Exciting News from Support Cambridgeshire Partnership! – The new volunteer website for Cambridgeshire has launched!

Volunteers are the lifeblood that keeps your organisation thriving as a community group. They play essential roles in your committees and management teams, advocate for your cause, fundraise on your behalf, and enable you to fulfil your mission. In fact, you might even be a volunteer yourself!

However, one undisputable fact is, that it’s becoming increasingly evident to us: recruiting volunteers is becoming more challenging, even when you believe you’re doing everything right. We recognise that this challenge is not unique to your group but affects many organisations. That’s why, in addition to offering support, advice, and workshops, we are now bringing you Volunteer Cambs.

Volunteer Cambs is a website that empowers members of the public to explore various ways they can contribute to their community. It serves as a unified hub for non-profit organisations to showcase their initiatives and engage with local communities.

We are thrilled to be joining the ranks of Hertfordshire, Norfolk, and Peterborough in creating our community engagement portal. This initiative is particularly significant in light of recent reports, such as NCVO’s ‘Time Well Spent Report‘, which highlights a decline in volunteer numbers and increasing barriers to volunteering.

The site offers a range of functions beyond promoting your volunteer opportunities. It provides personalisation options, opportunities to integrate with your website, data and analytics to track your volunteer roles, and a means to communicate with potential volunteers through one system, eliminating the need for personal email accounts.

As a member of our organisation, we want to ensure you are aware of this exciting website and remind you that we are here to support you in accessing its services. Our staff are trained to assist you in uploading appealing and engaging volunteer opportunities that will attract a diverse pool of volunteers. So have a play and log on today!

We invite you to join us in early 2024 to promote this website to the people of Cambridgeshire. Stay tuned for more information! Sign up to the Support Cambridgeshire newsletter to find out when workshops are launched and how you can support in promoting to the public – Sign up here!

5 things the Cambridgeshire ‘State of the sector’ research makes me want to shout about!

By Mark Freeman CEO at CCVS and research author.

This blog builds on the Support Cambridgeshire State of the sector research that can be found here https://supportcambridgeshire.org.uk/news/state-sector-survey/

There is a great deal of information in the report, and we hope that people find it useful and interesting. Using the findings, and what we know about everything else that is happening, these are the things that I think we need to make some noise about. I want to shout about the good and the bad and look at what we need to do moving forwards.

Is crisis here to stay?

The subtitle of the report is ‘The state of the voluntary sector in the midst of a cost-of-living crisis.’ Just when we thought that the end of the pandemic would bring a time to take a breath, rebuild reserves of energy, money and enthusiasm, and take stock of the positives as well as the negatives that the pandemic had highlighted, we found there was no respite as we careered headlong into a different but equally damaging crisis.

People are tired and organisations are in a constant crisis mode. The levels of optimism have dropped from last year with only 43% of respondents thinking that next year will be better than last year (compared to 59% saying so in 2022). We have to recognise the impact this has on staff and volunteers and ensure that organisations prioritise their wellbeing as well as they do the wellbeing of those they work with.

We are seeing the impact of big social, political, and environmental issues on local groups and the people and communities they work with. These big issues are reflected in the survey results with more people concerned about climate change, divisions in society, uncertain economic outlook and changes in local politics than they were last year. Locally groups can do little to impact these issues but the fallout from them is impacting people in very real ways and is often adding to the work of groups.

We have to make more noise about what impact national policies are having locally on organisations and the people they work with. We need to get better at articulating the stories that organisations hear so that the impact of decisions nationally can be seen in the context of how they impact real people and communities. Collectively the sector can help to ensure that any impact is mitigated locally by helping to influence local statutory partners and Support Cambridgeshire will continue to advocate for the local sector where it can, to do this we need your stories and your knowledge of what is happening so please share with us.

Positivity remains.

I still see positivity from groups and those working and volunteering in them. I see groups continuing to deliver and looking at how they adapt and develop in order keep delivering. One respondent wrote,

“We have lots of opportunities and exciting projects coming up. 2022 allowed us to build up a lot of new connections and strong relationships, which are likely to result in additional funding this year.”

