Welcome to the Black Voluntary Sector Network Wales (BVSNW) website

 

 

 

PLease click HERE to view news from our partner Newspaper       

 

BVSNW is an umbrella organisation that actively represents, supports and promotes the interests of the BME communities and the BME voluntary sector in Wales. We also provide a number of services directly to individuals, communities and agencies throughout Wales. For more information on what we de, please visit our About Us section.

Follow us by clicking:

Anti-Extremist Training

BVSNW in partnership with Cardiff  Youth Service are currently delivering FREE training to individuals working with young people throughout Cardiff

The training trains you to deliver a series of 10 developed workshops to young people helping them to: 

·       become culturally aware

·       respect the views of their peers

·       express their views in a structured way within the Law.

·       understand all types of extremism

·       respond to issues that affect them locally

·       understand  how extremists market their messages to young people and how to counter this.

·       find help in assisting their friends who may be experiencing negative external influencing

·       develop counter narratives to negative marketing around all types of extremist behaviour

The next  training will take place during the 3rd week of May (dates to be confirmed soon)

Places are limited to 15 places, so please contact us ASAP to book your place call flo on 029 20450 068 or e-mail info@bvsnw.org.uk

Venue will be Butetown Communities First office, Atlantic House

16 Dumballs Road, Butetown, Cardiff CF10 5FE

Funding News:

Third Sector Partnership Council Funding
BVSNW have received £4,000 to again act as the Ethnic Communities representative for the TSPC.

WCVA Additional Funding
We have been successful in our bid (£7,000) to support our communications activities.

BME Offender Services
BVSNW have been successful in our funding bid to the Home Office Innovation fund. We have been awarded £70,000 to assist reducing re-offending by BME offenders in South Wales. The project involves engaging with offenders for a 1 month period prior to release, and then providing volunteering opportunities for the offenders upon release and the delivery of training and mentoring to help them re-engage with society. It will also help service providers engage better with BME offenders.
 
We will be working in partnership with Cardiff Prison, Parc Prison (Bridgend) and the National Probation Trust for this work over the next 13 months. If you would like to be involved, please contact Ali Boksh on 02920 450 068.

ACW Training project
BVSNW are delighted to announce the news of their long awaited training programme for Black and Minority Ethnic arts practitioners in Wales. The Arts Council of Wales have awarded the Arts Service with a grant of £20,000 to deliver a series of professional development courses across Wales to maximise employment opportunities. BVSNW’s goal is to increase the number of artists from Black and Ethnic Minority backgrounds working professionally in the arts in Wales and “this pilot training programme is a major step that we have taken to try and address the needs of our artist network here at BVSNW” says Leanne Rahman Senior Arts Development Officer. To find out more about the training programme and courses that will be available from April contact Leannne Rahman on 02920 440188 or e-mail l.rahman@bvsnw.org.uk

ACW Core support
We have also been successful in receiving funding (£25,000) from the Arts Council of Wales to help support our core Arts Development Service.
The funding will enable us to physically provide support to BME artists in more parts of Wales throughout 2012/13.

BVSNW / SEWREC Collaboration - The Boards of BVSNW and SEWREC have emphasised partnership work in their business plans for several years, for example many of the projects of both organisations are delivered in conjunction with other organisations.  However, BVSNW and SEWREC recognise that small organisations can find considerable strength in collaborations that go beyond project work and include the sharing of core costs, facilities and staff.

BVSNW and SEWREC have now agreed a pilot project in which the two organisations will share management functions for a four month trial period from January 2012.  During the pilot Michael Flynn, Project Director at BVSNW, will concentrate on project development and fundraising for both organisations while David Philips, CEO of SEWREC, will concentrate on representation, financial and line management for both organisations.

 

The Boards of BVSNW and SEWREC believe that this approach will increase their capacity to develop new projects to meet the needs of their communities and to provide secure on-going funding without increasing costs.

