Annual Review
2021-2022
Celebrating fifteen years
Our Mission
Increased Impact, Influence and Investment in and from Cumbria CVS and the Third sector.
Our Vision
A strong voluntary sector working collectively across Cumbria for the greater good.
Our Values
Leadership
Excellence
Leading by example – encouraging creativity, innovation and best practice and being passionate about what we do.
Aiming for and promoting excellence in everything we do.
Equity
Recognising, valuing and being accessible to the Cumbrian community and all its diversity.
Integrity
Treating ourselves and others with respect and dignity, being honest, transparent and accountable to all our stakeholders.
Voluntarism
Championing the principle of not-for-profit contributions to life in Cumbria.
Our Strategic Priorities
The colours used below are repeated throughout this Annual Review, with the border around each article signifying the Strategic Priority it relates to.
System
Change
Make Cumbria a better place to live by seeking positive system change.
Identify & Meet Gaps
Identify and meet identified delivery gaps to add value and contribute positively to the local infrastructure through consistent “good enough” services which achieve planned outcomes, in partnership with others.
Effective & Sustainable Organisation
Ensure that Cumbria CVS is an effective, sustainable, well-resourced, and productive organisation with engaged and happy colleagues.
Supporting Members
Support our members to respond to changes in environment, demands and aspirations and to achieve their charitable aims by developing and connecting them, helping to maximise their potential and enable their voice to be heard.
Report from the Chair
In last year's Report I referred to that year as the 'Covid Year' in the hope that we would be clear of it this year. However, Covid has continued to be the backdrop to 2021/22 and remains so today. Many have either contracted Covid or supported family and friends as they coped with it. And yet, life has continued and we have learned to adapt and adjust how we conduct our affairs even to the extent that sometimes it seems barely a day passes without another Zoom or MS Teams meeting.
Yet what has been quite astonishing is how, despite all these challenges, the staff, Trustees and volunteers in Cumbria CVS and in our many member organisations continue to deliver the vital services that support our communities and those in need of help - evidence of that is very vividly demonstrated in the stories throughout this Review.
The financial underpinning of Third Sector organisations including ours, has been extremely challenging in recent years and 2021/22 was as difficult as any. I would like to acknowledge the dedication and hard
work of the CEO, the SMT, our Treasurer, Matthew Scott and the Finance Team for the immense amount of hard work they have put in to stabilising our finances and seeking out additional funding streams whilst at the same time helping our member organisations with advice and support in their funding bids. It has not been an easy time but the challenges have been, and continue to be, met head on. Matthew retired at the end of the financial year having delivered sterling work for us in his time in the role, which was greatly appreciated.
A new initiative started this year - a county wide Trustee Network which has had several very successful meetings involving Trustees from a wide cross-section of our member organisations. It has been very well received as an opportunity to develop and learn from the experience of others and seems to have met a very obvious need.
In addition to Matthew, three other Trustees have retired - Victoria Nicholson, Robin Cope and Joanna Coleman. All gave unstinted time and dedication to their roles and deserve our sincere gratitude. We have
recruited a new Treasurer, Jenny Braithwaite and earlier in the year we also recruited Lee Martin-White who improves our representation from the West. More recently we have recruited three more Trustees - Karen Dutton, Zara Myers and Victoria Vyalinka – who are just beginning their induction.
Colin Ranshaw, our Vice Chair and Chair of our HR & Quality Committee, has come to the end of his term, just as I write this, and is leaving us. He will be sadly missed after six years of devoted service but remains active in the Third Sector in the county.
Finally, I would like to record my gratitude to all our Trustees, staff and volunteers for their hard work and dedication as we give support to all our Third Sector member organisations across Cumbria. I remain proud to chair such a wonderful organisation.
Mike Taylor
CBE TD DL (Ret’d)
MA (Cantab) LL B (Cantab)
FCIM FCIPD
“The staff, Trustees and volunteers in Cumbria CVS and in our many member organisations continue to deliver the vital services that support our communities and those in need of help.”
“Our sector continues to demonstrate resilience in the face of many of the challenges that affect us...”
CEO's Report
"Resilience” – it’s an odd word, I think - mainly in the way it is used. The Oxford English defines it as “the capacity to recover quickly from difficulties”. We hear of personal resilience, organisational resilience – even the resilience of our communities, population, country. A quick google suggests that at a personal level there is physical resilience, mental resilience and emotional resilience – as well as “social resilience” which has played a huge part in our lives this year: all about “our connection to others and how we can support each other through difficult times”.
What I suspect nobody will argue with is that we continue to experience and anticipate “difficult times” – and that we can identify some great examples of resilience amongst them.
The resilience of those Cumbrians receiving Universal Credit when the £20 weekly increase was withdrawn. The resilience of Cumbrian communities in the October floods and in November 2021 when Storm Arwen struck, causing large scale damage, flooding and power loss. The resilience of the NHS across Cumbria, dealing with some of the highest demand and challenging
conditions in their history. But we should not believe that this resilience is intrinsic: all these examples involve a degree of trauma, tragedy, stress and damage - with many people severely affected at home, work and in their daily lives.
Our sector continues to demonstrate resilience in the face of many of the challenges that affect us and our volunteers, staff, partners continue to adapt and flex. But relatively few charities closed their doors: many found different ways to work, to provide services, to raise funds - to survive.
Cumbria CVS demonstrated our resilience this year by continuing to stabilise our financial position; taking clear steps to support our team’s mental health; developing and launching new projects and building an ever-stronger team. The establishment of our Service Development team has helped us to communicate and understand, prepare ideas into proposals, seek funding, carry out research and evaluation and to support the wider sector. Our Operations Teams contribute enormously to this agenda – our health team has grown and continued to ensure significant investment in third sector organisations across the county. We developed new
project proposals that will meet clear gaps in supporting improved mental health, volunteers, Trustees, and funding linkages with the public sector. And our Finance and Resources team have battled through remote working, staff changes, increased demand from a larger team and new ways of working.
Investing in our resilience makes sense. It doesn’t mean that the challenges will go away – or that it won’t be hard work to reach the other side – but it does mean that we can cope, respond and recover - building on the support of our friends, partners, colleagues and members. Thank you all for the support you have given to all of us at Cumbria CVS - and please be assured that we will continue to do whatever we can to get us all through the inevitable challenges about to arrive.
David Allen
Chief Executive
Cumbria CVS
2022 sees us celebrating 15 years since the creation of Cumbria CVS, although we started life 110 years ago in Carlisle.