The pandemic allowed new relationships to form, it allowed groups to learn new ways of working and it provided opportunities for innovation. Across the sector we are seeing groups taking the best of the last two years and building that into their work moving forward. Groups are looking to Support Cambridgeshire and other organisations to build the skills and knowledge needed to keep moving forward. We are seeing a demand for more networking opportunities and a real desire to find ways to build on relationships that were formed over the pandemic.

We know it is hard for many to find the time to attend training or events and it is up to us to find ways to make this work. We need to look at both online and in person events but also how we use technology to help people keep in touch. There is a clear preference from the survey for online, but we know how beneficial groups find being together in the same room. We will find ways that recognise solutions may vary so that people can find what works for them. We will also work with our statutory partners to stop them slipping back into the old ways and to ensure they remain actively engaged as equal partners and not as the masters to the sectors servants.

Volunteers are key.

Volunteers are the lifeblood of so much of what happens in the sector. We saw people embrace volunteering in many ways during the pandemic. But we also saw volunteers stopping as roles changed and as people isolated.

Our survey is reflecting the national (and indeed international) data that is showing that many of those who volunteered during the pandemic have not continued, and that those who volunteered before the pandemic, but were forced to stop, have not all returned. This has left the sector struggling to recruit and retain volunteers. The survey shows 73% of organisations having an issue recruiting volunteers, this is up from 69% in 2019.

There is also a change in what volunteers want to commit to as this survey response highlights.

“We can recruit volunteers for one-off events but finding people who are prepared to make a regular commitment (e.g. monthly meetings, decision-making roles) is proving difficult since the pandemic.”

At Support Cambridgeshire we are looking at how we can help attract more people to volunteer and how we can help organisations adapt their volunteering offer to suit the way people want to volunteer. We are developing a county wide volunteer platform that will help organisations and individuals to find one another, and that we hope will act as a catalyst to promoting volunteering. We continue to provide training, support, and networks aimed at volunteer management and engagement, and we will continue to push for local funding to support volunteering programmes.

Money is also key.

The whole process of identifying, getting, managing, and reporting on the funding an organisation needs is exhausting and time consuming. The biggest issue highlighted by the survey is lack of funding with 85% of organisations highlighting this (up from 82% in 2019). When asked about the barriers comments like these were common.

“Securing funding for core costs / unrestricted funds.”

“Competitive tendering processes and short cycles being draining on staff and creating precarious conditions for employment.”

We need to find more money for the work the sector does. Equally importantly we need to push for this money to be available in different ways. We must move away from short term funding that funds a project, to longer term funding that funds the organisation to deliver its mission. Funders should review the monitoring they require, and at the same time organisations need to collect the data and tell their story in a way that gives the funders what they need, allows trustees to govern properly, and that highlights to the public the fantastic work that is happening.

Support Cambridgeshire will continue to work with organisations and the local funders to explore how we can make more money available in a way that reduces the burden on both the funder and the recipient. We need to shift how we fund as well as the amount that is funded. At the same time, we will look at how we can help organisations develop new funding sources and the skills to exploit them. We need to see an end to this type of comment and allow organisations to concentrate less on the money and more on their core purpose.

“Massive barriers with funding – some of the core services we offer aren’t funded by any agency and instead we have to rely on grant funding or fundraising.”

Community is in the ascendence.

There has been a growing recognition of the importance of the sector and the role it plays to help communities and individuals thrive. This has resulted in unprecedented interest in what the sector can offer and how it can help alleviate some of the issues that government at all levels is trying to address. This all means the sectors star is in the ascendence as statutory bodies look towards us and communities to deliver in a radically different way. It remains to be seen if there will be the real will and the resources to make the changes, but we have not been in a place like this with opportunities like these for a long time. As one respondent commented.

