?
Governance and the management of organisations – attitude and mix - was also identified as a barrier.
We agreed upon the need to focus on strategic action and things that will have a lasting impact
The Rural Delivery Framework and Rural Affairs Forum were felt to be of importance to the group as a part of our outreach. Alison is to report back.
The plans for a regional integration strategy for refugee children and young people is something we would also like to engage with.
Alison will write up notes from this meeting on the website
All will communicate as a group between meetings using the group email diversity@allplugin.net (Alison to change Nathan’s email address)
Alison to write up initial draft of how our approach to diversity and outreach might be reflected in the wider Growing Up work
All to develop and adapt this draft through the website
Alison to email website link for expenses claims
Wednesday 19th October 2.30pm KIDS, Wylde Green
The Diversity and Outreach Delivery Group is seeking to commission up to 18 organisations within the West Midlands to carry out small bits of research and outreach work on behalf of the Growing Up in the West Midlands Strategic Forum.
This will be brought together in a report and action plan to be presented to the Strategic Forum on 19th January 2006. We are also seeking to commission an individual or organisation to draw together this work and prepare and present the report action plan.
Our starting point is that the sector's activity doesn't reach everybody therefore we as infrastructure and strategic organisations need to look at our own practice. We would like to begin dialogues with ORGANISATIONS that are currently under-represented within regional and local networks and work together to improve inclusion.
We are still developing the framework that will enable us to draw together all of the work and develop it into an action plan, however in broad terms we are looking for each commission to achieve the following:
meet with at least three (children's and/or young people's) organisations (in a specified outreach area) and in doing so
A clear framework will form part of the contract for this work and support and guidance will be offered by the Diversity and OUtreach Delivery Group.
We anticipate that it will be infrastructure organisations that will undertake the majority of this work and we hope tis will be viewed by them as an opportunity for developing their own practice and networks.
Organisations working with children and young people in the West Midlands with particular skills and experience of the following:
We are looking for expressions of interest by 3rd November 2005. Contracts will be agreed in early November and delivery and feedback to the report writer will be complete by Friday 16th December.
£300 per commission
We are looking for organisations interested in delivering this work in one or more of the key outreach areas. Expressions of interest can be made via this website (if you are logged on to the site scoll down and 'add comment' or through email to Alison Straker). PLEASE CONTACT US BY THURSDAY 3RD NOVEMBER 2005. We need to know your name, organisation and contact details and the geographic area within which you work. Please also identify which outreach area you are interested in and give a brief (100 words maximum) explanation of why you are well placed to do so.
A full agreement and contract wil be developed, in broad terms we are looking for somebody to work with the Diversity and Outreach Delivery Group to
The material from the outreach work (to form the basis of the report and action plan) will be presented in a uniform framework as established by the Diversity and Outreach Delivery Group.
We have a budget of approximately £2000 (including VAT). There may be some further resources depending on what is proposed.
We are asking for initial expressions of interest by 3rd November 2005. We plan to agree a contract for this work in November. Material from the outreach work will be presented on Monday 19th December and a full written report and action plan will be Tuesday 10th January 2006. Report to delivered at Strategic Forum on 19th January 2006.
We are looking for individuals or organisations interested in delivery this work. Please contact us by 3rd November 2005 if you would like to express your interest. Please add your interest on this site, by adding a comment to this page, or by email to alison@ncvys.org.uk. We would like your name, organisation and contact details and a brief outline (one side of A4) expressing why you are well placed to deliver such work. For further information please contact Alison Straker at the above email or on 01905 619 139.
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Straight away |
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31/10/05 |
Submit delivery plan to management group |
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04/11/05 |
Delivery group meeting. Agree who will deliver outreach (up to 20 orgs) and finalise brief. |
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Early Nov |
Contract outreach work Agree consultant |
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16/12/05 |
Deadline for delivery of outreach research findings |
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10/01/06 |
Deadline for delivery of report and action plan |
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19/01/06 |
Present work at Strategic Forum (including wider membership supported to attend). Reshaping/widening of delivery groups and management group. |
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16/03/06 |
Update on our work at Strategic Forum |
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ongoing |
Support other delivery groups and the management group to deliver the recommendations. |
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£300 per commission for the outreach work (up to 18 groups)
approx £2k for the report and action plan.