We’ve selected some highlights and significant moments from the last decade and a half of our existence, and you’ll find them woven throughout this Annual Review… in much the same way as you’ll find us woven throughout the VCFSE sector in Cumbria.
15 years of Cumbria CVS
2004
Formation of Cumbria Association of CVSs to allow for closer partnership working, comprising Eden, West, Barrow, Carlisle, and South Lakes CVSs and ACT (then known as Voluntary Action Cumbria). Around the same time, Cumbria Third Sector Network is formed.
Living With and Beyond Cancer
For many of the people that we support, Covid has been - and still is - an ongoing concern, with some avoiding face to face contact. We know that our support line is often the preferred option and of the 59 new referrals this year, 36 are still receiving regular calls from our volunteers.
We opened our Cancer Café in Workington’s Carnegie Theatre, which is regularly attended by an enthusiastic group of 7 to 10 people. Plans are in place to open Cancer Cafés in Carlisle and Penrith in the coming financial year.
Our first Bindi’s Bimble of the year was along the Keswick to Threlkeld path. It is such a great way to meet people, enjoy a little exercise and get support from peers in the stunning scenery of the Lake District. Five walkers joined us, along with care dogs Bindi and Noodle.
We are at the final stages of being able to offer weekly support at the new Northern Centre for Cancer Care in Carlisle. Our volunteers will be able to offer a friendly listening ear to anyone affected by cancer.
During this period we have worked with local NHS cancer service providers, patients, and carers, to develop a patient and carer representation group for North Cumbria. The group will listen to what people have to say about cancer services and work to support improvements.
Other partnership work has included early development Cancer Champions. We hope this will help improve outcomes for people with cancer through early detection.
“As the weeks went by there were clear changes for the better. Some really grew as leaders whilst others managed to control both tempers and tantrums. Every student made progress.”
-Chaplain, St Bernard’s Catholic High School
Inspiring Barrow, Kickstart Programme had a busy year supporting children post-Covid by delivering the after-school programme across 21 schools in the Furness area. The staff worked with year 6 children from 16 primary schools, and years 7 and 8 children from 5 secondary schools.
The programme, aimed at improving teamwork, resilience, communication, leadership and confidence, was in high demand and the team were delighted to support the schools to help restore these skills.
Each cohort had the opportunity to develop by taking part in non-academic activities designed to encourage participation in a safe and nurturing environment. Additionally, at each half term the children were taken to The Kepplewray Centre in Broughton to build on these skills by participating in outdoor activities such as canoeing, archery, crate stacking and bush craft.
The programme culminated each term with a family celebration evening held at The Forum (Barrow) where the children received certificates and awards for their efforts. Guest dignitaries also attended as speakers and to present the awards including, HM Lord Lieutenant for Cumbria Mrs Hensman, MP for Barrow and Furness Simon Fell, and two successive Mayors of Barrow, Helen Wall and Haley Preston.
The programme has secured funding for a further year thanks to financial contributions from Ørsted’s Walney Extension Community Fund, Francis C Scott Charitable Trust, Cumbria Community Foundation, The National Lottery Community Fund, and in-kind help from Cando FM.
Still Inspiring Barrow!
We worked with:
Year 6 - 83 children
Year 7 - 70 children
Year 8 - 67 children
Total = 220
Who reported:
76% improved confidence
87% improved resilience
84% improved teamworking skills
100% would recommend the programme to others
Putting People in the Lead
People in the Lead supports community groups to develop projects across their communities throughout Barrow and the South Lakes. The project works at a grassroots level, supporting individuals and groups with initial set-up, advising on governance and group structures, and working with existing groups so they can continue to deliver much-needed projects.
Two funding fairs – one in Barrow and one in South Lakes - were held during the year, where 100 community organisations were given the opportunity to meet funders face to face. These events received excellent feedback from attendees and helped give our members a voice, supporting connections and developing members’ confidence with funders.
The project is represented on a number of partnership meetings, including the Barrow Health and Wellbeing Partnership, Local Resilience Forums, Love Barrow Together Coalition, Barrow Funders Partners and the Brilliant Barrow Comms and Engagement Team, working closely with them to develop collaborative projects.
Needs of community groups and the voluntary sector have been addressed within these meetings, and the project has supported them with identifying funding and completing applications, recruiting volunteers, and writing policies and procedures.
“The support has been invaluable. Kate gave me the confidence to turn my dream of passing on my knowledge of the local area to the next generations into reality. I have been able to set up the CIC, write policies and a constitution, and acquire a grant to get Just Imagine… off the ground.”
-Jon Murphy, Just Imagine... CIC
2007
2007
The UK’s first county-wide Council for Voluntary Service is incorporated as a charity on 22 March, with a formal merger on 1 October.
Karen Bowen is appointed to lead Cumbria CVS. It is acclaimed as a role model by the National Association of Councils for Voluntary Service, with other counties
subsequently seeking advice and guidance on adopting this model.
58 community groups/organisations received capacity support
We helped small groups and organisations secure over £100k in funding
15 Eric Wright Charitable Trust Grants awarded
“The whole Bedrock team have been extremely supportive. The information they share is always useful and the knowledge and advice they offer is second to none.”
“As a project Bedrock is to be congratulated on their friendly personal approach to solving many issues that face all non-profit voluntary organisations.”
Responses received from mid-term evaluation survey
Groups supported:
60 – Volunteering
50 – Funding
20 – Digital skills
20 – Social impact
15 – Governance
12 – Business planning
Basics programme provides
Bedrock for community organisations
Bedrock Basics supports community organisations across West Cumbria to build on their existing skills to develop their organisational capabilities, resilience, and sustainability.
During the year, the project worked with 124 charities and other not-for-profit community organisations to support them with a range of requirements, including:
- Volunteers and volunteering, including developing and promoting opportunities, and reviewing policies and procedures
- Funding, including identifying opportunities and applying, skills development training, and funding searches
- Digital skills, including confidence-building and skills development, running online meetings, and ‘lunch and learn’ sessions to share knowledge of using Canva
- Social Impact, including introducing what it is and how to demonstrate the difference that their work makes to the people, groups, and communities they support
- Governance and trustees, focussing on recruiting additional trustees with appropriate skills and abilities
- Business planning, delivered on a group basis with follow up one to one support to provide a framework for developing appropriate plans, and support with implementation.