“The reputation of our organisation continues to grow. Our residents have more and more confidence in seeking help from us. And we have stronger than ever links other organisations. All of this puts us in a good position to fulfil our aims and objectives.”

Despite this desire to see communities and the organisations embedded in them deliver, the research shows that all is not equal across the county. There are more organisations and more money in some of the traditionally more affluent areas, and this will result in more services and support being available.

At Support Cambridgeshire we will look at how we share this information to raise awareness of the state of the Cambridgeshire VCS. Change and adaptation is essential for the sector and the same is true for us at Support Cambridgeshire, we will look at how we can use this information to improve our work and our offer to all the VCS across the county. We will use the survey to help us advocate for change. Change from statutory partners. Change from funders of all types. Change in how organisations work. Change in how organisations are supported. Change in how the sector is seen and supported by the public.

Conclusion

We hope that this survey helps to build understanding of the charity and community sector in Cambridgeshire. We hope that it shows the variety and size of the sector but also the issues it faces as society battles with the aftermath of the pandemic and the ongoing cost of living crisis.

The sector is amazing, and resilient and innovative, but it needs to be supported and nurtured and not simply taken for granted. At Support Cambridgeshire this is our primary goal, but it is not something that we can do alone so we will be looking for help everywhere we can find it!

Four top tips to recruiting staff in difficult times.

By Mark Freeman, CEO. May 2023.

Introduction

This blog is to share our experience of recruiting staff. We definitely have not got all the answers, but we had a very successful recruitment round, and this was based on a new recruitment process. As such we want to share our thoughts in case they are of interest to others. You can read our procedures here https://www.cambridgecvs.org.uk/download/527

The statistics tell us that it is getting harder to recruit staff as vacancies rise and unemployment lowers. This blog explores what we did to successfully recruit to our development worker role and looks at what we got right and wrong, as well as what we might do to recruit and retain paid staff in the future.

In December of last year we went out for recruitment for a development worker here at CCVS. The advert and job information can be found on our website here https://www.cambridgecvs.org.uk/about-us/ccvs-staff/jobs

Our top four tips

How and where you advertise is important

We kept the applications open for a long time, including for the period over Christmas and the New Year. This worked well but it does prolong the application process. In future we will always look to have at least a 5 or 6 week application period if possible. This allows us to cover two of our newsletter cycles and to make sure we get our message shared widely.

We know that it is unlikely that someone will want to move to Cambridge for the salaries we offer. We also know we want people who understand the local area and live close enough to come into the office occasionally. As such we do not advertise in any of the paid national publications or websites. We make the most of our networks and contacts to share our adverts to as wide a community as possible. This includes working with statutory partners as well as with other local charities. We treat the recruitment like a campaign so that we are constantly sharing across all our communication channels, and always looking at how we can reach a wider audience.

Be clear what you ask for, and make sure adverts and job descriptions reflect that.

We want to ensure that we are getting the right person for the job, but at the same time we have to realise that the perfect experience and skills might not exist in anyone. We work to distil out what we need in a person and try to limit the skills and experience and recruit someone with the right beliefs and values as it is easy to train someone to gain skills, but less easy to get them to alter beliefs etc.

We work to ensure that the advert as well as the job description and person specification does not exclude people who may be good candidates and we are explicit about what we want. We write the advert and the job description to concentrate on the type of person and the attitude rather than a long list of experience. As the advert says

“We are looking for someone who cares about the voluntary sector and supporting people and who is conscientious, passionate, positive and ready to learn.
We are looking for someone who will thrive in a changing environment and will be willing to ‘muck in’ in order to ensure we are delivering a responsive service.”

We also stress in the advert that there will be training, and support and that the person will work as part of a team. We believe that we have the capacity and skills within the team to teach the skills and build the knowledge of someone who is passionate about the sector, eager to learn, and willing to muck in. These qualities are harder to develop than the skills, so we try and stress their importance.

Do your best to offer a benefits package that will make you stand out.

We know that we are not able to offer high salaries and lots of perks as we do not have the money. We try and ensure our salaries are comparable to (or better) than similar roles in charities but we have to look at what else we can do to ensure we are a place people want to work.

