Voluntary Sector

Supporting our voluntary sector
We support the voluntary and community sector to make a significant contribution to Wandsworth's diverse and vibrant community. We fund the Wandsworth Voluntary Sector Development Agency (WVSDA) to run the volunteering service and provide information on local voluntary groups.

We also have contracts with the Wandsworth Citizens Advice Bureaux to provide advice to local people on a wide range of issues including money, debt and benefits. The EDO contributes to the London Boroughs Grants Scheme to support the voluntary sector in London.

You can download a copy of the Annual Report on the Voluntary Sector and the Report on the Voluntary Sector Survey 2008.

 Annual Report on the Voluntary Sector (185 kb)
 Report on 2008 Voluntary Sector Survey (111 kb)

There is also an online questionnaire for you to give us your views and opinions.

Volunteering
The Wandsworth Voluntary Sector Development Agency is a service open to people who may wish to work as a volunteer. It provides help and guidance to choose a placement best suited to your needs.  They are based at 170 Garratt Lane, London SW18 4DA.
Tel: 020 8870 4319 or visit www.wvsda.org.uk

We are carrying out a survey to find out the extent of volunteering in the borough. If you are a volunteer, please complete our online form to let us know about it.

Volunteer Awards 2008
More than 300 people turned up to a special event organised by the council and Wandsworth Volunteer Centre to pay tribute to the borough's volunteers.

The first ever Wandsworth Volunteer Awards aimed to promote volunteering in the borough and recognise people who have made an outstanding contribution to their community or organisation.

There were more than 150 nominations for the awards, and the winners were presented with their prizes at a glittering ceremony in the Wandsworth civic suite on 27th November.

Each volunteer did a significant amount for their organisation and the standard of entrants was exceptionally high. An independent panel of judges including deputy leader of the council Maurice Heaster, Kerry McQueeney from the Wandsworth Guardian, James Bank from Greater London Volunteering and Dr Mike Nussbaum from Volunteering England were faced with the tough task of choosing the winner for each category.

Entertainment was provided by Elliott School Jazz band, Valda Wilson and Alison Luz from the National Opera Studio and Ricochet Street Dance.

Waitrose Wandsworth sponsored the event and provided the food and drink, served by a team of scouts and guides.

The winners all received a crystal trophy plus John Lewis vouchers. Waitrose provided an iPod for the Young Volunteer of the Year and Young's Brewery donated a weekend for two in one of their hotels for the winners of the Judges' Special Award.

The awards winners were:  

• Care Volunteer of the Year – Diana Plant, Thomas Pocklington Resource Centre
• Community Volunteer of the Year – Wayne Jennings, Volunteer Centre Wandsworth
• Environment Volunteer of the Year – Vicki Carroll, Wandsworth Environment Forum  
• Sports Volunteer of the Year – Anita Russell, Dover House Lions FC
• New Volunteer of the Year – Vivienne Minto, Volunteer Reading Help
• Young Volunteer of the Year – Amanda Slater, Wandsworth Young Carer's Project, Katherine Low Settlement
• Team of the Year – South London Swimming Club
• Organisation of the Year – Family Action
• Lifetime Volunteer - Gunvantrai Shah, Brendoncare
• Judges Special Awards – Pete & Joan, Battersea Arts Centre
• Volunteer of the Year - Kitty Gilbert. Kitty volunteers at Battersea Children's Library, Earlsfield School Nursery, Honeywell Infant School and Tooting Childminders Support Group.

This short film, 'Making a Difference' was produced to be shown at the Volunteer Awards event to highlight the variety of volunteering opportunities in the Borough. Copies are available if organisations would like to use it as a professional recruitment tool contact Ben Richardson at the Volunteer Centre on 020 8875 2849.

 Making a difference

This video is streamed online. You will need Windows Media Player or a similar player to watch it.

Volunteer Fair Success
Wandsworth's first-ever volunteer conference and fair was a huge success, with more than 400 potential volunteers and over 50 volunteer organisations attending.

The event was organised by the council's economic development office and the Volunteer Centre, Wandsworth.

It was held at the Civic Suite on Wednesday, February 27 and included a morning conference followed by workshops.
 
Members of the public interested in volunteering were invited to the fair in the afternoon, where they could visit stalls set up by the organisations taking part.

The aim was to give volunteer organisations space, information and support to help them recruit and retain volunteers.

The event also hosted the launch of the new Guide to Volunteering handbook and the new Volunteer Awards Programme, which seeks to recognise and highlight the important work that volunteers carry out.

Deputy council leader Cllr Maurice Heaster, who delivered the conference's welcoming speech, said the event had exceeded expectations.

"We were delighted to see so many organisations, and potential volunteers. The voluntary sector plays a vital role in our community, and events like this help it to flourish."

Find out more about volunteering from the Wandsworth Voluntary Sector Development Agency. Call 020 8870 4319 or visit www.wvsda.org.uk

Cllr Heaster is pictured here (right) with Chris Blyth from the economic development office and Nick Godden from the Volunteer Centre, Wandsworth.

The following publications are available to download:
 Guide to Volunteering Handbook (1.2Gb)

If you would like further information on volunteering contact Nicola Grant on 020 8871 6449 or at ngrant@wandsworth.gov.uk

You can also contact The Volunteer Centre Wandsworth on 020 8870 4319 or email enquiry@wvsda.org.uk  

Voluntary organisations and community groups
We support a Voluntary Information Service which provides guidance on funding and many other areas relevant to the voluntary sector and community groups in Wandsworth. This service is run by part of the Wandsworth Voluntary Sector Development Agency who are based at 170 Garratt Lane, London SW18 4DA.  Please call 020 8875 2846 or visit their website:  www.wvsda.org.uk.  

Wandsworth Citizens Advice Bureaux Ltd
Wandsworth Citizens Advice Bureaux Service (WCABx) provides an independent, impartial and confidential generalist advice service for Wandsworth residents at one of 3 advice centres in the Borough (Battersea, Roehampton and Tooting). Tel: 020 8788 6960

The main office is based at
4th Floor, Bedford House, 215 Balham High Road, London SW17 7BQ.  Tel: 020 8333 6960 or visit www.wandsworthcabx.org.uk

Advice Service Directory
The new Advice Service Directory includes introductions from Cllr. Maurice Heaster (Deputy Leader, Wandsworth Council); Olufemi Oluleye (Cheif Executive, Wandsworth Citizens Advice Bureaux) and Richard May (Chief Executive Officer, Wandsworth Age Concern).  This second edition is twice the size of the previous edition and provides "Top Tips" on a number of advice service issues.  Download the Advice Service Directory.   (2 mb).  Some changes have occurred since the publication of the Advice Services Directory, the amendements are incorporated within this   Updated Advice Services Directory (1.2Gb)

Publications
The following publications can be downloaded from the 'Publications' page

- Advice Service Directory
- Funding Updates
- Voluntary Sector Charter
- Voluntary Sector Compact
- Voluntary Sector Fact File

Useful links
London Voluntary Services : Strengthening voluntary organisations by providing services and a strong voice on policy issues that affect Londoners.

Actionlink - Information for London's Voluntary Sector.

The Centre for Public Innovation - is an independent community interest company providing consultancy and training services for public sector organisations and individuals. They also have space for voluntary organisations to hold meetings and training sessions.

Chris Blyth
Service Development Officer
Tel: 020 8871 7810
Email: cblyth@wandsworth.gov.uk