Forces Link CICs off
Hosted by us from 2018, Forces Link aimed to connect and signpost ex-forces personnel, and their families, to a range of support that would meet their needs.
Activities in Carlisle and Eden included:
- Walking project Forward Step
- Regular veterans breakfast club
- Hosting the county-wide veterans network
During the year, the project became a Community Interest Company, which provides better sustainability for the work as well as opportunities to respond to needs and funding opportunities faster.
In doing this, Forces Link became an Armed Forces specific organisation, meaning they can access a broader range of funding and can grow based on their own vision and values, and those of the veterans and ex-forces community. The future looks exciting as they focus on community activity and education services, and they look forward to working with us to be able to help educate other third sector organisations on the needs of local veterans and their families. They intend to continue growing the network and supporting veterans to access the range of services and activities available across Cumbria.
Forces Link CIC has been working with Sporting Force and Broughton House as part of the North East and North West consortium working on the Veterans’ Places, Pathways and People project which is a two year Armed Forces Covenant funded project.
2009
The organisation rises to the challenge of offering extra support during the devastating November floods. Diverting resources and joining other partners, our support assisted in the Cumbria Flood Recovery Fund Appeal attracting over £2.5m.
My Future Project (formerly named Getting Cumbria to Work) helps people, in Barrow and South Lakeland, aged 18+ to overcome barriers to move towards employment, into job search and training and to improve their skills, confidence and health and well-being. The project is funded by the European Social Fund and The National Lottery Community Fund.
The BBO My Future partnership successfully secured £724,487 of additional performance-based extension funding for 2021-2023. These funds provided further investment in the partner organisations in Barrow and South Lakeland, enabled the retention of skilled staff, increased the number of local people accessing support and provided opportunities for further project development in line with community need.
BBO My Future
2011
Our Census project provides accessible information on our sector, with factsheets produced to explain the data. Insights include that there were more than 2,300 registered charities in Cumbria, with a combined income of £280m per year, and 7,300 paid staff.
2010
Cumbria CVS obtains the NAVCA Quality Award, demonstrating the high quality of services delivered to the voluntary and community sector in the county.
Cumbria voluntary and community sector organisations have been involved in Cumbria’s Strategic Refugee Group for a number of years, but this work saw a significant increase in activity at the start of 2022.
In January, a hotel housing asylum seekers opened in Barrow, and local community groups worked hard to support the new residents with clothing, phones, activities and improving their English language skills. This was a fantastic effort involving Furness Multi-Cultural Community Forum, Furness Refugee Support Group, the Salvation Army and other local groups, supported by Cumbria CVS and the local councils. There has also been wider work, for example, in local schools, to help people to understand the asylum process.
Towards the end of the year, people displaced by the war in Ukraine began to arrive in Cumbria, and again, many local groups have played a role in supporting the families settle in to life in Cumbria.
This is a growing area of work, with another asylum hotel opening in Carlisle, and the associated work to coordinate the voluntary and community sector support needed there.
Supporting Refugees and Asylum Seekers
“CVS play a critical role in supporting small groups involved in very local activity to engage in strategic discussions and have a voice in shaping the multi-agency approach. Their staff champion the contributions, knowledge and insight that the VCFS bring to this complex and demanding area of work. This helps shine a light on the immense value the sector is playing in supporting refugees and asylum seekers.”
- Helen Blake, Senior Manager Customer, Policy and Scrutiny, Cumbria County Council
2011
Cumbria CVS receives a financial lifeline from the Big Lottery. The £470k received provides much-needed time to reshape how services are delivered, to decrease dependence on grants, be able to bid for contracts on the open market and raise income from the sale of goods and services.
The community resilience coordinator role has continued to be a busy one!
The year started with work to support the Coronavirus vaccination programme, producing FAQs, and being involved in work to reduce inequalities in vaccine uptake – with many community group volunteers helping at local vaccination centres. Some of this work has been supported by a Community Resilience Fund established by Cumbria’s Public Health Team and run by Cumbria Community Foundation.
Financial difficulty has become an increasing concern as we’ve moved towards recovery from the pandemic, and a poverty working group has helped to inform how government hardship funding has been spent locally.
There’s been some preparation work, including training sessions and exercises around Cumbria’s new Multi-Agency Flood Plan that included community groups from across the county.
And again, there have also been plenty of opportunities to put Cumbria’s emergency plans into practice. This year has seen homes evacuated because of a landslip, a multi-agency effort to increase the capacity within the social care system, flooding during October half term, and some major storms. The first of those, Arwen, saw thousands of homes without power, and often also without phone or internet, for many days, with communities and volunteers once again playing a key part in Cumbria’s overall response. Unfortunately, many of the same communities experienced further disruption in later storms.
Cumbria’s Local Resilience Forum agreed a strategic approach to community resilience, embedding the community-led approach that has proved so successful during the pandemic and other recent incidents.
Community resilience tested… again
“As Chair of the COVID-19 Strategic Coordination Group I am enormously grateful for the work that Carolyn Otley contributed, along with the wide range of community groups who all made seemingly impossible tasks achievable. We simply could not have delivered our pandemic response without the contribution of Cumbria's voluntary sector.”
-Andy Slattery QPM, Head of Security, Fire & Resilience, BAE Systems
Cumbria Third Sector Network (CTSN) has continued to provide opportunities for local voluntary and community sector organisations to have a voice in the decisions that affect them.
At the start of the year, the network submitted a response to government’s consultation on the boundary options for Local Government Reorganisation, informed by discussion at an online event.
CTSN also played a key role in surveying local VCFSE organisations about impacts they and their users were seeing from the Coronavirus pandemic, and using the findings from this work to influence the content of Cumbria’s Coronavirus Recovery Strategy. This was a joint effort with Cumbria Community Foundation, Cumbria CVS and the Cumbria Community Resilience Group.
We also organised an event (with Cumbria Action for Health Network) to enable organisations to feed in to the Lancashire and Cumbria Health Equity Commission.
In September 2021, John Holland stood down as the Independent Chair of the network at the end of his five year term. He was a strong advocate for Cumbria’s Third Sector during this time, taking on high profile roles such as chairing Cumbria Leadership Board for a year, and will be a very hard act for our next Chair to follow!
Cumbria Third Sector
Network
2011
Cumbria CVS launches the County Volunteering Network bringing together volunteer managers in Cumbria to spread good practice in volunteer management.
