Community Development Practice Hub

The Community Development Practice Hub is a resource for people and organisations who ‘work with’ people in Birmingham, supporting them to take collective action to make changes to things that are important to them and their communities. It aims to connect, inspire and upskill community development practitioners across Birmingham.

The hub is funded by Birmingham City Council, led by BVSC and supported by Thrive Together Birmingham.

Come join us on this exciting journey, as we collaborate with the sector to offer a tailored approach with a focus on Birmingham-specific learning, challenges, and achievements.

21st Century Public Servant

21st Century Public Servant/Researching the future public service workforce

University of Birmingham

What are the qualities and aptitudes which will help public servants work well in the 21st century? This research sets out eight key and overlapping roles that public servants will need to understand to be effective in the 21st Century

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Latest

West Midlands Multibank Reaches One Million Milestone to Help Families in Need

One million essential items have been distributed to families in need across the region through the West Midlands Multibank since the project was launched just over a year ago. The milestone was celebrated by BVSC, who oversee the West Midlands Multibank alongside funders Comic Relief and Sport Relief. The West Midlands Multibank receives donations from businesses such as Amazon to distribute to a network of over 200 community partners who then distribute them to families most in need.
CYP Preventative and Early Mental & Emotional Help - External Stakeholders Engagement

Early Help Mental Health Services provide voluntary, preventative support for children, young people, and families facing challenges to prevent future escalations into secondary care mental health services. The way our young people want to access support, and their needs have changed a lot over the last 10 years. We are reviewing our services to ensure we deliver them effectively and to check if our current delivery model meeting patient needs.
Letters, Promises and Belonging: The Children Of Windrush
Birmingham Windrush Service of Commemoration, Thanksgiving and Celebration

The service will include contributions from clergy, community leaders, and the Birmingham Windrush Celebration Legacy Choir.

How to start an Urban Room

“Every town and city should have a physical space where people can go to understand, debate, and get involved in the past, present and future of where they live, work and play. The purpose of these Urban Rooms is to foster meaningful connections between people and place, using creative methods of engagement to encourage active participation in the future of our buildings, streets, and neighbourhoods.”
Reducing men’s social isolation: engagement and retention

Voluntary and community groups running activities for older people often find it easier to engage women than men. While men are not a uniform group, research reflects this reality, showing that men are less likely to get involved with organisations which explicitly cater for older people. In order to find out how to best engage men Connect Hackney funded four projects to test new approaches to reducing men’s social isolation
Locked down by inequality: Older people and the COVID-19 pandemic

This paper develops the argument that post-COVID-19 recovery strategies need to focus on building back fairer cities and communities
COVID-19, Inequality and Older People: Developing Community-Centred Interventions

This paper considers the basis for a ‘community-centred’ response to COVID-19. It highlights the pressures on communities weakened by austerity, growing inequalities, and cuts to social infrastructure.
Ageing Better National Learning

Ageing Better national learning can be segmented into three clearly defined areas: context, connections and ecosystem. These three interconnected segments build a picture of the macro and micro factors, services and support systems, that help us to better understand loneliness and social isolation in people aged over 50.
Community Development: Journal of the Community Development Society

COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT is the official journal of the Community Development Society and is both a publication venue for your work and a great way of keeping up with the exciting field of community development.
Scottish CoProduction Network

Supporting co-production policy and practice across Scotland, site has videos and resources about CoProduction
Story Telling for Good

Tell stories with purpose.
Acumen Academy

The World's School for Social Change. Free and paid courses
Ella Baker School of Organising

“Give light and the people will find a way” - Ella Baker Community organising resources and training materials available to view, download and deliver for free.

Crisis and Resilience Fund

Help for Birmingham households experiencing financial hardship is being developed as part of Birmingham’s Crisis and Resilience Fund (previously known as Household Support Fund/ Hardship Grant Community Fund) programme.
Become a volunteer

Volunteering involves spending time, unpaid, doing something that is of benefit to others or the environment. Find out how you can get involved in volunteering in Birmingham.
The Weather Model

This model uses the weather as a metaphor for different elements of reflective practice.
What we do

BVSC aims to support a vibrant and resilient sector which in turn ensures that people from across the city feel included and engaged and have access to appropriate support from people who understand the issues and challenges they face.
Join BVSC

There are several ways that you can engage with BVSC to stay informed, grow your organisation and connect with others.
Neighbourhood Network Schemes in Birmingham

The aim of Neighbourhood Network Schemes (known as NNS) in Birmingham is to help older adults in Birmingham to lead healthy, happy and independent lives in their own homes and communities.
Funding

Find out how BVSC can help you with fundraising
Compliments, Comments and Complaints Process

At BVSC we strive to provide our customers with the best service possible. We know that some of the best ideas come from people outside of our organisation and we therefore welcome feedback at every level to help us continuously improve what we do. This means that we want to hear from you when things go well, and when things could have gone better.
Quality Standards
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