Convening, communication and collaboration

The UK Experience

Anne Burleigh

Deputy Foundation Director

Northern Rock Foundation

Principles: ‘upon reflection’

• Work across the sector

• Recognise restrictions and boundaries

• Learn from others

• More than just money

• Shared purpose and leadership

• Remember Joe & Josephine Bloggs

Examples of Collaborative Work

• Invest 2006

• Woburn Place Collaborative

• Work with Black Minority Ethnic Groups

• Work with prison

Invest 2006

Research by Bruce Reed of European Economic Research Services highlighted:-

• Voluntary Sector in North East has been successful in securing money from Europe to tackle:

– Unemployment– Poverty– Homelessness– Crime– Youth disaffection– Renewal of local communities and their environment

Research Findings

• 2001- 2004 Voluntary Sector in the North-East secured more than £64 million a year from the Single Regeneration Budget, European Objective 2 and 3 and the National Lottery

• Predictions estimated that this amount could drop to £10 million by 2007

Invest 2006

Aimed to:-

• Demonstrate the voluntary sector’s crucial role in regeneration of the region

• Debate and seek solutions to the loss of funding and

• Influence funding decisions made nationally and regionally

Areas of work

• Formation of steering committee

• Raised awareness within the sector, government and allies

• Fact finding and research

• Lobbying and negotiation

Woburn Place CollaborativeStepping up the Stairs

A report by Steve Burkeman and Alison Harker

Report found that most thoughtful and influential trusts failed to:-

• Share sufficiently their experiences• Work together for common ends where collaboration

might produce more effect• Develop creatively their use of their resources –

financial, reputational and others

Result:- The Woburn Place Collaboration

The Woburn Place Collaboration

Aims to:-

• Improve the effectiveness of philanthropy in pursuit of goals described as social justice

• To bring together staff and trustees – ensuring that each Trust involved is fully informed and that actions are not simply the passion of individuals

Action to be taken

• Organising a summer school for 2008• An investigation into whether on not the

voluntary sector’s independence is compromised by taking government or even trust funds

• Geographic inability of the North East to influence key decisions in Central Government

• “Virtual” research centre for philanthropy and charitable giving

Work with Black Minority Ethnic

• Concerns by North East Trust Secretaries Group

• Commissioned piece of research by Purple International

• Steering Group formed

• Learnt from the experience of others i.e. Joseph Rowntree Foundation

• Grant from the Northern Rock Foundation

The Regional Refugee and Asylum Seekers Forum

• Grant of £568,000 over three years

• Project manager appointed

• Development Officers to cover 4 geographic regions

• Hand-holding to get policies and practices in place

• Training in applying for funding

• Groups working as part of the sector

Penal Reform

• GBP5.2 million

• Partners– International Centre for Prison Studies– NACRO– the DePaul Trust– the NoWay Trust

• National Offenders’ Management Service

• Policy and practice

Advantages of more collaboration and communication

• Sharing of skills and expertise

• Sharing of good practice and what works

• Contribution from a range of funders that want to make a difference to their grant making and to applicants

• Size doesn’t matter! Everyone has something to give

• Win/Win situation

Convening Meetings

• Experts Seminars during consultation

• State of the Sector Report in North East and Cumbria

• Special Initiative Steering Group meetings

• Bring together procurers, purchasers and intermediaries