Local Government Re-organisation: getting the VCFSE sector involved
From 1 April 2023 local government in Cumbria will change. The current six district councils and Cumbria County Council will be replaced by two new unitary authorities. Government announced its decision to create two new unitary councils in July 2021. Since then, work has been ongoing to develop and implement a transition plan.
All seven local authorities, supported by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, are collaborating on the complex operation to create the two new authorities. This entails a considerable amount of work to ensure that people in Cumbria receive the high level of service and delivery they expect and deserve.
The challenges of Local Government Re-organisation are significant and could impact the VCFSE sector in Cumbria as we move towards either Cumberland or Westmorland-with-Furness unitary authorities, via the newly established Shadow Authorities, in the lead-up to “Vesting Day” in April 2023.
We have flagged a willingness to engage to ensure that the VCFSE sector is considered throughout this process – both through a “Third Sector Network” engagement event, update sessions to meet representatives of the new organisations, and independently.
We understand that the plan is for the next year to be about a “safe and legal” transition to the new structures – with further consultation later in 2022 and into 2023. However, we will continue to raise concerns and issues – as well as offer our support – to seek a fairer deal for the most vulnerable in our society and to develop the wider VCFSE sector’s capacity to provide help.
- Health Partnerships Manager attends 15+ working groups
- Supported projects bringing additional £1m into our sector
Health & Care - A year of change and increasing opportunities
Building on a year of improved integration between health & care and the third sector in 2020/21, this year has been another filled with significant change and increasing opportunities for our sector in North Cumbria.
Our Health Partnerships Manager has worked with partners from VONNE (Voluntary Organisations Network North East) on the VCSE ICS Partnership Programme, creating a robust structure to support integration into the emerging NHS Integrated Care System across the North East & North Cumbria. This includes a Health & Wellbeing Network, a Partnership Forum and the ongoing development of a range of Sub-Groups enabling our sector’s voice and providing a mechanism for recruiting and supporting representation at ICS workstream and strategic level. This work will be ongoing into 2022/23 as the ICS is formally created through legislation.
We continue to meet regularly with local organisations from all sectors to support their staff and trustees to better understand health and care structures in North Cumbria and improve their integration with staff and systems locally. Local Networks and organisations also feed into our representation at strategic system-wide working groups including: Winter Planning, Ageing Well, Social Prescribing, ICC Executive Board, and Mental Health Transformation Programme.
Our partnership with Cumbria Community Foundation has helped us develop NHS-funded grant programmes including the Hospital Discharge Fund and the ICC focused Health Improvement Fund – with over £1m making its way to third sector organisations this year alone. These enable our sector to showcase their innovative and flexible practice and integrate our services into system approaches to some of the most difficult issues facing the NHS and care system.
We are seeing an increased level of genuine integration in North Cumbria but there is much still to be done. Our vibrant and innovative sector is proving equal to some of the most difficult challenges the health and care sector face and we know that the services we provide have significantly improved patient outcomes.
Comments about the Hospital Discharge Fund:
“This Fund has provided a fantastic opportunity to strengthen those really valuable relationships between our health and care services and our third sector partners. Working together will really help both our people and our services here in North Cumbria.”
-Peter Rooney, Chief Operating Officer,
NHS North Cumbria Clinical Commissioning Group
“This Fund has provided us with the opportunity to work closely with partners to support people to return home from hospital, and enable people to live their most independent lives. We are delighted with the projects that have been delivered and the difference that these have made.”
-Sarah Farragher, Home First and System Flow Coordinator
Action for Health and Mental Health Provider Forum Networks
We have worked hard to keep our Health & Wellbeing Bulletin live, relevant, and pumping all sorts of information about health and care into the far corners of our county. Membership has grown to more than 800 people, with many sharing the information with staff teams and colleagues.
Our two Networks continue to thrive in North Cumbria with regular events. These bring staff and volunteers from our sector together to network, gather information about all things health and care, and share information about their services. Highlights have included:
- Regular updates about the Mental Health Transformation Programme
- Information about local government reform
- Updates from Hospice at Home West Cumbria, iCAN Fitness, CADAS, Age UK’s Well@home discharge services, Groundwork’s CHOICES, Citizen’s Advice COVID support service, CLIC free training, collaboration and organisational development support, and much more.
A special event updated members on the complex changes to the NHS governance structures in the North East & North Cumbria, and we did our best to make it relevant, informative and easy to understand. We also ensured we had regular input at Action for Health meetings from North East & North Cumbria VCSE Partnership Programme staff, leading the development of VCSE structures across the region that support the sector’s engagement/ integration with the developing ICS. We continue to promote and support these structures, including the NENC Partnership Forum and the many specialist Networks.
“I love attending North Cumbria’s Action for Health meetings - the staff & volunteers who come along are always really interested in the NHS and have a genuine interest in the complex changes happening in the North East & Cumbria and how these will impact on them.”
-Lisa Taylor, VCSE Partnership Programme Lead, NENC ICS
ACTION FOR HEALTH
7 189 168
EVENTS ATTENDEES ORGANISATIONS
MENTAL HEALTH PROVIDER FORUM
7 203 175
EVENTS ATTENDEES ORGANISATIONS
818
TOTAL
MEMBERSHIP
25
BULLETINS
SENT
963
INBOUND REFERRALS RECEIVED
256
REFERRALS MADE TO OTHER THIRD SECTOR SERVICES
372
REFERRALS MADE TO OUR 7 PARTNER ORGANISATIONS UNDER THE HEALTH & WELFARE SUPPORT SERVICE, RESULTING IN A FURTHER...
246
ONWARD REFERRALS TO OTHER THIRD SECTOR ORGANISATIONS
The Team presently comprises of three third Sector referral coordinators, a data management administrator, and a senior third sector referral Coordinator all of whom are employed by Cumbria CVS and have honorary contracts with North Cumbria Integrated Care NHS Trust.
They support Integrated Care Community (ICC) staff within all eight ICCs across North Cumbria to understand the third sector and encourage these staff to make appropriate referrals to the Team on behalf of individuals who would benefit from additional, non-clinical support from the variety of third sector services available.
During this period, the Team has also developed new referral pathways to support North West Ambulance Services community paramedics, community podiatry teams and Cumbria Health on Call to make referrals for individuals into the Team. They have also played an integral part in supporting people being discharged from acute and community hospitals under NHS England’s ‘Discharge to Assess’ procedures, ensuring that they are offered additional support once discharged home from hospital.
