Phil Hope launches Community of Practice on Third Sector indicators
Phil Hope has launched a joint project by Office of the Third Sector and the Improvement & Development Agency (IDeA) to support local authorities and their partners in delivering increased participation in volunteering and an environment for a thriving third sector in their area.
Council Leaders and Chief Executives of 35 local authorities attended a lunch reception in the Houses of Parliament to discuss how they are approaching the third sector indicators and what support can be provided by Office of the Third Sector and the Improvement & Development Agency (IDeA).
Guests were asked to identify why they had chosen the third sector indicators, what the challenges to delivery are, and what support they like to help deliver. The session was chaired by Councillor Richard Kemp, third sector lead at the Local Government Association.
In talking about why their partnership had chosen National Indicator 6 or National Indicator 7, one council said they “have adopted a strong approach to commissioning and the Third Sector is recognised as an alternative supplier of services”. Another council said they “see volunteering as a delivery tool for many other indicators”. Many areas felt that investing in their third sector would help them to improve community engagement and build social capital.
To support local authorities and their partners, OTS and IDeA will be establishing an on-line Community of Practice and linking with work of the Government Offices in the regions and Regional Improvement & Efficiency Partnerships. The on-line Community of Practice will allow members to share good practice and ideas, discuss challenges and solutions, and to identify and explore ways of working together.
93 out of 150 local authorities chose to include national indicators 6 (participation in volunteering) or 7 (the environment for a thriving third sector) as a priority in their Local Area Agreements.
All 150 top tier local authority areas will be assessed on all 198 of the National Indicator Set through the Comprehensive Area Assessment. The consultation on how the Comprehensive Area Assessment will work is due to be published by the Audit Commission and joint inspectorates soon.