Present: Kabir Ahmed, Nathan Dennis, Darren German, Alison Straker
Apologies: Gill Owen
The group reflected on and discussed the expressions of interest and agreed who would be commissioned for which work. We were pleased to be able to accept all expressions of interest.
Subject to contractual agreements we have agreed the following commissioning of outreach work.
Carol Howard - 1 commission (Mental Health)
B arts - 3 commissions (LGBT, 20-25, BME - asylum seekers and refugees)
Kids - 4 commissions (sensory disability, learning disability, physical disability, LGBT)
Staffordshire Community Council - 1 commission (rural - Staffordshire)
FSU - 3 commissions (0-5, 2x BME - south Asian/ Horn of Africa)
Urban Development Foundation - 2 commissions (BME - Afghan/Kurdish/Iranian)
First Class Youth Network/ First Class Youth Direct - 2 commissions (BME, 20-25)
We agreed to seek to fill the other 2 work areas identified (rural Herefordshire and rural Shropshire) through approaching well placed organisations.
We had one expression of interest for the report and action plan. This came from B arts. It was agreed to comission them subject to contact.
We worked on a framework for collecting outreach data to form part of the contract.
Flyers about Growing Up in the West Midlands and information about our next forum meeting will also be included for distribution by outreach workers.
The next meeting dates for the delivery group were agreed as follows: 22nd December 11-1 @Kids, 13th January 11-1 @ Kids.
Meeting held at 11am on Monday 13th February 2006 at Kids, Wylde Green
Present: Kabir Ahmed, Darren German, Alison Straker
Apologies: Nathan Dennis
Nathan was very sorry not to be able to come – he blamed the project as he was otherwise engaged meeting a contact he had made at the last strategic forum meeting.
Alison updated the group on the latest developments with the project, including the success of the continuation funding bid.
Alison also outlined the process Rebecca had been through with the Management Group to further develop the Action Plan. The report and action plan are now complete. Rebecca has drafted a further, derivative, document that is aimed at local infrastructure organisations. It offers a summarised version of the report and support and guidance for the development of an action plan. This will be reviewed by the Management Group. All papers will be made available on the website and at the next strategic forum.
The follow-up work with organisations that took part in the outreach will be carried out by Barry or the organisation that takes on the secretariat/development role.
The majority of the time was spent focussing on the evaluation. It was agreed that Kabir would represent the group for the telephone interview with Helen Kara.
A draft of our self-evaluation follows. Members of the group are invited to add to or alter this document over the next week, before it is presented to Helen. In particular, further comments from Nathan will be included.
No further meetings were set for the delivery group as our main task under the Change Up funding is now complete. Fortunately, members of the group aim to continue their involvement in the project through a variety of means.
Self-Evaluation Questions
Please answer these questions for each objective in your delivery plan:
Establish delivery group and deliver work plan
Was this objective met in full?
Yes.
How do you know? What is the evidence?
Four people representing a range of different organisations formed the group and regularly attended meetings. We produced a work plan and shared it on the website and with the management group, where it was approved. We have a plan and we have timesheets of attendance and minutes of each meeting.
If it was fully met or more than met, what do you think made that possible?
Team work – the willingness of everybody to work together and their commitment.
The group itself was very diverse and that was help because it brought many different and important perspectives.
The group formation was embedded from our first meeting at the strategic forum which helped us to keep a focus on the objective and people knew what they were signing up to do.
Was the objective met on time?
Yes
If it was, what do you think made that possible?
As above.
Outreach and lobbying
Was this objective met in full?
Yes and no
How do you know? What is the evidence?
Completed report forms from outreach. Contacts database. Our report and action plan.
If it was not fully met, what was the shortfall?