We try to ensure that we are flexible about the hours we want someone to work and put this prominently in the advert. This may mean we end up with less capacity than we would like, but it may well mean that an applicant who is brilliant may apply as they can see how the role fits around their lives or caring responsibilities. Trying to offer flexible options can be difficult, but it is a great way to broaden the appeal of the role.

How we would like to improve – In future we need to look at how we treat job share requests and how we make that level of flexibility work. This may increase some costs, but we were asked about this and were not able to accommodate it for a recent role.

Whatever people think about working in the sector salary and benefits are important. We still see too many adverts that don’t include the salary, and this can cause issues. The show the salary campaign https://showthesalary.wordpress.com/why-show-the-salary/ (which we are signed up to) explain why it is important.

We have tried to ensure that we offer other benefits and have a better than average holiday entitlement and a better than average pension contribution. We are also a Real Living wage member and we would encourage all charities to look at how they to could sign up to this. https://www.livingwage.org.uk/what-real-living-wage

How we would like to improve – We would like to explore how we can offer child care vouchers and we are exploring the cycle to work scheme. These initiatives do cost us in terms of time but it is about helping us to stand out.

Hybrid working and a four day week

For a number of years now we put all staff on hybrid working contracts and we are working on a trial to see how we can move to a four day week. Our hybrid working does not mandate a minimum number of days in the office, but we do encourage staff to get together when they can, and when they need to, and we have a hot desk system in our office. We also organise in person staff socials every couple of months and have a weekly online coffee meeting as well as conventional team meetings.

We are starting to work towards a four day week and have agreed to trial the 4 Day Week Campaign silver standard for a year with a view to move to the gold standard after that. This has involved us reducing the working week from 37 hours to 35 hours. We will be testing this out and more information about the benefits and how it can work are available here. https://www.4dayweek.co.uk/ We know that we can’t dictate how staff use their hours but we will be encouraging those who are full time to look at having an extra day off if possible.

Look at how you can improve the appointment process.

We want to make applying for the job and the interview as stress free as possible whilst at the same time giving us the opportunity to appoint the best candidate. As part of our recruitment procedure we have altered the application form so that we only ask the essential questions. We also limit the number of previous jobs people need to include so we don’t get pages of useless information that will not help us identify good candidates. We have put in maximum word counts for some questions as we want people who are succinct and precise in how they write and who can pick out the important details, and (if we are honest) we want to make our job shortlisting easier by reducing what we have to read. As highlighted above we have designed our JD and person specs to reflect the idea of selecting candidates as much on attitude as experience and this carries over into what we ask on the forms and into what we are asking or testing at interview.

We use tests as part of the interview process (generally is a presentation on a topic we choose). This helps us understand the candidate’s ability to deliver information in an engaging way as well as their ability to research a subject. The task is less about them getting the right answer but more about their presentation skills and how engaging they are. We recognise that some people struggle with time to do this preparation, so we ask them to keep things short and we try to give them at least two weeks between telling them they have an interview and the date so they have time to prepare.

We are not testing people on their ability to think fast but want people who will be measured and take their time to answer if they don’t have all the information at their fingertips. As such we send out the interview questions around 24 hours before the interview. This allows people to think about what they want to say. We stress to them that they should not read out answers but we do realise that some people, especially those with dyslexia etc. can find this easier as it gives them time to think about their answers beforehand.

How we would like to improve – We are thinking about whether 24 hours is enough time. We will probably extend it to ensure that all candidates have enough time to prepare. At the moment we ask all candidates set questions and do not do a lot of follow up questions. Having looked into this we need to develop our skills to improve our interview skills in this area, this is not about looking to trip candidates up but about how we get the most from candidates and have a better ability to judge their merits.

Conclusion

We must be doing something right as we got a great bunch of applicants and we are delighted that Jigna has joined us (more info here https://www.cambridgecvs.org.uk/about-us/ccvs-staff). I think we have more to learn but we do have a positive process in place according to those that have applied in the past.