The Team continues to coordinate the Health & Welfare Telephone Support Service, developed as a direct response to the Covid-19 pandemic in partnership with NCIC NHS Trust, NENC ICB and seven key third sector organisations operating in North Cumbria.
During the financial year, additional funds worth £85,000 were channelled through to other third sector organisations to deliver community support programmes, coordinated by the Team. These included the delivery of the Health & Welfare Telephone Support Service, A Falls Prevention Programme, and an Unpaid Carer Support Programme.
Third Sector Referral Coordinator Team
“Oh, that’s great. It sounds like such a great service to offer, there is so much need for this. Compared to most of our referrals, this is brilliant! Thanks again for your help, much appreciated.”
-Feedback from CHOC GP
Valuing volunteering
During another very busy year, and with a tentative return to face-to-face volunteering, we organised five Volunteer Manager Network meetings to spread good practice, supporting 96 Volunteer Managers in Cumbria. Topics included; Safe Return to Volunteering with Covid-19, Recognising Volunteers, and Volunteer Training.
Nearly 100 organisations had their volunteering opportunities promoted via our social media channels, and over 1000 received regular information, advice and support via the County Volunteering Network.
We also ran or attended 32 recruitment events involving 53 charities and organisations, speaking to 425 people about our Volunteer Brokerage service, local volunteering opportunities in Cumbria and the benefits of volunteering. Themed recruitment events included children and youth charities, animal charities, and Trustees.
We launched a new Trustee Network, bringing together over 50 trustees and directors to share learning and best practice, and started the Employer Supported Volunteering Subgroup, connecting Volunteer Managers, the third sector and businesses to develop opportunities.
We would like to thank our own trustees and volunteers for all their time, support and skills that they continue to offer us. Their help in areas including cancer support, digital, admin and gardening are invaluable.
“Thank you for all the work you have done to support us with our recent volunteer campaign. We have recruited 11 new volunteers and 1 new trustee, which is absolutely beyond our expectation. We also have two 18 year old volunteers which has doubled our young volunteer number.”
-Michael Nutter, Hospitality & Facilities Manager, Carnegie Theatre Trust
Cheers for Volunteers! A video highlighting the vital work of volunteers in Cumbria during Covid was launched in March. ‘Volunteering in Cumbria’ was shared on the second anniversary of the formal declaration of a major incident in the county. Organisations, partners, and volunteers from across Cumbria came together to respond to the challenges of the pandemic and support local communities.
The video showcases and celebrates their achievements, and features the stories of volunteers who have made a huge difference during the pandemic.
2012
Inspiring Barrow is awarded nearly £300k from the Big Lottery Fund, following a successful pilot. It provides a range of community learning programmes and initiatives to create and promote lifelong learning opportunities, inspire children, young people and adults to live more
healthily, improve their chances of employment and raise their aspirations and the quality of their lives.
2188
345
groups contribute to and receive information on Voluntary Vacancies
registered volunteers through Support Cumbria, Vbase and Do-It
Network brings Trustees together for mutual support
Cumbria’s Trustees’ Network was established in November 2021, to address the gap in support available for trustees and volunteer directors. The network’s aim is to bring together people in those roles from different voluntary, community, faith and social enterprise organisations to share good practice, experience, ideas and offer peer networking support.
The first session was held during Trustees’ week, and looked at what trustees/directors would like to gain from being part of the network. It was agreed that they would like us to develop and maintain a Trustees/Directors Skills Directory that is accessible by members, to allow them to share their skills, knowledge, experience and learning with each other.
At the second session John and Hilary Holland shared their experiences and expertise of being a trustee. We now have a dedicated slot for a trustees/s to share their experiences with the network.
The sessions were attended and jointly facilitated by our District Managers and County Volunteer Manager, giving us valuable insight into the sector across the county and helping us to identify gaps, issues and future training, learning and development/support needs.
“Just a quick e-mail to say that I enjoyed the CVS Trustee network session on Wednesday, it was good to meet others facing similar issues. Also great to put name & faces to the team @ CVS.”
-Trustee Network meeting attendee
Funding was awarded as a partnership project between Cumbria CVS and North Cumbria Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust to deliver Keeping Patients Connected from January – July 2021. A Volunteer Coordinator was recruited on an honorary contract from the third sector with our support, to implement the project as part of the Patient Experience Team.
The project was created to support patients and relatives to keep connected through different digital means, whilst visiting restrictions were in place. The objectives were:
- To contribute to reducing pressures arising from winter/Covid-19
- To improve patient experience and safety
- To support staff wellbeing and safety
- To identify wards for volunteers
Our support included hosting a Virtual Volunteer Recruitment Session and producing recruitment posters and a video, as well as sharing resources for implementing new training and induction for the project.
This volunteer role has enabled ward staff to focus more on patients’ clinical care needs, and patient experience was also enhanced as a result of being able to communicate with friends and family both via video and phone calls.
Keeping Patients Connected
2013
A Lottery funded film (Faith, Hope & Charity) is produced covering the journey to Cumbria CVS from the original Carlisle CVS charity, and 110 years of work in the town.
You can watch it here
2014
Cumbria Third Sector Network is asked to lead a Welfare Reform Commission on behalf of Cumbria Leaders Board, supported by Cumbria Community Foundation and Cumbria CVS, which identifies some of the challenges of Universal Credit and influences local delivery and support for those claiming benefits.
2012
The National Lottery Big Local Programme launches, with Cumbria CVS supporting three ten-year, £1m programmes across Cumbria in Barrow Island, Ewanrigg and Distington.
Rail-y good work transforms nursery’s garden
“We always like to get involved to support charities to make a difference. ESV is an integral key part of the business. We will be in the local area for another 5 years, so will be back to Yewdale Community Centre to offer labour, skills and expertise.”
We are very keen to encourage local companies to support employees to be actively involved in the community by contributing their time and skills.
VolkerRail made contact with us with regards to finding an Employer Supported Volunteering (ESV) project in Autumn 2021.
Using our existing networks with partners and third sector organisations, a number of potential projects were identified. Yewdale Community Centre Nursery benefitted from the fantastic team of volunteers from the VolkerRail: Signalling Power Supply Upgrades project team, who helped to transform the nursery’s outdoor space.
-Darren Jones, Health and Safety Manager, VolkerRail
“They have helped to revamp their Butterfly garden, mud kitchen and to create sensory space for children and to create a Bug Hotel. The enthusiasm of the VolkerRail volunteers has been fantastic to see, and it’s great how the project has developed - we are so delighted!”
