New Providers Confirmed to Support Essex Voluntary and Community Sector

Posted on: December 5, 2024

Essex County Council has reviewed how the Voluntary and Community Sector is best supported to continue its vital work.

Two organisations have been announced as the successful providers of new support services for the Voluntary and Community Sector (VCS) in Essex. Maldon and District CVS (MDCVS) will deliver a universal standard support offer. This will be available to all VCS organisations in the county. They will be supported by Uttlesford Community Action Network and Pipe Media.

The support will include a digital repository of information, advice, guidance and training. VCS organisations can use this to help with their business compliance, sustainability and to improve efficiency. The Active Wellbeing Society (TAWS) will focus on increasing community participation and volunteering. This will include working with partners to break down barriers to participation. They will be supported by Achieve, Thrive, Flourish (ATF).

Essex County Council ran two procurements to select the new providers. The contracts will start on 1 December 2024. The services will be fully live from April 2025 following a mobilisation period.

Councillor Louise McKinlay, the council’s Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Communities, Economic Growth and Prosperity, said: “Voluntary and community sector organisations play a vital role in connecting and empowering local people and groups. They also make an invaluable contribution to the health and wellbeing of our residents. It’s therefore important that they have the right support to continue this positive work.

“This latest announcement reiterates our commitment to helping the VCS. We are pleased to have such strong providers in place and I look forward to sharing the positive outcomes from this work in the future.” The announcement of the new providers comes after the council has reviewed the support offered to the VCS over the past few years. This highlighted variation across Essex and the need for better collaboration. It also demonstrated the need to ensure there is the right support in place to sustain the VCS in the long-term. Since then, the council has worked to understand the needs of the sector. It has also engaged with partners to understand local priorities and ambitions.

Sarah Troop, Director at Maldon and District CVS, said: “We are delighted to be invited to develop this innovative new resource for the voluntary sector in Essex. This builds on the decades of charity expertise that we have as an established voluntary sector infrastructure provider, but utilising AI and digital innovation promises to be a forward looking tool for organisations of all sizes.”

Sylvia Gentleman, Funding and New Partnerships Manager at The Active Wellbeing Society, said: “The invitation to support voluntary and community sector organisations across Essex is a tremendous honour and both TAWS and ATF are excited to be part of this development journey. We have extensive experience in connecting communities to local organisations in order to improve health and wellbeing for all. We are confident that we will complement and add value to the Universal Support Offer providing valuable services to local organisations.”

These two new services are part of the council’s wider efforts to transform support for the VCS. The overall programme is made up of four elements. These will come under a shared identity and include:

the digital universal support offer provided by MDCVS
increasing participation in volunteering provided by the AWS
helping organisations to maximise their resources and funding opportunities
a local offer that will help organisations remain sustainable, strengthen networks and increase collaboration

A further procurement will take place to select a provider for the resource and funding element.