Mike Causey – Wrecclesham and Rowledge
Waverley Borough CouncillorArchive for Volunteer
Calling Concerned Citizens
Critical to our (councillors) ability to represent as fully as possible, is an intimate knowledge of the needs and aspirations of Waverley’s residents.
To this end, in previous years Waverley has had a Citizens’ Panel. To my knowledge, it’s not been as effective as it might and to a degree, that’s down to the fact that not many residents actually volunteer to join it.
Over the next few weeks, there’s an endeavour to refresh the panel and hence, a chance for interested residents to be part of a body that I for one, will be intensely interested in hearing from. Not only will it have direct influence in consultations that Waverley undertakes, but it will also play a critical role in proposing possible new powers under the Sustainable Communities Act (see my previous blog posts on this).
Please seriously consider joining this. I won’t pull any punches on this – for those of you who contact the council regularly and gripe about issues (and I don’t use gripe pejoratively – I mean that solely in a descriptive way) – why don’t you get involved? Here’s your chance to get stuck in and be part of the solution.
A free tree
What a fantastic time this afternoon. After hunting around the web, it ended up that a friend of our’s told us about the Waverley Borough Council rangers’ volunteer day at Mare Hill, Witley. I couldn’t believe that I had missed the fact that the council of which I am a member, was conducting the exact volunteering that I was looking for!
The main objective was to obtain a Christmas Tree for our home, whilst helping clear some common land. Rach and I had done this a few years ago before having children and, this year we wanted to start establishing some traditions for our family, including this one.
In the event, we couldn’t have hoped for a more wonderful day. The weather was beautiful (a picture perfect winter’s day with snow covering everything and the sun in a blue sky), Caleb as energetic and excited and, the rangers were simply great. With big smiles and happy demeanours we were given our choice of weapons – oops, I mean tools – and pointed in the direction of the size I was looking for.
30 minutes later we had them – Caleb with his little 3 foot tree and Daddy lugging his 6 footer over his shoulder, hoping he looked manly and rugged.
They are now safely ensconced in the living room, adorned with lights and baubles and ready for presents.
Worth their weight in gold
I’m not exactly certain how much a person’s weight in gold would be, but, by any measure, the staff and volunteers at Citizens Advice would surely be worth it.
At the trustees’ meeting today – on which I sit as a representative of Waverley Borough Council – it’s clear that they are doing an incredible job of keeping pace with the 65% increased demand for their services in the first six months of this financial year (since April 2009). And all this against the backdrop of decreased funding from Farnham Town Council, and a frozen pot of grant money at Waverley Borough Council for this coming round of applications.
At a Community Overview & Scrutiny meeting last year (the committee which advises full council on what grants should given to which applicants in areas that fall under its remit), I spoke about the need to make tough choices and to say no to a number of organisations in order to give CA more funds to directly benefit the most needy in our communities. Unfortunately there wasn’t agreement on this, and I continue to rue the fact that we didn’t have enough corporate backbone.
Ever the optimist, I hope that we can redress our shortcomings this year, and will be campaigning for an increased grant to CA.
5%
Tonight I’m attending the Community O&S committee (right now), and I’ve suggested that we recommend to the Executive that we increase the community themed organsation funding via the Waverley Community Partnership, by 5%.
Not achieved unfortunately, but, we did as a committee make a recommendation that the overall pool of money available is revisited, in order to increase it specifically with regard to greater increases for these community themed organisation.
There’s a few more opportunities to pursue this (Executive, and then full council), so watch this space.
Brand Battle
I’m blogging today in support of a charity called “Grassroots” that’s based in Rowledge, helping vulnerable communities in the UK and overseas, and yet finds itself subject to a potentially onerous, and certainly inappropriate, challenge to its identity, by our government.
It was only launched two weeks ago, but already Hugo and Sharon Anson are being called about information on the new central government initiative called “Grassroots Grants”. Not for a moment do I believe that this initiative is bad – it’s a great programme to match grant giving by local funders. But, I do believe that this is an example of a government behomoth that has neglected diligence by not ensuring that its good intentions do not overshadow or hinder the work already underway by other organisations.
Hugo and Sharon have written to Jeremy Hunt on this, and I do hope he can persuade someone to make it loud and clear that this new programme is definitely not the same as their own charity.
Conservative Councillor Compassion
A colleague of mine on the Borough Council sent a wonderfully compassionate and passionate email this week, about the immense challenges facing all of us in the coming recession, and stressing our responsibility to provide as much assistance as possible by way of free advice and training services.
[Writing such an email - appealing to the core nature of fellow councillors as individuals community representatives, and not as political animals - is not as easy as it may sound, and can feel as if it is a little risky and vulnerable.]
As the Waverley representative on the board of trustees of Citizens Advice Waverley, I completely agree, and will be campaigning vigourously for the CA Bureaux to be given as much financial help as possible these coming months, with the main emphasis on the grants given through the Waverley Community Partnership. The process has started, with the deadline for applications already passed, with decisions being made in February. It’s by far the main funding source for CA, and I believe that this year is not one where WBC can simply freeze the amount, or add a small nominal percentage.
Rather, I believe we’re going to have to make some tough decisions (precisly what – in part – we were elected to do) and choose not only to fund CA and other critical organisations more generously, but also to choose not to fund other groups that in many years past, and in years to come, will be natural and deserving recipients of grants from the council.
CA Waverley – Second to none
Wonderful news. I’ve just heard that CA Waverley were runners-up in the CAB Volunteer Team of the Year Award 2008. In her letter Hilary Watkins (Chair of Citizens Advice) describes this as “an outstanding achievement in a field of exceptional candidates”. Congratulations to all at CA Waverley on a great achievement, richly deserved.