-Jude Coupland, Childcare Manager,
Yewkids Nursery at Yewdale Community Centre
Health and Care Funding officer project
This project was established in 2019 with funding provided by Cumbria County Council’s Public Health department, to secure funding for health and care projects and increase collaborative working in project development. It has proved successful in bringing additional money into the County to support initiatives for the benefit of the local community.
The two main strands of the project were:
- Funding Support: Supporting third sector groups to access funding that met health and care needs in the community
- Collaborative working: Bringing together organisations to apply for funding, or working with existing partnerships/networks to identify health and care gaps and work together on funding
At the beginning of the project the service was faced with a need to change and adapt to meet the needs of third sector organisations responding to the Covid pandemic. In doing so, the project workers developed a funding support project that met the wider needs of the third sector for funding support, information, training and networking.
In the last year of the project the South Officer continued to focus on direct funding support, providing monthly newsletters, Friday Funding Forums, workshops and training across the County, and also developed collaborative working opportunities in the area.
The North District Managers have been developing opportunities for health-related collaborative working which includes developing a physical activity on referral partnership in the Carlisle area.
“The funding forums have led to conversations with a wide range of potential funding organisations and partners. Funding updates helped in narrowing down potential funders to those best matched to our needs.”
-Funding Officer project beneficiary
The Disclosure and Barring Service
Cumbria CVS is a registered umbrella organisation for the Disclosure and Barring Service. We provide a local, reliable service with many years’ experience in arranging Standard and Enhanced disclosures for the third sector and private organisations. We offer advice and guidance throughout the process making the journey as simple as possible, and helping to ensure that organisations make safer recruitment decisions for their staff and volunteers.
“I have been using the Cumbria CVS DBS service since Spiral opened in 2016, the service is efficient, and Julie has always answered any questions I have had promptly. A great service to use.”
-Maryann, Founder and Manager, Spiral (Preventing the Effects of Bullying)
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2016
Following the devastating flooding in 2015, Cumbria CVS leads the Rebuilding Together programme funded by Big Lottery, with ACT and CAfS as key partners – a £1m programme that supported households, communities and voluntary sector organisations to prepare for future flooding and severe weather events caused by climate change.
2016
Cumbria CVS helps establish Cumbria Mental Health Provider Forum, a strong, responsive forum, developing relationships with Cumbria County Council, Cumbria Partnership NHS Foundation Trust and NHS Cumbria Clinical Commissioning Group.
2017
July sees us officially open the doors to our new premises in Carlisle - Shaddongate Resource Centre.
Changing for the better: Cumbria CVS evolves
We have been through a period of significant development over the past 4 years; navigating the coronavirus pandemic, reductions to third sector funding, and changing attitudes to employment affecting recruitment.
Taking these challenges as an opportunity to refine our organisation and the services we deliver, we have kept in mind our priorities to support members and drive systems change. Our management teams have also focused on horizon-scanning, moving away from being reactive towards a more proactive approach for our rationale and delivery.
We have finalised our staffing structure, securing staff to key posts. This structure seeks to ensure that we are delivering our core services and projects through the Operations Team, exploring and developing opportunities for the sector through Service Development and supporting the organisation financially and practically through Finance and Resources.
These changes are opening opportunities for us to work more collaboratively with our members and statutory sectors. We have facilitated partnerships and funding opportunities through the NHS and initiated conversations about connecting research institutions with the third sector.
We hope to increase our collaborative working, and brokering those relationships between the statutory and health sector to engage with what our sector has to offer. We also want to increase the capacity and knowledge for evaluation, championing the value of including what the sector delivers in broader research. We will continue to drive advocacy and change while enhancing funding and opportunities for the sector, as we enter a period of Local Government Reform and financial uncertainty, where support in these areas is more important than ever.
2018
Funding from the Cumbria Partnership NHS Foundation Trust enabled us to employ a Health Partnerships Officer to work with the new “Integrated Care Communities”, improving the health service’s understanding and engagement with voluntary sector organisations.
2017
£1.3 million is secured to deliver the Building Better Opportunities: Getting Cumbria to Work programme - a combination of
European Social Fund and Big Lottery Fund funding - to enable us and partners across the Barrow and South Lakeland area to facilitate and support change in the lives of those furthest removed from the labour market.
Staff to get hEAPs of help
An extra benefit of our new HR system, BrightHR, is a website and app called Health Assured which is an Employee Assistance Programme (EAP).
Our staff team will be able to access a wealth of resources to assist with mental health, physical health, relationship and family issues, stress and anxiety and financial wellbeing plus much more.
The package provides four week programmes, podcasts, webinars, factsheets, and counselling sessions, as well as 24/7, all year round, access to a telephone helpline.
With a huge range of support available, we’re proud to be able to offer this service, and it provides a positive addition to the benefits we offer as an organisation.
Supporting Mental Health at work
We have signed up to The Mental Health at Work Commitment, recognising the growing need to support mental health in the workplace both as an employer and peer to peer.
A working party of staff have volunteered to help asses ourselves against the following standards, as well as helping to draw up an action plan as to how we can better support our team’s mental health and wellbeing:
- Prioritise Mental Health in the workplace
- Our culture drives positive Mental Health
- Promote an open culture around Mental Health
- Increase organisational confidence and capability
- Provide Mental Health tools and support
- Increase transparency in our internal and external reporting
We’re still in the early stages of this process, but already a number of brilliant ideas on resources, training and strategy are actively being developed and will soon be brought forward for consideration by the wider organisation.
2
Meetings
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Staff in Working Party
The challenge:
Silent Footprints started as an Always Another Way CIC project. It is a place of support for those who have suffered from pregnancy loss at any stage including miscarriage, ectopic pregnancy, stillbirth, medical termination, and infant loss. The organisation offers a range of support including memory boxes, self-help books and memorabilia and jewellery for sale (with money raised helping to fund a monthly peer support group).
After becoming an independent group, they contacted us to ask for advice on where they could apply for funding. We established that the group did not have a constitution (a necessity when applying for funding) or a bank account.
The outcome:
It had been suggested that they registered as a charity so they could receive formal referrals from West Cumberland Hospital. However, in chatting to Silent Footprints it was clear that the formality and administration involved would put too much pressure on the small group.
It was agreed that they would set up as a charitable unincorporated association adopting the Charity Commission’s constitution for small groups. We helped draft this, ensuring their trustees understood what the constitution meant for them as committee members.