Time constraints and availability of staff in other organisations meant that not all of the in depth outreach was conducted as we had hoped for. Notably we were able to engage with less disability groups than we had hoped.
The fact that a regional director was doing some of this work might have seemed threatening to some organisations and resulted in them not participating.
There was a general sense of suspicion of why we were asking questions, but this was largely overcome because of the way we chose to work through a wide range of organisations taking on the outreach.
We didn’t have time to build a relationship with Shropshire organisations so that outreach did not go ahead.
In total 40 organisations participated against our original target of 54.
To counter this - an effort was made to include less formal evidence to support the needs and interests of disability groups.
Why do you think this was?
Time and trust and the sensitive nature of the questions at a time when people are planning budgets (see above).
If it was fully met or more than met, what do you think made that possible?
The quality of communications, the data collected demonstrated the relationship between the commissioned agencies and the grass-roots organisations. We were successful in engaging with marginalised and disengaged groups because of personal contact.
Was the objective met on time?
Yes
If it was, what do you think made that possible?
Hard work and commitment, the deadline for the strategic forum, and the desire to produce this in time to influence the rest of the project.
Dissemination and action plan
Was this objective met in full?
Yes our initial objectives were met, but there is always more work to be done
How do you know? What is the evidence?
Report
Action plan
Presentation at strategic forum
Database of organisations
Management group meetings notes
Management group cooperation in developing workplans for other areas of work
Plan to extend work by providing a framework for local infrastructure
If it was fully met or more than met, what do you think made that possible?
Commitment, determination, time pressure. The management group wants to embrace this work. ECM – the fact that it’s new and important and that we all need to respond to it. We all need to understand how we relate to it.
Was the objective met on time?
Yes – we extended the time to allow for further developments (local infrastructure resource and integration into main work of GUIM)
If it was, what do you think made that possible?
See above. Plus determination!
Please answer these questions for the project as a whole:
1. How successful was the collaboration within your group?
Very! See comments above relating to delivery group objective.
What challenges did you face to collaborating within your group?
There were potential challenges as we could have competed over commissioning, but we didn’t have any actual problems and don’t feel that we had challenges in that respect. Time was a challenge.
How successful was your group in collaborating with other groups/organisations?
Successful. See comments under outreach. Some communication between delivery groups but this was not structured – other than through the strategic forum meetings. There could have been more – it depended too much on Alison acting between the groups.
What challenges did you face in collaborating with other groups/organisations?
See comments in outreach work above. The time!
Were there any unexpected outcomes?
Yes
If so, what were they?
Our joint work helped delivery group members rethink and break down their own prejudices, and develop their approach to work.
Delivery group members have become engaged in new opportunities as a direct result of being part of the delivery group, without bureaucracy – networks, delivery of funded commissioned work.
Other organisations are becoming involved in G:up as a result of this work – commissioned work attending meetings etc
We experienced grass roots organisations not knowing where they fit to ECM outcomes – we were able to make them aware of that. We were also able to promote our own organisation and its work to the people we interviewed – thus strengthening our connections at a local level.
Other local and regional networks are keen to develop the contacts we have made and engage people in their work (NCVCCO, WMVYSF).
Why do you think they happened?
They needed to!
Flexibility, the lack of bureaucracy (or its containment in the management group/accountable body). Willingness to bring about change.
present:
Kabir Ahmed, Darren German, Alison Straker
in attendance:
Rebecca Frankenberg
apologies:
Nathan Dennis
Rebcca presented the draft report and action plan. It was well received and felt to be a god reflection of the findings, though the group made various recommendations for change.
there are various stages to completing the work:
integrate responses from 19th Jan meeting; link to managment group and the work of other delivery groups - particularly to support the development of the action plan.; integrate information regarding disability.
Action Darren to get info to Rebecca for Tuesday 17th Jan
Action Alison and Rebecca to arrange for Rebecca to attend management group on 26th Jan
A plan was made for 19th January presentation
Darren - 2 min intro to work and the process
Rebecca - 10 mins key findings
Darren and Kabir - group activity - what would you recommend
Kabir - linking this back to our recommendations and where next.
