Supporting the 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.

The volunteering service is run by the Volunteer Centre Wandsworth and they can provide guidance on how to become a volunteer and help you to choose a placement that is best suited to your needs.  They are based at 170 Garratt Lane, London SW18 4DA. Telephone: 020 8870 4319, email enquiry@wvsda.org.uk or visit www.wvsda.org.uk.

The Wandsworth Voluntary and Community Sector Database provides up to date information on groups based in Wandsworth and can be searched using the following fields: Name, Users/User Groups; Area of Work.  You can access the database here.   

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.  We also contribute to the London Boroughs Grants Scheme to support the voluntary sector in London.

For more information about our work, you can contact Chris Blyth on 020 8871 7810 or at  cblyth@wandsworth.go.uk

The Voluntary Sector - Surviving Recession Conference

The Voluntary Sector - Surviving Recession Conference was held on Wednesday 30th September in the Civic Suite at the Town Hall with Cllr Maurice Heaster (Deputy Leader) welcoming over 150 delegates. The day-long event was organised by the Council to help develop a better understanding of the impact of the recession on the voluntary sector and to provide information to organisations on how to remain resilient and solvent through the economic downturn.

The conference brought together representatives from the public, charitable and corporate sectors, as well as a large cross-section of London's voluntary sector. Throughout the day a range of expert speakers and workshop presenters addressed the following vital areas: sources of national and local funding; commissioning local public services; social enterprise and business support; and voluntary sector development and sustainability.

Speakers included Pat Samuel CBE (Office of the Third Sector); Malcolm Hayday (Charity Bank); Jonathan Lewis (Futurebuilders England); Alison Ogden-Newton (Social Enterprise London), Sam Matthews (Charities Evaluation Services), Nigel Hay (Thames Community Foundation), Debbie Pippard (Big Lottery Fund) and Stefan Kuchar (Wandsworth Voluntary Sector Development Agency).

As part of the evaluation for the event, delegates were asked to give their ratings and comments on the conference and the following results were obtained:

• 92% overall rated the day as excellent/good
• 96% rated the venue as excellent/good
• 87% rated the catering as excellent/good
• 88% rated the information offered from the stands as excellent/good
• 82% rated the pre-event information as excellent/good
• 95% overall rated the event organisation as excellent/good
  

Selection of comments:

"Very professional & extremely focused - good networking"
"Inspiring case studies and positive advice on strategies for working with commissioning bodies"
"Good balanced agenda covering a wide range of topics"
"The conference fired me up to face the challenge"
"A very inspiring and informative day"

You can download a copy of the Delegate Pack for the Conference here:

For more information contact Chris Blyth on 020 8871 7810 or by email cblyth@wandsworth.gov.uk.  

Guides and publications

There are a number of publications that you can download providing information, advice and further details on volunteering and the volunteer sector in Wandsworth from the related downloads area.