EVENTS AND TRAINING

Furniture Matters – Knowledge Sharing Day
Recycling Re-use training

Tuesday 20 November 2007
Tuesday 5 February 2008

Morecombe
Lancashire

Cost £50 per person or £80 for 2 people from the same organisation.

We want to share information with colleagues across our sector in order to help you develop. So whether you are just starting a project; want to develop or change focus; or even if you are already operating a successful project and just need a bit of new inspiration - this day will be for you!

Your day with Furniture Matters will include:

• Presentation on the history of Furniture Matters and they work
• Site tour
• Question and answer session
• Lunch
• Information Pack

Contact: Julie Armer 01524 428016 http://www.furniturematters.org.uk

Social Enterprise Day
15 November
Events are being planned around the country.
As a CRN UK member you can access the personalised media support offered by The Social Enterprise Coalition’s (SEC) press office. Downloadable resources available from www.socialenterprise.org/socialenterpriseday
The SEC will also be showcasing all events with the media, on their website and in a special edition of their newsletter, so let them know what your organisation is planning. Don’t forget to also contact CRN UK if you would like details published in the newsletter.

What To Do When the Funding Runs Out!
A FREE course for the community sector involving business and strategic planning, run by the Directory of Social Change.

22 November 2007
10am - 3pm, Shire Hall, Cambridge

Only 15 places available

Aims of the day include:
Developing useful business plans.
Introducing a range of practical business planning techniques.
Providing support for participants in developing a plan and in managing its implementation.

Looking at how organisations develop and plan and the importance of having a clear strategic direction.  It will also work on some of the problems that voluntary organisations have in being strategic and planning ahead and suggest how these issues can be tackled. An outline format will be introduced and a process for developing a plan within an organisation will be reviewed.  How to lead the process for developing the plan and how trustees, staff, volunteers and others can play a part in developing the plan.

Costing it - focusing also on how to cost the plan and ensure that all costs are covered. Looking at the impact of fully costing all projects and activities, the idea of a business model and how to present financial information in the plan.

Planning it out - How to ensure that a plan has a realistic and clear strategic direction and also how to ensure that the organisation has the resources to deliver the plan.

Contact: heidi@crn.org.uk  07966 450426

Community RePaint Training Events
Leeds - Tuesday 30 October and
London - Thursday 8 November.
These FREE events should be useful to:

• existing and developing Community RePaint schemes
• any community group thinking of setting up a new scheme
• local authorities or waste management companies wanting to establish a new scheme
• painting and decorating companies/trade/DIY retailers, etc

The events will include presentations and interactive workshops from existing schemes and Resource Futures on:

• maximising income from paint reuse
• marketing your scheme to ‘customers’
• successful scheme operations
• making sense of legislation and regulation
• setting up a new scheme

Contact: Vicky Wren vicky.wren@resourcefutures.co.uk  0113 200 3959

Recycling in Schools training course
7-8 November 2007
Macclesfield
If you are involved in organising recycling collections or communicating about recycling in schools, the one and a half day Recycling in Schools training course could be just what you need. It focuses on how local authorities can work more effectively with schools.

Places on the course are available to Recycling Managers in local authorities, staff from not-for-profit or community schemes and private waste management companies who are working with local authorities to manage, plan and promote recycling schemes.

Info: http://www.wrap.org.uk/local_authorities/training/index.html

Getting a Fair Deal from Contracts (London)

FREE places are available to voluntary and community organisations with a turnover of up to £500,000 (£100 deposit required).

A 2 day course designed to equip managers, trustees and negotiators with the skills and attitude to enable
them to negotiate better contracts with public sector agencies

29-30 October 2007
15-16 November 2007

www.dsc.org.uk/charityevents/pdfs/getting_a_fair_deal2.pdf

CIWM Waste Awareness Courses
The course provides an introduction to waste management and gives delegates the knowledge, understanding and skills to improve the management of wastes. So far Community Waste Network East has trained 180 delegates with some of the courses being provided in-house as well as at public venues.
 