Whilst the voluntary sector offers much in the way of job satisfaction and interest, we will not be able to match pay and pensions from other sectors. In the past we tried to offer more flexible working, but this is now a universal offer. We need to look at what helps us stand out against other charities and other sectors. This may be a four day week, it may be greater emphasis on job satisfaction, it may involve better coffee. Those of us working in the sector know how fantastic it can be, but we do need to ensure that we are better at convincing others of this, or recruitment will only get harder.

Community Safety Partnerships Review and Anti-Social Behaviour Powers

Introduction

The Government is consulting on the relationship between Community Safety Partnerships (CSPs) and Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs) and the role of CSPs and PCCs in tackling anti-social behaviour (ASB). The consultation also considers amendments to existing ASB powers.

The consultation ends on 22 May 2023 and the full consultation document is available at CSP review and antisocial behaviour powers consultation (publishing.service.gov.uk)

CSPs were introduced under the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 and bring together local partners to formulate and deliver strategies within their communities to tackle crime and disorder. As multi-agency partnerships, CSPs are an essential mechanism operating in local areas address the range of underlying causes or drivers of crime and ASB. CCVS is a member of both the Cambridge City and South Cambridgeshire DC CSPs. We play different roles at each but attend to represent the voluntary sector and to look at how communities and the groups working in them can play a bigger role.

In 2022, the Government published the findings from Part Two of its review of the Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs). The review recommended that the Home Office undertake a full review of CSPs across England and Wales to improve their transparency, accountability, and effectiveness.

This consultation is part of that review called the Community Safety Partnerships and Anti-Social Powers Review May 2023 see here for more info https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/community-safety-partnerships-review-and-antisocial-behaviour-powers

What is being consulted on?

Summarising the review the Government are consulting on:

Making Community Safety Partnerships more accountable to the Police and Crime Commissioners Officer by:

• Creating a legal duty for CSPs to report their local ASB strategy to PCC,
• PCCs being able to direct local ASB strategies and request ASB data,
• Giving PCCs authority to review activity of CSPs and make recommendations to CSPs
• CSPs having to outline how they are delivering PCCs Police and Crime Plan
• CSPs to send strategic assessments to PCCs (already in place in Cambridge)
• Increasing the role of the PCC in the Community Trigger/ASB review process
• PCCs demonstrating how they have regards to priorities of agencies that make up the CSP
• CSPs publishing their strategic assessment (already in place Cambridge)

Changing ASB Powers by:

• Expanding dispersal powers to local authorities
• Expanding of Drug Testing on Arrest (DToA) to enable police to drug test people in public
• Enabling Police to have the power to initiate Public Spaces Protection Orders (PSPOs)
• Reducing the age at which someone can be issued a Community Protection Notice (CPN) (currently 16, proposal to make it as low as 10 years old)
• Extending window to issue Closure Orders to 72 hrs after Notice has been issued (current time frame is 48 hrs)
• Enabling Registered Housing Providers to issue Closure Orders
• Adding power of arrest to all civil injunctions (currently only in place where violence or significant risk of harm is a factor)
• Expanding of Community Safety Accreditation Scheme to include powers within the ASB, Crime and Policing Act (pg 23 of consultation) and Community safety accreditation scheme powers – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

How to respond

Responses can be submitted online through the GOV.UK website at https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/community-safety-partnerships-review-and-antisocial-behaviour-powers

Respondents who wish to provide a written response rather than complete the online version can email their response by 22/05/23 to: CSPReview@homeoffice.gov.uk.

What are our thoughts?

