FairPlay – Social Justice Network

Posted on by OCVA

FairPlay is a network in Cutteslowe, Summertown, Waterways and Wolvercote which hopes to bring together all the voluntary organisations and groups, including the churches, who are working in their different ways for social justice issues. It aims to:

* keep in touch and exchange information

* encourage and support one another’s separate activities

* share resources

* arrange joint events and act together (e.g. campaigning) when appropriate.

Open Meetings (open to anyone interested in the network or in membership with one of its groups) are held at least twice a year to share news and ideas, discuss current issues, and plan ahead.A list of member organisations and a quarterly FairPlay news sheet can be received by email by anyone signing up for them. fairplayoxford@gmail.com tel: 07552 187856

NETWORK: An Oxford based women’s network to support female leaders

Posted on by OCVA

An Oxford based women’s network to support female leaders

We are writing to introduce you to our women’s network, held in Oxford city centre (but if you aren’t in the area we also offer an online-class), the New Year’s Resolution Club, which has been running since 2014. As two women who are both passionate about working together with women to grow networks, share expertise, facilitate knowledge exchange and learning, especially within the female community, we are hoping this may be of interest to the professional women in your organization (we’d hugely appreciate it if you forward this onto your HR department if this has come through to the wrong place).

We focus on dreaming big, creating plans and then going out there and making it happen, all with the amazing support and accountability provided within this wonderful group of like-minded women. Participants start the year identifying their values, strengths and passions and then build their own programme within our structure to work towards and achieve their goals over 12 months of the year.

How it is delivered:

  • 4 x 3 hour Saturday morning workshops on January 23rd, April 23rd, July 16th, and October 22nd (from 9.30am-12.30pm)
  • 4 x 2 hour “inspiration meetings”on Mondays in February 15th, May 16th, August 22nd, and November 21st (6.30-8.30pm)
  • 4 social/creative outings in March, September, and December
  • 12 monthly online modules
  • Access to private NYRC2016 Facebook community page

Our “class members” benefit from:

  • Accountability – by committing to be with us for a year and accountability to your classmates through monthly meetups, you are more likely to stick to your promises and goals
  • Structure – Our carefully planned quarterly sessions, starting with a focused 3 hour planning and accountability session, followed with a themed discussion group and a creative/social month ensure that you are following a tried and tested structure to your year that is full of variety to keep you interested, learning all the time, trying and thinking about new ideas, and connected with your peers in the group. The online modules also ensure you are able to follow along if you miss an in-person meeting.
  • Peer support – One of the most powerful aspects of our Club is the variety of women who come along. A wide range of experiences and backgrounds ensures that the conversations, ideas and networks you are gaining access to is rich and exceptionally valuable. You could meet your next business partner or running buddy – or both!
  • Access to amazing content and expertise – The sessions provide a rich mix of personal development ideas and expertise. Either as presentations or video content from top experts in a variety of different specialties, to ideas offered from your peers, each month you will have access to discussions and presentations on an inspirational theme, along with workbooks and exercises to complete as part of a reflection and action section.
  • A supportive and encouraging environment – we believe in the power of women coming together and exploring ideas, as well as learning and supporting each other. All our sessions are delivered in a safe and confidential environment where you are encouraged to stretch your comfort zone where appropriate and speak openly and freely without judgement.

If you, or any of your staff are interested, you can sign up any time before January 23rd, but we are running a promotion this week where new signups can get a space for 1/2 price, so just £149. They can sign up on our EventBrite page:

NEW NETWORK: Community-level Asylum-seeker & Refugee Support Oxfordshire (CLARSO)

Posted on by OCVA

Communities across Oxfordshire are setting up groups to coordinate their local level response to helping asylum seekers and refugees.

Townsfolk and villagers are meeting up in many places to work out what they can offer to assist those in need.

OCVA has set up a new network to support them. Initially this will just be online – enabling groups across different localities to talk to one another and identify each other. A physical ‘meet up’ may be offered at a later stage if enough groups want it.

The network is called Community-level Asylum-seeker & Refugee Support Oxfordshire or CLARSO for short. Anyone can join the CLARSO online network but requests to join are processed manually to prevent ‘spam’. (It may take us a few days to process your request. Thank you for your patience.)

OCVA and those it has been working with to deliver a coordinated response on the asylum seeker and refugee ‘issue’ would like to point out to town and village groups that a single point of information exists to assist those who are working directly with asylum seekers and refugees.

If your group will be directly delivering something specific to asylum seekers / refugees please add your details to this single resource.

If instead your group is working out how to help those others who are doing direct delivery please make use of the single point of information to find out which organisation to submit your offer towards and which individual in that organisation to contact.

Some local groups simply want to volunteer certain things and many of you are self organising independently. OCVA only wishes to encourage that. We simply ask that:

  • the single point resource gets used and promoted,
  • duplication of effort is avoided,
  • any direct delivery you know about gets added to the single point resource
  • any indirect delivery (for example, you want to volunteer some time or sponsor a room) gets directed to the organisation providing in that area

Check out the single point of information (use the form on the first page to submit any additions)

Join CLARSO

 

NEW NETWORK: Barriers to Housing Services in Oxfordshire

Posted on by OCVA

Dear valued colleague,yammer

We and Oxfordshire Community Foundation (OCF) are setting up a new network for anyone interested in tackling barriers to housing services in Oxfordshire.

To begin with this network will just be online.

Moving forward this network is likely to have several uses. But the initial usefulness is to help OCF with some research they are undertaking.

The questions OCF are asking are already posted to the online network. You’ll see them once you have joined and can respond easily to them there.

Sign Up

Once you have signed up, your request needs to be manually approve
d. This may take a working day or two; it won’t be instant.

Thank you. I hope this assists you in your own work moving forward.

Season’s Greetings,

Trevor Barton
Systems & Support Manager at OCVA