Consultancy and Direct Support
Our news, training, resources and information are provided to help community organisations and those supporting them to improve activities, services and support for children, young people and families. However, we appreciate that the landscape is complex and changing and interpreting these changes for your organisation and making the most of the opportunities will require bespoke advice and guidance. We offer this support in the following ways:
Online Guidance and Advice
Community Matters provides free advice to organisations on a wide variety of subjects including but also beyond working with children, young people and families. Click here to find out more or call us on 0845 847 4253 (020 7520 2789) from 09.30 to 13.00 on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.
Alternatively you can contact us online by submitting an online form here.
We also have a wide range of information and technical guidance sheets covering a range of topics. Click here for more information.
Free Consultancy Support
Improving the operation of your organisation can be complex
and time-consuming. Training and workforce
development are costly, while
recruiting the services of a consultant to provide the expertise you lack is
often a confusing and expensive process. However, Community Matters is here to
help! If you are a voluntary or community sector group who work with, or are
developing work with children, young people and families, our free Consultancy
project can offer you a day of free in-house support.
Whether you have hit a stumbling-block, need a critical eye cast over your organisational strategies, or have a specific project you’d like to get off the ground, the Community Matters team can come to you! We are currently taking bookings for free in-house, face-to-face support until Summer 2012.
Here’s how it works:
Contact us, giving details of your organisation and the specific areas or issues you would like support with. The sign-up sheet is available here: https://acrobat.com/?d=JUnnxpzjctzESrtoLyM5kQ (click download, then fill in the form using Adobe Acrobat and press ‘submit form’ in the top right hand corner when done).
The Community Matters’ team will reply to your query within 48 hours, offering advice, resources and suggestions on where to go next.
We will then contact you to discuss further how you might proceed. This might include registering you onto a free training, discussing your problems or ideas over email, or speaking to you on the phone.
While you are in contact with the consultancy team, we will identify a suitable time for an organisation visit.
We will request relevant documents from you (i.e. annual reports, organisational structure charts, needs analyses or business plans) to inform our consultants and help them to familiarise themselves with your organisation.
The consultant will visit your offices for between one hour and one day to offer bespoke support to yourself, the wider staff team, trustees or volunteers. If you only require a short session initially we may be able to offer a ‘top-up’ opportunity at a later date. Where appropriate, you may decide to work with the consultant remotely over a period of time – please discuss this with us if you would prefer longer-term email or phone support.
The consultant will provide support, relevant resources where available, and a final report of recommendations.
We will follow up from this visit with further information and on-going support.
If you have any questions about the process or your eligibility, please email Kierra.box@communitymatters.org.uk