 

Both organisations also have strong links to the equality councils of North Wales, Swansea Bay and Cardiff.  Over the last 12 months BVSNW and the four equality councils have met regularly and submitted a number of joint funding applications and tenders under the banner of the Welsh Equality Group.  Both Boards expect this type of work to continue and to become more and more important over the next few years.  Both Boards also see the financial environment for the voluntary sector remaining bleak, but believe that they have all the right tools to ensure the sustainability of their organisations, while also ensuring modest growth and continuation of service provision to the communities.

 

As a partnership we look forward to continuing to work with BME communities, community groups and other agencies who wish to engage with them.

 

Click Here to view programme for the day

 

 Black History Month Wales 2011

Thanks to everyone who took part in the events throughout October and all who attended the grand finale event. A full report on the finale will be available soon.

Anti-Extremism Training

BVSNW have received £21,000 through the Cardiff Youth Service Grant to develop the resourses and deliver our training programme to youth workers from the Cardiff youth service and  the voluntary sector who wish to deliver our Anti-extremism programme to young people throughout Cardiff.

Big Lottery Funding

BVSNW submitted our bid to the Big Lottery 'People and Places' fund. Thanks to all of you who contributed to the consultation process. We intend to develop our work (over 3 years) with young BME offenders in partnership with Cardiff and Parc Prisons, the Probation Trust and the Youth Offending Service.

Home Office Funding

BVSNW have submitted a bid to the Home Office to help support our work in developing volunteering opportunities, developing mentors and supporting BME offenders as they start to contibute to society upon release.

 

ACW

The Arts Council of Wales have again agreed to support us through a substantial service level agreement to continue to:

 

·        Offer support to emerging artists and companies from Black and
Minority Ethnic backgrounds.

·        Share information provided by Arts Council of Wales and other arts
sector organisations on jobs, training events, news and other relevant
opportunities with diverse artists, organisations and communities.

·        Assist Arts Council of Wales in gathering the views of diverse
artists, organisations and communities.

 

To find out more or get involved please contact Leanne or Nicky on 02920 440 188

or l.rahman@bvsnw.org.uk and n.delgado@bvsnw.org.uk 

Awards For All.

BVSNW are please to announce that we have received funding from the Big Lottery to greatly enhance our ability to identify and support volunteers in South Wales. If you would like to find out about our volunteering service, please contact Flo at : info@bvsnw.or.uk

 

Voluntary Action Cardiff (VAC)

BVSNW have agreed a service level agreement with VAC to provide training on Equality and Diversity and also offer community development advice and support to BME communities in Cardiff throughout 2011/12.

 

South Wales Fire and Rescue Service.

The SWFRS have commissioned BVSNW to host an outreach officer from the Chinese community, to help them engage with and assist in fire safety issues in the service sector of the Chinese Communities in South Wales.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

BME Offenders -  BVSNW continue our research project to look at the inclusiveness of service provision in relation to BME current and ex-offenders. If you or your service would like to be involved in the process, please contact Spencer Huggins on 02920 450 068 to discuss the project.

BVSNW are currently designing a one-day training course on Equality and Cultural understanding in the work place. It is designed to be a fun, interactive and engaging course for staff and volunteers to promote the benefits of diversity, help in understanding other cultures and faiths, and things to be taken into account to make your service and work place fully inclusive and productive.

For more information on any of the above, please contact us on: 02920 450 068

or e-mail m.flynn@bvsnw.org.uk

 

We are pleased to announce that we have received funding from Lloyds TSB to support a volunteer co-ordinator for the next year.

She will be working in the local community to attract, train and secure BME volunteers and arrange placements in partner organisations both in the voluntary and private sector. Please call us for more information or visit our volunteering page at VOLS

 BBC Work Placements

2nd Trip of young people to visit the BBC towards gaining work placements - 30th June 2010.

BVSNW are encouraging people from a BME background (or who have a working interest in BME issues) to contact us towards being part of our policy representation process by acting as a representative on several of our policy development boards.

Please contact us for more information.