CCVS have responded to the review through the Cambridge CSP who are collating members responses. To summarise our response we believe that the changes will not have any positive impact and will in fact make things worse. Some of our reasons for this are:

• We have seen in practice and through much of our recent research that relationships, trust and understanding is what matter when addressing complex problems. This was highlighted by the pandemic and is continuing to be highlighted by the ongoing cost of living crisis. Where the VCS and statutory partners have equal and respectful partnerships then impact is magnified. As such we think that rather than mandating that PCCs take some control of the work of the CSP we think that there needs to be guidance to promote positive partnerships and the development of relationships based on trust.
• We think that the changes would put strains on the relationships and that they would blur the lines between the political role of the PCC and the non political role of the CSP.
• The changes to the age at which a Community Protection Notice (CPN) can be issued from 16 to 10 will start to criminalise children. What is needed is positive action to help individuals to change behaviours not simply punishment for behaviours. This is especially true given the experience of many young people during the pandemic.
• The changes to the powers of arrest for non violent civil injunctions will just add to the burden on the court and prison system. What is needed is positive action from communities with the help of CSP partners to address issues and look at how issues can be avoided.
• The changes to the way that closure orders work may well have positive impact but these need to be managed and reported so that the CSP and others can monitor how they are being used and where.
• The changes to allow drug testing outside of a police station leave the system open to abuse and are likely to negatively impact those that are already likely to be discriminated against by the police. The justification for this change is weak and it could lead to significant issues for some communities.
• There is a danger that the changes to allow local authorities to have additional enforcement powers will impact on their ability to work with communities to bring about positive change as relationships will be altered. If there are closer working between CSP partners which include the police and local authorities then the relationships should be there to enable them to find the solutions together, and for the police to continue to be responsible for the issuing of notices.

Conclusions

There are real dangers that the proposed changes will in fact make things worse rather then better when it comes to how a more community focused and partnership approach can address issues of ASB. The necessary powers are there, it is about how they are used and most importantly how everyone works together to solve issues and better still to prevent them from happening.

Charities and social media

The Charity Commission are consulting on draft guidelines for trustees around social media use. https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/draft-guidance-charities-use-of-social-media. This is an area of importance for small charities, but these guidelines will not be a great deal of use for trustees or staff.

This blog sets out my thinking as a small charity CEO and someone who does use social media personally to comment on political and charity topics amongst other things. I have looked at the main areas the commission think that the guidelines should cover and then at the specific area of personal accounts of staff, trustees, or volunteers.

To get other sector views I would start with this Twitter thread from Chris Walker at NCVO

The guidance states that

“If you use social media:

• adopt a social media policy so that you have internal controls in place that are appropriate, proportionate and are clear to everyone at the charity using social media
• ensure you use social media only to help you achieve your charity’s purpose (what your charity was set up to do) and in a way that is in your charity’s best interests
• comply with relevant laws and regulations
• any campaigning or political activity that you do on social media complies with the rules on political activity and campaigning
• ensure your processes help you keep people safe online. Read the “Operating online” section of our guidance on safeguarding”

Looking at these 5 bullet points

Is a policy necessary?

Before we all rush to produce yet another policy that may well never be used, we need to think what should be in it and what real difference will it make. The guidance does suggest some headings for the policy but there is no detailed guidance for a small organisation without the expertise to develop something from scratch. Social media is not a black and white and works best as a conversation. It is also often very reactive and fast moving and is used by organisations for many purposes.

To make the most from social media there has to be trust and understanding in the team. In a small organisation this is often easier to manage, and trustees will be closer to the staff. It is important that trustees engage with the organisations social media to help boost reach and impact.

CCVS have actively decided not to develop a social media policy so that staff are not too constrained and can react, but we have updated our Employee Handbook to state:

“You must not make reference to the organisation or its services, or represent yourself on behalf of the organisation on social media, nor publicise photographs of our work online without formal permission from the organisation to do so (even where this work was undertaken by you.)”

Apart from this we have had a conversation, more detailed with the people with access to the channels, but all staff know what the different channels are for. This comes back to the team buying into the vision, mission and values of the organisation in all their interaction with stakeholders on social or in real life. We are a small team, we work on a basis of trust in all we do and we put in a minimum amount of oversight so that team members can exercise their discretion and creativity.

Only use social media to further your purpose.