It has become increasingly difficult for community groups to find banks willing to support them, and it got even harder during lockdown. Through research, we found a suitable account designed for small, non-profit organisations.
Since becoming a constituted group and opening up a bank account, Silent Footprints has received a donation to support the running of this much needed group.
Case Study: Helping Silent Footprints cut through setup noise
“We would like to thank Bridget for her work in putting us in the right direction as I believe we still would have been lost and researching. Her service to us was very helpful and I’ve advised people to go there for help also who need heading in the right direction.”
-Gail Dobson Burns, Silent Footprints
The challenge:
Cumbria Suicide Bereavement Support (SBS) offer non-professional, peer led support to people in the local community when they have had a bereavement by suicide. The facilitators are all suicide bereaved too, so support is provided through shared experience and understanding.
During the pandemic, with restrictions on meeting in-person and frequent lockdowns, SBS identified a need for suicide-bereaved members of the local community to still be able to support one another through their painful experiences. SBS wanted to ensure that peer support meetings could take place whether or not people could gather in groups face to face.
We were approached to provide funding support to enable SBS to promote their service, with identified needs including money to pay for printing leaflets and promotional materials, and to buy licenses for the online meeting forum Zoom so that peer support gatherings could take place with no time restrictions.
The outcome:
We supported the group in applying for funding from the Eric Wright Charitable Trust. SBS were awarded £1000 to cover costs, enabling them to keep the local community informed of meetings, continue the connections and peer support throughout the Covid restrictions, and return to face to face meetings as these eased.
Case Study: Helping vital suicide bereavement support go online during pandemic
“The support we received was crucial. The grant meant we were able to tell people about our meetings and still connect with one another. CVS have really given us the confidence to carry on and apply for more grants to support the project.”
-Kitty Birtwistle, Project Manager of Suicide Bereavement Support
The challenge:
KEY is a youth work project working with secondary school children in Milnthorpe and surrounding villages. It employs two youth workers, working with young people to develop and deliver an active, fun, programme which is also about their personal, social and emotional development. Activities are open access, but targeted on those who are vulnerable and/or facing particular challenges. KEY’s ongoing challenge is raising the money to pay the workers’ salaries.
Covid forced them to move delivery on-line, making it difficult to reach out and support those most at need. It also came at a particularly bad time in terms of their fundraising cycle, leaving them very vulnerable to closure. With our support, they identified the UK Youth Covid Resilience fund and prepared an urgent application for support.
“You cannot commit to developing a programme if you do not know whether you are going to be able to deliver it. It really did look as though we might have to close down, just when so many needed our support more than ever. It’s been great to get back into working with the young people to plan ahead with more confidence.”
The outcome:
The fund was very heavily oversubscribed, but KEY were fortunate to be awarded a total of £20,500 in two tranches. This removed the need to start planning for closure and gave them sufficient security to commit to working with the young people to develop the programme for the year. They continue to pursue other funding sources for longer term support, using our ever helpful Funding Digest.
Case Study: CVS support KEY to funding
“There is a bewildering range of possible grant providers. The regular updates from CVS help us to identify which are relevant and to stay on top of their deadlines. It is still down to us to make good submissions but the digest and other information makes it much easier to focus our efforts.”
-Peter Clarke, KEY Trustee
During the year covered by this Review we continued, as always, to explore and identify opportunities to meet gaps in service delivery.
This resulted in us receiving support and funding for three exciting new partnership projects to be developed, which launch during 22/23.
Looking ahead: New projects
Community Connectors
An award of nearly £300k of funding from The National Lottery Community Fund’s Reaching Communities fund will support volunteer “Community Connectors” from local organisations throughout Cumbria.
The project aims to enhance the engagement between the third sector and the public sector, key stakeholders, and funders to build the capacity of these organisations to deliver connected and complementary services.
The Connectors will be local community representatives or leaders, supported by us, who will make sure their community groups, and the views of local communities, are heard and help to shape future plans, services or projects that might affect them.
Step Forward into Volunteering and Employment
Initially funded for 2 years by North Cumbria Clinical Commission Group (CCG) through the wider NHS Mental Health Transformation Fund, Step Forward will provide tailored support for people in North Cumbria who are facing challenges from Severe Mental Health Experiences (SMHE).
It will be delivered through a personalised 1-1 development plan by our team, working in partnership with a range of local mental health providers. It aims to help break down the stigma around mental health, particularly for those living with SMHE, and address the barriers faced when it comes to accessing volunteering, work readiness training and work opportunities.
South Lakeland Poverty Truth Commission
The Poverty Truth Commission (PTC) aims to enable the voice and experiences of those living in poverty to be directly heard at decision making levels, bringing about co-produced change for the better for them.
The South Lakes Poverty Truth Commission Support Group have agreed to us running the programme, which will receive financial support for two years from South Lakeland District Council, Population Health, Cumbria County Council and the National Lottery.
The PTC will change perceptions of poverty by promoting meaningful conversation and relationships between people experiencing poverty and people who control the resources and services that help alleviate poverty.
2019
As part of a pilot scheme, two ICC Hub-based Third Sector Referral Coordinators are recruited for a
‘live’ experiment in integrated working in two ICCs: Maryport & Cockermouth and Eden. Employed by the CVS, they have Honorary Contracts with North Cumbria Integrated Care NHS Trust (NCIC) and work as part of the ICC Hub staff team.
2019
Our “Forces Link” project, supporting veterans of the armed services, launches.
2020
The Covid-19 pandemic sees Cumbria CVS adapting rapidly to support the multiple, and rapidly
changing, needs of the VCFSE sector, providing services predominantly online. We help develop the “Support Cumbria” volunteer website, with 2,300 residents registering and helping Cumbria deal with the challenges of the pandemic.
2019
David Allen becomes CEO in August, initiating an overhaul of finances, operational structure, funding and future strategy.
Cumbria CVS would like to thank our many key funders and partners, whose invaluable support enables us to be an effective and sustainable organisation.
With their help we have worked directly with and supported 1,309 people and indirectly supported many thousands more.
We would also particularly like to recognise the support given by Carlisle City Council through our long-term lease of our office at Shaddongate, Carlisle.
2020
Cumbria CVS launches our "Bedrock Basics" project in West Cumbria as part of Sellafield's "Transforming West Cumbria" programme, in collaboration with Cumbria Community Foundation.