Cost: £40 community and charitable sector, £100 local authorities, £125 for business sector

27 September, Witham, Essex - with an emphasis on WEEE
23 October, Cambridgeshire, with an emphasis on construction waste
4 December, Cambridgeshire
24 January, Cambridgeshire
26 February, Witham, Essex, with an emphasis on WEEE
4 March, Braintree, Essex, with an emphasis on construction waste
27 March, Suffolk

Contact: Heidi Seary - heidi@crn.org.uk or tel: 07966 450426

WRAP Recycling Managers Training Course
Courses are aimed at recycling and waste officers and managers in local authorities and those from not-for-profit/community organisations or private waste management companies who are directly involved in delivering and managing local authority recycling.

For September - December 2007 dates & locations visit

http://www.wrap.org.uk/local_authorities/training/index.html

Women & Work: Sector Pathways Initiative
Raising Skills and Unlocking Potential. To help in the up-skilling of women in the energy and utilities sector, Energy & Utility Skills is offering sector employers the benefit of a highly subsidised Women & Work: Personal Development Programme, designed to equip women with the tools they need to help with their career development. This opportunity is currently available to employees working in England only.

http://www.wrap.org.uk/local_authorities/training/index.html

Environmental Conservation (Community Recycling) Level 2 NVQ

This NVQ is designed for:

•  Waste operatives

•  Community Recycling - Local Authority or voluntary sector recycling operatives or technicians and kerbside collection staff

•  Shop floor staff/operatives

The NVQ aims to improve an individuals understanding relating to waste management and ensures that they are competent to segregate, store, transport, recycle and dispose of waste in accordance with organisational policies, procedures and applicable legislation. This qualification also supports sites waste management licences.

EMS are approved providers with A4e employment in Yorkshire and Humberside, East Midlands, West Midlands, London and the North East and can offer 100% funding for level 2 NVQ's in Community Recycling. To discuss eligibility criteria: Tel:   01246 418913, info@em-solutions.co.uk   www.em-solutions.co.uk

WRAP Collection crew communications future training

WRAP are producing toolbox talks to help collection crews to communicate better with the public and increase recycling. Downloadable versions are expected to be available through the WRAP website by the end of the summer . These new training packages include materials for interactive sessions that can be delivered in the depot. They are designed to be delivered by supervisors and guidance on how to use the materials will be included. Sessions, which will provide underpinning knowledge for the NVQ level 2 in Recycling Operations, will include 'Understanding the bigger picture', 'Knowing about local issues', 'Good and bad environmental practice', 'Dealing with conflict' and 'Engaging with the public'.

Every Action Counts
Every Action Counts is a Defra initiative (England only) focused on enabling community and voluntary organisations to look at the wider sustainable development issues within their organisations. The programme covers resource use, energy, ethical shopping, sustainable transport and caring for your local environment.

CRN UK and FRN are both involved in this initiative and as part of this we encourage your community group to become involved as well. Please register your organisation at www.everyactioncounts.org.uk to access the available advice and the list of easy steps to benefit your group.

Interested in free training?
Do you have any volunteers or members of staff who may be interested in becoming a Community Champion? One aim of the Every Action Counts programme is to recruit 'Community Champions' who will work through action plans with organisations to help them develop more sustainable practices.
Champions will be equipped to work voluntarily with a variety of community organisations to look at sustainable development within an organisation and to run through a toolkit to identify changes they can make.

Community Champions will attend a FREE two day accredited training course. Part of this training will focus on presentation and facilitation skills as well as training on wider sustainable development issues.

Course dates will be set as required and BTCV (who are delivering the training and community champions initiative) will adapt dates to suit. For example, if a group register together they can arrange dates and location to suit.

To register and further info: www.btcv.org/communitychampions
When registering your organisation or as a Community Champion, please indicate you have heard of this initiative through the Community Recycling Network.
Contact: Lizzy White via eac@crn.org.uk