We have to realise that as charities we have responsibilities beyond our primary purpose and we should be commenting and raising awareness on these.

As an organisation we a have a set of values that is not simply linked to our purpose but also related to our impact on the world. This will mean that charities will comment on issues that are reflected in their values, this may be liking posts or reposting content, of commenting. This is part of our wider responsibility as an organisation.

One of our values is ‘sustainability’ and as an organisation we think it is important that we talk about how we and others could help around the climate crisis, this might be about encouraging groups to think about things or change their practices to reduce climate impact, but it might also be about bigger things not directly linked to our primary purpose.

Don’t break the law

I am not arguing with this and don’t think that it needs to be in a policy.

But sometimes charities need to push the boundaries. If your purpose is to support refugees and highlight the issues impacting them should you post pictures of people crossing the channel in small boats to highlight what is happening?

Keep to the political campaigning rules.

These have been in place for a number of years and the whole area is mainly an issue for large charities and the guidelines have less impact on small ones, especially those that work locally.

As an organisation we campaign on issues that are relevant to our purpose, and part of this includes amplifying messages from local groups that could have a political element. We also use social media to speak to MPs and local politicians. We do not advocate for one party but we may call out candidates who do not respond to local hustings etc that are set up by members, and we may call out or praise a party locally. We are funded by different local authorities with different viewpoints and have to balance this with our role to ‘speak truth to power’.

This issue should not be part of a social media policy but covered in how you manage campaigning and communications more generally.

Keep people safe online

This is very important and is something that small charities need to give more thought to. This is about keeping the charity and all those involved with it safe. The government and others have done some fantastic work in this area producing useful and practical guides such as these from the National Cyber Security Centre.

Small Charity Guide to Cyber Security

Social media and how to use it safely

All staff should be made aware of these guides as should volunteers and trustees especially if they are posting on the charity’s sites.

Free speech

I start to have a real problem with this section of the guidance that states:

“What to do about problematic content posted or shared by anyone connected to the charity.

Trustees, employees or volunteers are free to post or share personal content and viewpoints on their own social media accounts.

Sometimes there are risks that an individual’s posts are interpreted as reflecting those of a charity. For example a trustee, employee or volunteer could post inappropriate content:

• using a personal account where they can be associated with the charity, either through mixing both personal and professional content or because they list their workplace or role.
• using an entirely personal account that could reasonably be linked to the person’s role at the charity.

As a trustee you are responsible for identifying and managing risks like this, such as by being clear what your rules are, which may be set out in your social media and/or HR policies. This is not intended to prevent general personal use of social media but to help make clear when the charity may have a legitimate concern as the employer.

If personal content has brought negative attention to the charity, consider what actions you may take based on how problematic the content is and what your policy says.”

Locally (and nationally) many people know my link with CCVS, and I have never hidden this on social media. I have worked in the sector over 30 years and been at CCVS in different roles for 11 years, over this time I have spoken to lots of people in person and online including on different social platforms. My personal profile does not mention CCVS but it wouldn’t take genius to make the connection if you read my posts.

Does this mean the trustees can dictate what I write? If I break the law then there could be a case for gross misconduct if it were for an area that had a direct impact on the charity. But if I decide to attend a protest and am arrested, or I tweet overtly political content this is not something the trustees can influence. The law around freedom of speech or the right to protest trump any organisational guidelines.

As a small organisation we operate on a basis of trust between, staff, trustees, volunteers and partners. I have CCVS in my core so would no more disparage the organisation than I would a family member or friend. We can not set rules and guidelines for all situations and we have to rely on trust, common sense, and the ability to have a conversation if there are issues to be addressed.

I think that an over prescriptive social media policy will reduce the impact that this form of communication can have across all areas of a charities work. I think that including a basic statement in a handbook, a policy, or a contract is sufficient. I also think that the trustees of a charity need to understand social media and that some if not all should follow and engage with their charities accounts. Most of all I think trustees need to invest in management that is by consent and not about command and control.

Written by Mark Freeman CEO