Cumbria CVS Staff 01/04/21 – 31/03/22
June Abraham Third Sector Referral Coordinator (Physical Health)
David Allen CEO
Victoria Askew Project Assistant (DBL) (left 15/06/2021)
Jim Bevis Service Development Officer
Jozi Brown Senior Engagement Officer (left 09/08/2021)
Lisa Brown Carlisle Community Resilience Worker
David Cassidy Inspiring Barrow Project Coordinator
Bev Chandler BBO Finance Officer
Lisa Cox Admin Officer - Data Management
Sophie Crozier Admin Officer (Digital)
Katharine Dunbar Finance Officer
Clare Edwards Health Partnerships Manager
Holly Ferguson Administration Officer (Health)
Louise Giovanni Third Sector Referral Coordinator
Dominic Gordon Senior Third Sector Referral Coordinator
Chandini Graham BBO Activity Officer
Ali Greenhalgh District Manager (South)
Peter Grenville Communications Manager
Gordon Henry Bedrock Development Officer
Ronald Hewer Distington Community Caretaker/Handyperson (left 27/05/2021)
Lesley Hinds Third Sector Referral Coordinator (Mental Health)
Richard Hinson Carlisle and Eden Armed Forces Support Coordinator (left 10/09/2021)
Bridget Johns District Manager (West)
Paula Johnson BBO GCtw Lead Key Worker
Amanda Leader Finance and Resources Manager (left 10/09/2021)
Kate Love Local Engagement Officer (Barrow)
Maureen McCartney Senior Finance Officer
Niall McNulty District Manager (North)
Ingrid Morris Assistant Development Worker (left 15/07/2021)
Amelia Nicholson Service Development Manager
Lisa Nicholson BBO Project Admin Officer
Joy Noctor Third Sector Referral Coordinator (Cancer) (left 19/10/2021)
Carolyn Otley Community Resilience Coordinator
Victoria Peake Countywide Funding Support Officer
Ali Philips Operations Manager
Jayne Povey Third Sector Referral Coordinator
Laura Rutter Bedrock Digital Support Worker
Julie Sharkey Senior Admin Officer (Barrow)
Judith Smale Volunteering Manager
Ann-Marie Steele Volunteer Leader
Kerry Stockdale Inspiring Barrow Project Support Officer
Alan Stubbs Community Accountant (left 31/10/2021)
Nat Wealleans-Turner BBO GCtW Project Manager
Kate Whitmarsh Ewanrigg Local Trust Manager
Heather Wilson HR & Facilities Manager (left 22/12/2021)
Mary Wood Finance and Resources Manager
Third Sector Referral Coordinator (Physical Health)
CEO
Project Assistant (DBL) (left 15/06/2021)
Service Development Officer
Senior Engagement Officer (left 09/08/2021)
Carlisle Community Resilience Worker
Inspiring Barrow Project Coordinator
BBO My Future Finance Officer
Admin Officer - Data Management
Admin Officer (Digital)
Finance Officer
Health Partnerships Manager
Administration Officer (Health)
Third Sector Referral Coordinator
Senior Third Sector Referral Coordinator
BBO My Future Activity Officer
District Manager (South)
Communications Manager
Bedrock Development Officer
Distington Community Caretaker/Handyperson (left 27/05/2021)
Third Sector Referral Coordinator (Mental Health)
Carlisle and Eden Armed Forces Support Coordinator (left 10/09/2021)
District Manager (West)
BBO My Future Lead Key Worker
Finance and Resources Manager (left 10/09/2021)
Local Engagement Officer (Barrow)
Senior Finance Officer
District Manager (North)
Assistant Development Worker (left 15/07/2021)
Service Development Manager
BBO My Future Project Admin Officer
Third Sector Referral Coordinator (Cancer) (left 19/10/2021)
Community Resilience Coordinator
Countywide Funding Support Officer
Operations Manager
Third Sector Referral Coordinator
Bedrock Digital Support Worker
Senior Admin Officer (Barrow)
Volunteering Manager
Volunteer Leader
Inspiring Barrow Project Support Officer
Community Accountant (left 31/10/2021)
BBO My Future Project Manager
Ewanrigg Local Trust Manager
HR & Facilities Manager (left 22/12/2021)
Finance and Resources Manager
Cancer Support Volunteers
Quentin Boyes
Joanne Brown
Debbie Challis
Chris Coombes
Elizabeth Dent
Dorothy Haskins
Ann Hayward
Pauline Kaye
Brenda Little
Joyce Matthews
Kate McGibbon
Jim Mieghan
Pam Mieghan
Chloe Moran
Julian Nelson
Susan Plaskett
Michael Ramsden
Hayley Sharpe
Paula Wedgewood
Wesley Wilson
Cumbria CVS Volunteers
Rebecca Ashcroft
Maria Bezuszho
Neil Bowen
Richard Davis
Paul Forsyth
Jonny Gios
Sheila Graham
Jean Holmshaw
Kester Roberts
Jamie Sharples
Susan Shenton
Colin Swan
Sarah Thirwell
Becky Towns
Grace Farrell
Madeline Wilkinson
Wes Wilson
Gardening/Dog walking
(left May 2021)
Admin (left Mar 2021)
(left Sept 2021)
Admin (left Jun 2021)
Shopping/general practical support
(left Oct 2021)
Admin
Digital
Digital
Digital
Digital
Gardener/Groundskeeper
Digital
Admin
Digital
Digital (left Feb 2022)
Digital
Admin
Digital
Digital
Digital
Digital (left Jan 2022)
BBO
Admin
2021
Dr Carolyn Otley, Community Resilience Coordinator, is awarded an MBE in The Queen’s Birthday Honours list, for services to the community during Covid-19.
Cumbria CVS Trustees 01/04/21 – 31/03/22
Joanna Coleman
Robin Cope
Alan Culley
Sheila Gregory
Lee Martin-White
Stewart Martin
Victoria Nicholson
Colin Ranshaw
Matthew Scott
Steve Sewell
Mike Taylor
Kimberley Ward
(left 6 April 2022)
(Deputy Chair)
(Treasurer)
(Chair)
CONTACT US
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Shaddongate Resource Centre
Shaddongate
Carlisle
CA2 5TY
Cumbria Council for Voluntary Service
Registered Charity No: 1119671
2021
Building Better Opportunities: Getting Cumbria To Work receives confirmation of a two-year funding extension, one of very few projects to receive this recognition of success.
2022
Cumbria CVS celebrates its 15th anniversary, and continues to develop new programmes of work in partnership with others…