We will discuss with Nathan what he would like to contribute and may re-allocate roles.
next meeting Monday 13th Feb 11am -1pm @ kids
Things have been moving along at a pace. nearly all the outreach froms are back now and I have sent them on to Rebecca from Barts who will be joining us on Thursday to discuss how we want to move forward with the report and action plan.
no formal agenda for the meeting but we need to address the following:
Present: Kabir Ahmed, Nathan Dennis, Darren German, Alison Straker
In attendance: Rebecca Frankenberg of Barts.
expenses and travel claims were completed for past meetings
the group shared their experiences of the outreach work and drew out key themes and issues.
Darren is yet to writ up his outreach - he will forward it to Rebecca and Alison in the first week of January
No shropshire outreach was undertaken. The money will be reinvested as an access fund to support small grous attending the Strategic Forum.
Gill Owen is yet to send the work in from rural staffordshire outreach. Alison to follow this up.
we felt it was important to ensure we mainatined clear communication back to the groups about what action is being taken as a result of this outreach. We would like to invite them on 19th January.
Kabir is to talk with Dave Nichols at BVSC's MOST project to follwo up possible connections around ICT and provisision of hardware for small groups.
Rebecca worked with the group to set clear objectives for the report and action plan and a timescale for its delivery. The work will describe the information gathering process and collate the key outcomes (preserving the anonymity of individuals and organisations). It will make key recommendations for local infrastructure organisations, the Growing Up in the West Midlands Strategic Forum and its delivery groups, and outline futher issues to be addressed beyond the scope of current work. It is anticipated that this will be a useful tool for evidencing the need for future funding.
Alison to send Rebecca further details of the work of other delivery groups to integrate into action plan. we can also discuss this with other members of the Management Group.
Rebecca to produce a draft by 12th January and to discus this with the group at the 13th January meeting, when we will also decide how to feedback on 19th January meeting. Initial ideas for feedback to the forum include a participatory exercise to prioritise actions.
We discussed making the event on 19th as accessible as possible. There is good disabled access at Carrs Lane. Provision of Hala food seemed complicated but follwoing our meeting this has been resolved.
monitoring is to be completed retrospectively. We will approach each of the roganisations that have done the outreach and ask them to complete both the individual and organisation forms. These should be returned with final invoices.
we looked at the evaluation requirements and felt these could be more appropriately addressed at a future meeting.
The main drive of this meeting was to develop our work plan for the delivery of our core objectives (in a participatory way) and to meet our deadline of 31st October to present our plan to the Management Group.
Before this, though, we reminded ourselves of the wider Growing Up in the West Midlands project and the guidance we have for the delivery of our work - terms of reference, commissioning guidance, workplanning guidance.
Kabir Ahmed, Darren German, Gill Owen, Alison Straker
Nathan Dennis
We welcomed Gill Owen to the group, and her knowledge and experience of rural outreach.
The main focus of our meetig was on work planning, but as well as taking stock of the project and its activities and aspirations to date, we also clarified our thoughts and intentions.
We are keen to overcome barriers that prevent particiapation and engagement, in particular at a regional level. We agreed upon the need to get voices heard from across the board and at a level where they can effect change. We also agreed that the focus of our work was on organisations and access at an organisational rather than a personal level (though the distinction may not always be clear). This is not to undervalue work needed to ensure Growing Up in the West Midlands engages with a diverse range of children and young people - we hope to support the CYP group to do so.
We feel it is important to ground any action plan in actual rather than perceived barriers - hence our emphasis on small scale qualitative investigation (ie getting out and talking to people). We hope this in itself will be a practal action and will encourage a wider enagement in the Growing Up in the West Midlands Strategic Forum.
We would like to focus our work on organisations who work with children and young people and who have a focus or expertise in one or more of the following:
We would like our work to impact on the development of the Growing Up in the West Midlands strategic Forum so have given ourselves tight deadlines to deliver the majority of our activity before January.
See our delivery plan here.